Author's Note

It's finally here! It's really, truly, finally here! The end of the first season, and by far the longest chapter I have ever written! It was as tricky as I expected it was gonna be to write, but I managed to pull through and get it out on the 18th like I predicted I would. It feels kind of odd putting it out so soon after I've completed it, but I'd rather you all not have to wait another weak for me to finish the first chapter of Action and rebuild my buffer.

Of course, before the chapter, there's still the loads of reviews that have come in since the finale to address:

ultrablud2: Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking with Shawn being the ultimate winner and Bridgette the runner-up. For Scarlett, Scott, Amy, Topher, and Mike...well, there's spoilers involved there, so I'll wait. Although Scarlett's vocabulary has been fairly easy for me - if anything, she hasn't been using enough big words. I actually have a Master's Degree in Environmental Science, so I'm pretty familiar with the formality and tone of scientific papers, which I think has helped me get the right feel for Scarlett's lines even though my personal vocabulary isn't the biggest.

TheCashewChef Hatchet: I'm glad you liked the finale! And I hope this special was worth the wait.

Sleep Arypsure: Yeah, I've gotten that a lot with how I did the ending. And you're welcome, writing this fic has been an amazing experience.

Cole D. soul: Thanks for the praise! And I hope you like the line-up I've chosen for next season...

80jj: Hmm...well, I wouldn't quite call it 'redemption'...and as for the two finales you asked about, I honestly haven't decided if I'm going to stick to canon, or try to find a way to give the whole cast a proper appearance. I'll try to lean towards the latter, but that's still gonna be a long ways away regardless.

Ddynamo: Ah, procrastination, the bane of authors and students alike. And yeah, I can see your point about Action - too many episodes, and not enough people to cause good drama. Hopefully I'll improve upon the canon in that regard.

Curcle: Well, from a Doylist perspective, Shawn won because I wanted him to. From a Watsonian point-of-view, however, he ultimately won because he mistook Scott for a zombie.

FOWLKON: Hmm...let's see, I won't talk spoil my plans for the Aftermath right now, but I suppose I can give away a little bit about my plans for World Tour: as of right now, there will likely continue to be three teams for a few more episodes than in canon. I haven't quite figured out the elimination order, though, so exactly how things turn out is still up in the air.

BuckJohnson: I'm glad you liked how I portrayed the characters, and of course the chapter itself!

acosta perez jose ramiro: Thanks, as always!

Madison Wooten: Thanks! Although I wouldn't quite call it a full 'plan' just yet...more like a bunch of things I want to happen, and a load of blanks that need filling in.

Knifez: Thank you so much! And you're pretty much right about Geoff - he was there in my head, but since I wanted the focus to be on Shawn I didn't have him jump out. It also helps that Scott didn't actually say anything to Bridgette. And yeah, the cut-and-paste-from-canon is something I still have to completely iron out. I feel it works in some points, especially to create a parallel or if I feel I need a good marker to keep track of where I was time-wise (as was the case with Alejandro's confessional in the finale). And one last thing: all subsequent seasons will be in separate fics, meaning this is the last time this particular story will be updated.

Identification: Ah, no problem, I didn't think you were demanding anything, I just wanted to make things clear because it's something that's come up a bunch in the reviews. I'm glad you liked the chapter and series even though Bridgette lost!

Impoik: I'm glad you understand. And yeah, I don't expect to reveal the WT newbies for another six months or so. As for Rebirth...well, I keep track of my current progress in my profile since the fic updates so slowly. It won't get another update soon, unfortunately, but at least you can keep up-to-date with its progress.

Lowland Warrior: Looks like it's finally time to take on your storm! Chapter 21: Thanks! I made a point to give everyone a few lines, except B for obvious reasons. Chapter 22: The dream was...kind of Shawn trying to figure out the others and their roles in the game, and realizing he didn't really get Scarlett, I guess? Chapter 23: Hah, yeah, I do try to describe things accurately and specifically if I can. And it was actually Duncan who found the egg in canon, though he did end up giving it to Gwen in exchange for a ride. And Scarlett's rank compared with her canon rank in Pahkitew Island was a coincidence, I assure you. Chapter 24: I considered showing a tranq dart in Shawn's butt or something, but realized he wouldn't be able to recover from that very quickly. I'm just gonna assume Chef drugged all four of them some other way, which also explains why Jo and Bridgette were suddenly sharing a bunk. Chapter 25: I'm glad you liked how I handled the shaving and Sugar's punch! Also, your velvet bean dare sounds like it would have been interesting. Chapter 26: Glad you liked the line with the intern, and Bridgette paralleling Gwen's confessional! Sorry you didn't get to have your favorite officially win, but them's the breaks I guess. And since I had already gotten the first two chapters finished before posting this story, it really is closer to six months total time to complete this fic. Thanks for the review storm!

Guest: Yup, pretty much! Thanks for the review!

Star Saber21: Thanks! And yeah, I actually hadn't been planning on having Jo kick Alejandro in the kiwis until writing it, and I was happy when I looked back to the first chapter and saw that I did indeed have Jo say the line to Alejandro. It makes for a fitting Brick Joke, I think.

DrakeyMerwin: Thanks! And yeah, when I was re-watching the two endings from the canon season it was pretty obvious what the point of divergence ultimately was.

theblondeknight45: Yeah, I like Alejandro too, but I did really want to push the similarities to the canon finale this time around. Don't worry, though, this is hardly the last you'll see of Alejandro Burromuerto.

Call Me Ishmael: Hmm...interesting predictions you have there. You'll have to wait until the very end of this chapter to see what happens though!

spader13: Well, I hope you make it all the way to the end right here and enjoy it all the way!

bruno14: Thanks! And you won't have to wait long, considering you posted your review just as I was finishing up the final edit of this chapter.

And with that, I am officially done answering reviews for this fic in chapters. Any reviews for this chapter will be answered personally via private message (if at all) in order to keep Total Shuffled Action from getting too cluttered.

All twenty-two campers are back in play this time, so get ready to see who makes it to the end and qualifies for next season!

- Fangren

Special Episode – Total Drama, Drama, Drama, Drama Island

The scene faded into a close-up of the 'Wawanakwa' sign at the Dock of Shame as the typical dramatic music began in the background. "Welcome back, to Total Drama Island!" Chris said, the camera pulling back to show him walking up to the sign from the tip of the pier. "It's been a long time since you last saw our campers slugging it out for the one hundred thousand dollar grand prize. Since the competition came to its shocking and dramatic conclusion, our campers have had some time to snack on some real food," he motioned to his right, the camera panning over to show Chef Hatchet grilling a steak in his swim trunks and inner tube and shooting a dirty look at the host, "no offense, Chef," the host told him before continuing where he had left off, "take a hot shower, get their stuff back, and even peruse their e-mails from home."

"There were losers," he quickly ducked under a toaster that was thrown at him from off-screen, "okay, lots of losers!" He paused to laugh. "But there was only one winner!" The scene flashed and showed a close-up of a photograph of the scruffy survivalist in the middle of decorating a cake; the camera pulled back to show it in Chris' hand. "Shawn, an only child and hardcore zombie theorist turned out to be the surprise champ!"

As the host continued, a montage of a few of the winner's characteristic moments were shown: him shrieking in fear, coming face-to-face with a sleeping bear, showing off his bunker blueprints, jumping down from a tree, and receiving the final marshmallow. "With his surprisingly situational knowledge, fitness, and ambition, he ended up with one massive prize! He's planning a wicked survival-themed party for all his fellow campers this winter," the montage continued, showing a buffet table set underneath a few palms and the campers cheering during the finale. "But first, they're gonna move their booties for one final pool-side wrap party," more scenes were shown, including the campers racing off in a group, then assembled by the pool at Playa Des Losers, and lastly the Boat of Losers speeding off from the Dock of Shame. "And tomorrow, everybody's headed for home!"

"Or are they?" Chris said with a wink back on the Dock of Shame. "Find out here, on Total! Drama! Island!"

xxx

(Fade to Opening Theme)

Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doin' fine;

You guys are on my mind!

Ya asked me what I wanted to be,

And now I think the answer is plain to see!

I wanna be...famous!

I wanna live close to the sun!

Well pack your bags, 'cause I've already won!

Everythin' to prove, nothin' in my way;

I'll get there one day.

'Cause I wanna be...famous!

(Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)

I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)

I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)

(Fade to Episode)

xxx

A hip-hop tune was playing as the episode began at the buffet table of Playa Des Losers. The camera panned across Chef as he manned the grill, Sugar popping marshmallows into her mouth, Ezekiel standing around on the far side of the table, and lastly Shawn and B fixing themselves a plate of food each. The bald boy had an oversized check tucked under his arm, and looked around him with a smile on his face.

"Man," he told the silent genius, "this is like the greatest party ever! Not like I have much experience, but still." B gave him a nod, and the two boys stepped aside as Lightning ran forward in his swim trunks and threw a flying disc across the pool.

The camera followed the spinning toy as it sailed through the air and was caught by a shirtless Geoff, who was hanging by the pool with Bridgette. Jo was standing in a one-piece swimsuit nearby, and Sierra was sunning herself in the background.

"I know what you mean, dude!" Geoff cheered eagerly, tossing the flying disc back across and slipping an arm around his girlfriend's waist. "It's so awesome that we can all just kick back and chill now without havin' to worry about strategy an' stuff."

"I know, right?" Bridgette added, putting her arms around Geoff's neck as they started to make out.

The camera followed the flying disc again as it crossed the pool and soared over the hot tub where Sam and Dakota were also displaying their affection. Lightning jumped for the disc and caught it easily, then immediately turned and threw it onwards. It flew past the island bar where Beardo and Beth were sitting, and was caught by a waiting Topher.

The host wannabe winked at the camera and twirled the disc in his hands. "And Topher makes the catch!"he announced, striking a few quick poses. "And next up, a trick shot to Jo like the cool guy he is!" He twirled it again, then spun around and sent it flying under his leg.

"Oh wow," Beth gushed as the camera focused on her and her friend, "he's really cute. I bet he could be a model!"

"I dunno," Beardo told her, "he's hot, but I think you gotta be like super hot to be a model. Like a real," he made an exaggerated wolf-whistle, "y'know?"

"I guess," Beth answered uncertainly, eyes still fixed on Topher as he jogged closer to the main pool. "But still, wouldn't it be super cool if there was a model on the show?" Beardo smiled and nodded.

xxx

"I am like sooo glad that's all over with," Beth said in the outhouse confessional, "because now I get to focus on getting to know all my new friends without having to worry about the competition!"

xxx

A disco theme began to play as the focus cut back to Chef as he skewered the steak he'd been cooking, took a deep whiff of its smell, and put it back on the grill with a happy sigh. He danced a bit as it sizzled, and the camera panned over to Sugar gorging herself at the buffet as Scott and Ezekiel watched nearby.

"How can you eat that much?" Scott asked in plain disgust after watching Sugar slide an entire tray of marshmallows into her mouth.

"Easy," the pageant queen spat through her filled mouth. She paused a moment to chew, the noise and stray flecks of spit more than enough to gross out both the farmer and the homeschooler. She finally swallowed, and finished saying "You just gotta put stuff in your mouth and chew!" She immediately grabbed a sandwich off the table and bit into it.

"Jeez, it's like she has a garbage disposal in there," Scott muttered under his breath.

"I dunno," Ezekiel said obliviously, "I'm pretty sure a garbage disposal'd need some kinda power supply, eh."

Both Scott and Sugar looked at the toque wearer, the latter confused and the former embarrassed. "Uh, what I meant was that you have a strong stomach," the farmer said quickly. "A large strong stomach."

"Probably," Sugar shrugged. "Mama always did say I got the stomach of a raccoon. Maybe it's cause I eat a lotta raccoon? They do say you are what you eat, y'know."

"I think that's just a sayin', yo," Ezekiel said, scratching his head in thought.

"Yeah," Scott added, "and besides, I've eaten plenty of raccoon, and I don't think I could eat half as much as you."

"Huh, I guess you're right," Sugar told them after a bit of thought while quickly finishing off her sandwich. "That sayin' can't be true, otherwise we'd all just be some kinda mixed-up freaks on account of eatin' so much different stuff! I guess that just means there's another reason why I'm awesome." She smiled, and gave her exposed midriff a pat.

"Uh, sure...," Scott told her uncertainly.

"Too bad you weren't in that eatin' contest awhile back," Ezekiel told her. "I bet you'd win for sure, eh!"

"Pfft," Sugar scoffed, "that's all in the past." She stepped closer to the boy and put her arm around his shoulder. "You gotta keep your eye on the pageants of the future!" As she spoke, she moved her hand across their field of view as though revealing the world to him, and Ezekiel nodded eagerly.

xxx

"The 'pageants of the future'?" Scott repeated in disbelief, alone in the outhouse. "There is no future!" he said. "We lost! And this wasn't even a pageant!"

xxx

The hip-hop music began again as the focus was placed on Sammy, DJ, and Dawn as they danced together by the pool. They were like that for a few seconds before Bunny hopped into view, and wiggled his nose at the trio.

"Hmm?" Dawn said, turning away from her friends and crouching down in front of the rabbit. "What was that?" Bunny looked at her with his big eyes and wiggled his nose again. "Alright little one, I'll assist you," Dawn said with a smile and a pat on the head before scooping him up. "Friends," she told DJ and Sammy who paused their dance to listen, "Bunny is hungry, so I will leave for a few minutes to give him his food."

The brickhouse and cheerleader looked at each other before DJ said "We can come with you if you'd like."

"Oh, there's no need for that," Dawn answered sheepishly. "Please, keep enjoying yourselves." She turned and headed inside before they could say anything else, leading DJ to shrug and turn back to his other friend.

"Huh, wonder what that was about?" the gentle giant pondered. "Guess there's no reason we can't keep partyin' though."

"Actually," Sammy interrupted as he started to dance again, rubbing her arm anxiously and not meeting his gaze. "I've been meaning to talk to you, like, alone..." At that word, the hip-hop beat was replaced by a more touching piece.

DJ blushed immediately. "O-oh, really?" he squeaked. "Why's that?"

Sammy frowned and looked him in the eye. "Stop it, DJ," she told him with a surprising amount of force, "please. You have to know what I'm talking about, and I'm tired of you and Dawn avoiding it all the time."

DJ looked at her, sighed, and slumped. "Sorry," he said, "it's just been kinda...awkward, y'know? I've never had to deal with somethin' like this!"

Sammy sighed sadly and looked away. "Yeah, I thought so. I guess I really didn't hear what I thought I heard you say."

The gentle giant raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What are you talkin' about?"

"Well," the cheerleader blushed, "it's just that I could've sworn you said that you l-loved me during the horror movie challenge, and..."

"I did say that," DJ corrected her, "and I said I liked Dawn, too! And then you kissed me on the docks, and then I found out that Dawn heard as well, and it's just all been so confusin'!"

Sammy blinked, as the realization hit her. "Oh...OH! Yeah, that makes way more sense...guess I should've known...you must think I'm-"

"Nah," DJ cut her off, "it's not your fault you never found out 'til now, so don't be hard on yourself."

"Thanks," Sammy smiled before falling into an awkward silence. "So, uh," she rubbed her arm again, "you like me and Dawn, huh?"

"Yeah," DJ answered sheepishly. "Sorry, but I don't wanna start datin' anyone until I get that figured out. We cool?" Sammy smiled and nodded. "Good, 'cause I gotta go use the bathroom. We can talk more later, okay?"

"...okay," Sammy told him after he already started walking away.

xxx

"Well," the nice twin admitted with a blush, "looks like me and DJ have more in common than I thought! We both like Dawn, though, so I don't know how this is gonna work out..." She sighed deeply. "Well, as long as we keep being friends, that's the important part, right?" she asked the camera, her voice filled with uncertainty.

xxx

Bridgette and Geoff had sat down on the edge of the pool since they were last seen on-camera, and were passionately making out. "You have no idea how happy I am to have met you and the others," the surfer said in a pause between kisses. "It makes all of this worthwhile."

"I feel the same way, babe!" Geoff told her breathlessly. "I came here hopin' I was gonna party with some awesome new peeps, and here I am doin' just that! And you're the best one of all, Bridge!"

"Aww, that's so sweet!" the surfer cooed. She tried to get another quick kiss in on his lips, but a passing flying disc caused him to move his head, her to miss, and the two blondes to knock their foreheads together. "Sorry!" she gasped, suddenly leaning in and knocking him off-balance; the party boy tried to right himself but overcompensated, and the pair toppled into the pool. The exchanged a glance, and began to laugh.

The camera moved to Jo as she pursed her lips and began to spin around with the flying disc firmly in her hands, eventually throwing it out like a discus. The camera followed it as it rocketed across the surface of the pool and was intercepted by Lightning in a diving catch.

"That the best you got?" the overachiever exclaimed as he returned the throw; it ended up skimming the water and veering off-course, hitting B upside the head as his back was turned.

He fell over and the camera moved over to Sierra and Topher laying nearby with a noticeable two-chair gap between them. "Oh em gee," the tall girl gasped, sitting up and pointing at her fallen former teammate. "What did you do to him?"

"He didn't do anything!" Topher told her incredulously. "It was clearly unintentional, almost disappointingly so."

"Uggh," Sierra huffed, "that is so like you, all you care about is causing drama."

Topher gasped. "Okay, that is completely not true," he objected. "I care about my looks, too!"

Sierra rolled her eyes and the camera's focus moved towards B, still lying face-down on the ground. "Oh my!" Dawn gasped, the camera panning up to her shocked expression as she gently put Bunny on the ground and darted over to the silent genius. "Not to worry, I'll help you!" She quickly positioned herself close to the ground and pushed up against the silent genius' bulk with her shoulder. The background music rose as she grunted with effort, reaching a triumphant peak as the diminutive mystic managed to flip B onto his back.

"There there," she said, kneeling down where B had been, "you're safe now." The camera zoomed in on hand hand she'd laid on the ground, showing a ladybug trembling and with a leg in tiny bandages. The viewpoint returned to normal as Dawn noticed the fallen genius begin to stir. "Oh, and I'm quite glad to see you're okay too, B!" she told him as he shook the stars out of his eyes.

The camera zoomed out again just as Scarlett walked by with her eyes shut, teeth clenched, and hands over her ears. She was followed by none other than Staci.

"So that was when my great-Uncle Horace invented the toaster, yah," Staci said. "He did it so he could makes BLTs more quickly. But because of that invention, my second-cousin Mable was able to come up with frozen waffles, which really revolutionized the breakfast industry." She didn't notice Scarlett's eyes open and flash red as she made a strangling motion with her hands. "And don't even get me started on those little mini-bagels, like, my family really made those what they are. Hey, why don't you come check out my family tree later? It has all of their accomplishments, yah."

"No," Scarlett told her bluntly, "I have absolutely no desire to read such a thing." She sped up before Staci could continue, and the two girls walked past Sam and Dakota in the hot tub. Although they were still making out, they also had their signature electronic devices firmly in their hands – a portable game console in Sam's, and a cellphone in Dakota's. Every so often they would stop kissing in order to rapidly move their thumbs, the telltale sounds of text messages and RPG battle music filling the air.

"Hey, cool, finally beat that boss!" Sam said, the music coming from his console changing.

"Ooh, congratulations!" Dakota told him. "And I just heard from January that she finally broke up with that jerk Miles."

"Good for her," Sam said, and they started to kiss again.

Lightning ran past them and tossed the flying disc again, then turned his head and noticed Amy sulking by herself in a corner. "What's up, girl?" he greeted. "Why aren't you partyin' with the others?"

"Why should I?" the mean twin huffed. "It's not like there's anything worth celebrating. Daddy's lawyer buddies already told me that there's no evidence that Samey cheated, so she gets off the hook and I don't get a thing, which is just wrong! And to top it all off, people think I was making out in the bushes with Scott! I mean, gag me with a rope, have you seen that guy?"

"Oh yeah!" Lightning said in remembrance, his face quickly falling into a questioning frown. "You sure that's not what you were doin'?"

"For the last time," she hissed angrily, "yes! All I wanna do right now is go back home, where people actually do what I say and Samey never gets what she wants." She crossed her arms and pouted, turning her face away from Lightning.

"Well, uh, at least you're gonna be doin' that soon!" he told her, getting no response. He scratched his arm nervously, then pointed over his shouler. "Uhh...Lightning's just gonna go now..." Amy huffed, Lightning left, and the camera moved across the pool again.

Bridgette and Geoff had gotten back out of the pool and were joined by Shawn while toweling themselves off. Alejandro walked by then as well, preoccupied with looking at his tarnished smile in a hand mirror. The three stifled a laugh as the charmer turned and they saw the gap in his teeth, and he gave them a dirty look.

xxx

"I assure you," Alejandro told the confessional camera with a serious expression, "I will have the last laugh over this. Between the unclear elimination rules and the assault on my beautiful face, my lawyers and I have more than enough ammunition to file a lawsuit against the show, and possibly press charges against Chef Hatchet as well. I may not have won Total Drama, but I will get my money."

xxx

Three deep and dramatic notes were played over the loudspeaker, the tune continuing in the background as several of the teens were showing looking around in alert – Dawn and B, Beth and Beardo, Sam and Dakota, and DJ and Sammy. The camera cut to a close-up of a silver suitcase carried at Chris McLean's side; based on his posture and strained grin it was quite heavy. Chef Hatchet snatched the oversized check away from Shawn, and Chris set the briefcase down with a grunt of effort near Amy and Lightning.

"Hello, campers!" he greeted cheerfully.

"Um, I think you mean ex-campers," Amy corrected in a bratty tone, "duh."

"Amy's right," Alejandro added. "Your little game is over, and so is our role in it."

"We'll see about that," Chris whispered offhandedly to Chef, the pair snickering to themselves before the host continued. "Congratulations to our winner," Chris said as triumphant music began to play. "Shawn, you played hard," a quick montage started to play of the survivalist attacking the horde of fake zombies; taking a bite out of a bull testicle; and shouting in terror at the sight of an injured Scott, "fought hard, ate hard, and screamed harder. Not sure why," the host said as the montage ended, "but you beat every other person on this island, and your pockets will soon be stuffed with ched-dar!"

The camera pulled back as Chef raised the oversized check in celebration and nearly all the campers cheered for the bald boy's victory once again. "Th-thanks," he said with a sheepish blush.

"But what I'm about to offer you may change all that!" Chris interrupted, a gong ringing softly as he motioned to the case in Chef's hands. "Inside this suitcase," he said as the hulking cook raised it high, "is One! Million! Dollars!" Each word was accompanied by a gleam from the case as the camera focused in on it and the music became tense. "We had our PAs make a cardboard check of this awesome new prize," he said as a massive shadow fell on Shawn, Geoff, Bridgette, Alejandro, and the two adults. The camera cut to the corner of the check moving across the sun, the ground shaking as it was pushed past the pool of Playa Des Losers as Dawn, DJ, Sammy, B, Jo, and Topher watched in horror, and a final cut to the island from a distance revealing it to be about half the height of the tallest hill on the island. "WE WENT THROUGH A LOT OF CARDBOARD TO MAKE THIS!" Chris yelled over the shot of the gigantic prop, his voice echoing over the sheer distance.

"Shawn my man," the host put a hand on the uncertain-looking boy's shoulder, "this million dollars could be yours, all you have to do is figure out where we are about to hide it, and bring it to the Dock of Shame before anyone else does!" Shawn's jaw dropped at the implication.

"To clarify," Scarlett spoke up, "all of us have the opportunity to win this new prize?"

"Yup!" Chris answered with a smile. "What do you say, Shawn? Will you settle for a hundred Gs?" he pointed to the original check, still in Chef's possession. "Or...ONE! MILLION! DOLLARS!" He pointed again to the giant check, the camera zooming out to show the prop dwarfing the nearby campers.

Shawn looked at it nervously, biting his lip then chewing his fingernails as the pressure built. He began to sweat and tremble as he opened his mouth to speak. "I...," he began, and twenty-three people leaned closer in anticipation. "I...I'll do it!" he finished with a cheer.

Chris winked at Chef, and the hulking man immediately smiled and tore the original check in two. "That's the spirit, Shawn!" the host said as an unnamed white man dressed in white and green, an orange cap, and headphones walked up and silently took the suitcase away. "Throughout the day, I'll give you all hints from the loudspeakers just to make sure you're not completely lost."

xxx

"Well now," Scott grinned devilishly and rubbed his hands together, "this just got interesting again."

xxx

"Alright campers," Chris told the teens, "the ultimate million-dollar challenge starts," he held up a starting pistol, causing Shawn and Chef to flinch, "NOW!" He fired, and the cork bullet hit a passing seagull in the chest.

Shawn cheered, ignoring the bird that dropped a few feet away. "Zombie bunker, here I come!" he exclaimed, running off at top speed.

Chris and Chef looked at the others, none of whom seemed the least bit excited – Amy, Lightning, Beth, Beardo, Sam and Dakota by the hot tub; B, Dawn, DJ, Sammy, Jo, Topher, and Scarlett by the pool; Bridgette, Geoff, Alejandro, Sierra, Scott, and Ezekiel a little further on; and Sugar and Staci near the buffet table – and in fact they were all glaring at the two men.

"If I may summarize the current situation," Scarlett spoke up, stepping forward and crossing her arms sternly, "after we have spent approximately eight weeks competing for a cash prize, you have now rendered that competition meaningless by allowing its winner to gamble his winnings on a larger prize."

"Pretty much," Chris shrugged.

"And since we all know how deceitful you are," Alejandro added, "there's no guarantee that there actually is a million dollars in that suitcase, or that any of us will even be able to win it."

"That's right," the host nodded.

"Like we're just gonna start running around the island again" Bridgette told him.

"Yeah," Sugar chuckled, "why'd we wanna go out an' make fools of ourselves again anyways?"

"Uggh," Amy growled, "this is obviously just another trick to make us look bad."

"Hey, if that's what you guys wanna tell yourselves!" Chris told them all with a shrug. "After all, I bet Shawn will be pretty happy to have no competition as he makes the easiest million dollars in TV history."

"Fine!" DJ told him.

"Fine!" Bridgette added.

"Yeah, what they said," Scott sneered.

Chris looked around at the annoyed campers again, and then the scene cut to the distance shot of the island as Shawn exclaimed "WOOHOO~! TIME TO MAKE MY DREAMS COME TRUE!"

The cry echoed around the resort. Beth and Beardo looked suddenly sheepish, Scott tried to whistle nonchalantly as he inched away from the group, DJ, Sammy, and Dawn shared a glance, Sugar's chuckling became slower and more nervous, and Alejandro donned a devilish smirk.

All at once, nineteen teenagers stampeded past a wary-looking Chris and Chef. A crash was overheard once they disappeared off-camera, and the shot panned over to show them in a jumbled heap, fighting to free themselves. Chris smiled, and Chef let out a piercing whistle that forced and end to the campers argument as they looked in his direction.

"Hey! I've got an idea!" Beth suggested from the top of the pile after a moment of silence. "Let's work together as a team! We can split the prize twenty-two ways and share it!"

There was another moment of silence before the teens started to argue and struggle again. Chris cringed, and the camera focused on Lightning trying to dislodge himself from the middle of the pile. A light-skinned hand grabbed him by the elbow and pulled him out, quickly revealed to be a smirking Amy.

"Alright, lover," she told the jock, "let's go get that million."

"Cool!" Lightning said happily. "Hey, does this mean we're back together?"

The mean twin gave him a sly smile. "You help me get that million," she said, "and we'll talk." She turned and walked away with a sway in her step that made the athlete's face light up.

"Oh yeah!" he cheered, pumping his fist. "Lightning's gonna score big time once he gets that million dollars!"

xxx

"Man, all of Lightning's other girlfriends were borin'," the overachiever told the confessional camera. "Always goin' on about how great I am, like I don't already know! Not Amy, though, she does other stuff, too. Like tell me to do stuff!" His brow suddenly furrowed in contemplation. "Wait..."

xxx

/

The island was shown from a distance again before the scene cut to Jo putting an arm around the shoulders of Sierra and Sugar. "Ladies," she told them," this is your lucky day, 'cause with me on your side that million is a sure thing!"

"Ain't you just gonna try to take it all for yourself once we find it though?" Sugar questioned.

"Yeah," Sierra added, "how do we know you're not gonna double-cross us later?"

"You don't," the jock-ette answered bluntly, surprising both other girls. "But on the same note, you can always try to double-cross me first. And besides, three sets of eyes can search faster than one, so we're better off working together, at least for now."

"Huh, good point," Sugar said. "I'm in!"

The two young women looked to their third, who pursed her lips in annoyance. "Fine," Sierra told them haughtily, "but only because it looks like I have no choice."

/

A cut showed a high-five between Scott and Alejandro, who were accompanied by Ezekiel and Topher respectively. "Then it's agreed," the charmer said. "The four of us will cooperate to find the money, and split it four ways."

"Agreed," the other three said in unison, all grinning happily – though Scott's had a devilish tinge to it.

"In that case, gentleman, let us be on our way," Alejandro told them, taking the lead into the forest. The four passed by Scarlett, who was heading in the opposite direction, and the charmer paused to look back at her. "I hope you don't expect to succeed working by yourself."

"It's a calculated risk," the redhead replied after adjusting her glasses. "Although working alone lowers my chance of obtaining the suitcase in several scenarios, not having someone expecting you to split the money with them makes a solo approach the more desirable one. But by all means, continue to cooperate, I have no interest in stopping you."

"...very well," Alejandro told her with a suspicious look as she walked off.

/

"Do you wanna be my team member?" Beth asked Beardo as she helped him up off the ground. The hairy boy gave her a thumbs-up and made the sound of a bell dinging, then she turned to the other large black boy standing up nearby. "Ooh, and you too, B!" The silent genius looked at the braces-wearing girl in mild surprise. "That way," she continued, "we could be Team BBB! Team Beth, Beardo, and B!"

B was shown rubbing his chin in contemplation for a moment before smirking happily and nodding. "Yay!" Beth cheered, jumping up and down and clapping.

"Right on, brother," Beardo told his new teammate, and the two bumped fists. "Welcome aboard! Now let's get this gravy train movin'." He mimicked the sound of a train whistle, complete with the accompanying arm movement, transitioning into the noise of a train pulling out from a station as he, Beth, and B headed into the woods.

xxx

"So, uh," Shawn admitted in the outhouse, rubbing the back of his head and not looking at the camera, "I may have jumped the gun a bit on this one. As much as I'm confident I could beat any one of the others to the million, I don't think I can beat all of them. But hey," he shrugged helplessly, "I was offered a chance at realizing my dream, I had to take it!"

xxx

"Well, mister," Bridgette asked with a smirk, "wanna split a million with me?"

"Oh, you're not just a babe," Geoff told her with a short laugh, "you're an uber-babe!" He moved into embrace his girlfriend, but she put her hands out and stopped him.

"Not right now, Geoff," she told him, "we can't let everyone get ahead of us."

"Oh," the party lover replied with a disappointed look, "gotcha." His frown quickly turned into an excited grin, though, as he added "Then let's go do this!" He put an arm around Bridgette, and she giggled as they began to walk.

They only went a few steps before a rustling in the trees gave them pause, and Shawn dropped to the ground in front of them. "Oh, man," he groaned distractedly, his back turned on the blondes, "I can't believe everyone's going after it! How the heck am I supposed to find it first?"

Bridgette and Geoff exchanged a look of surprise before the surfer spoke up. "Well, we could help you look for it," she suggested.

"Huh?" Shawn said, turning around and finally noticing the couple. "Oh, uh, thanks for the offer, but I was kinda hoping to do this on my own. I mean," he scratched his head, "I was fine splitting up the money a bit when it was just a hundred grand since I was gonna need to raise a lot more anyway, but I really do need the whole million for my bunker, and I can't ask you two to give up your shares if you do help me get it."

The surfer and party boy exchanged another look. "I'm fine with takin' a smaller share, how 'bout you, Bridge?" Geoff asked.

"Yeah, fine with me," Bridgette answered. "How about 80-10-10? That way me and Geoff still get as much as the original prize money, and you get most of the way to your goal."

"You're...really okay with that?" Shawn asked with hopeful cautiousness. The two nodded, and he smiled. "Thanks! You have no idea how much that means to me. Now come on, I think we should search over here first!" He pointed a thumb over his shoulder, and lead the way for his new teammates.

The camera lingered in the area as Dawn, Sammy, and DJ walked into view. "Wow," the nice twin said, "I can't believe we're getting another chance at winning!"

"Well, as long as Chris wasn't lyin' to us about the whole thing," the gentle giant added.

"I don't think he did," the mystic told them. "At least, not exactly...his aura clearly showed that he wasn't telling us the whole truth, but he didn't seem to be lying about the contents of that suitcase."

"Yeah, that figures," DJ said with a nod.

Sammy sighed. "Why can't things ever be simple..."

The trio walked off, but the camera lingered in the area long enough to catch Scarlett peeking her head out from behind a tree behind where they had been standing.

"Hmm...," she thought to herself, making notes on a clipboard. "Several possibilities...but which one to follow?"

"Hi!" the sudden greeting startled the brainiac, causing her to fumble and nearly drop her pen and notes.

"What?" Scarlett hissed, turning around to face Staci.

"Yah, well, I noticed that everyone else was partnering up and stuff, and then I saw you walking alone so I thought, like, we should totally work together!" the chatterbox explained quickly and happily.

"No thank you," Scarlett responded coldly, turning around and walking off.

"But, like, why not?" Staci asked, quickly following the increasingly-annoyed redhead. "I mean, isn't it better to work together so we find the money faster?"

"Perhaps," Scarlett conceded with a roll of her eyes, "but I've already planned for that, and it doesn't involve you." She shot the other girl a glare, then turned on her heel and stomped off.

Staci looked around nervously for a moment, then followed after her.

xxx

"My plan," Scarlett smugly explained in the outhouse, "is to follow whichever group has the greatest likelihood of finding the suitcase, and then take it from them when an opportunity presents itself. Unfortunately," she continued, her expression turning into annoyance as she pinched the bridge of her nose, "I can't do that with Staci following me. Her incessant blathering is sure to give away my location!"

xxx

/

The scene moved back to the hot tub of Playa Des Losers, where Dakota and Sam were still soaking. Dakota was happily absorbed in her cellphone-based social life, while her gamer boyfriend had set aside his console and was looking at her uneasily.

"So," he began awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck, "aren't we gonna, like, go find that suitcase like the others?"

"Why?" Dakota asked, tearing her eyes away from her texts to give Sam a confused look. "I don't wanna get sweaty again, especially since I don't even need the money."

"Uh, well," the gamer continued, looking away sheepishly, "you might not, but I wouldn't mind getting my hands on a million of my own."

"Oh, right!" Dakota said in realization. "Sorry, I didn't think of it that way. Wanna, um, go look for it together?"

"Heck yeah I do!" Sam said, his facing lighting up into a grin. "Thanks Dakota, you're an angel," he told her, planting a kiss on her cheek that made her blush and giggle as they climbed out of the water.

/

The chorus of the opening theme began to play as the eight groups of campers were shown walking through a single clearing in various directions and at various times. Entering from the right, Shawn led Bridgette quickly through the woods while Geoff trailed behind at a slower pace; closer to the camera, Jo charged forward from the left with Sierra and Sugar following; Dawn, DJ, and Sammy popped up in front of the camera, looked around, and exited to the left; Alejandro led the three boys he was with along the same course Jo's group had taken; Beth and Beardo appeared from the same direction a few moments later and closer to the camera, they paused to wait for the slow-walking B then decided to turn around once they'd regrouped; Sam and Dakota slowly walked across the clearing from the right; Scarlett popped up far in the background and looked around for a bit before Staci popped up next to her and the two girls ducked back into the bushes; and Lightning carried Amy piggyback as they ran across from the left, the cheerleader eagerly pointing forward.

The scene switched to a shot of the island from a distance as the chorus ended.

(Fade to Commercial and Back)

"Okay, this is pathetic, campers!" Chris announced over the long-distance shot of the island before the camera cut to a blaring loudspeaker. "It's been two hours now, and no one has even come close to finding the suitcase! So here's your first clue," the host said calmly. "It's just...hangin' around!"

As the clue was given, the scene cut to Sam and Dakota taking a casual pace through the woods, both with their thumbs on their devices.

"Man," Sam commented as the sounds of his console came to a pause, "this sure is taking a long time. Usually when you're looking for something in a video game it's a little more obvious, but I guess that isn't how it works in the real world."

"Huh?" Dakota asked, looking up from her phone. "Oh, don't worry about that," she said after looking at her boyfriend's face, "I already have a plan!"

"You do?" the gamer asked in mild bewilderment. "Really?"

"Of course!" the heiress answered perkily, quickly sending another text before closing her phone. "Now we just have to wait here for a little bit, and..."

As though on cue, the bushes around the rustled and four adult men bearing cameras emerged and started taking pictures. "Hi, boys!" Dakota told them as she struck a few quick poses. "I don't suppose you could help me find something, could you?" She batted her eyes at them and giggled.

The four paparazzi stopped taking pictures and looked at each other. "Uh, sorry, Dakota," the largest one said, "but Mr. McLean said we could only come back here if we agreed not to help you in the challenge."

"Oh darn," Dakota pouted, crossing her arms and looking away. "Well in that case, you might as well leave...after taking a few more pictures, of course." She smiled at them again and began to pose, the four men eagerly taking photo after photo.

"Well, I guess it was worth a shot..." Sam sighed.

/

"Man, I never knew really realized how huge this island was before today!" DJ said as he walked along with Sammy and Dawn. "How the heck are we supposed to find the money?"

"Well," the cheerleader replied with a bit of thought, "it's supposed to be hanging from something, so I bet if we keep looking in the trees we'll find it eventually, right?"

"Probably," Dawn told her, earning a smile from the girl. "At least, if nobody else finds it first. You two should keep looking, I'll see if the creatures of the forest have seen anything."

"Oh, good idea!" Sammy said, scanning the tree branches with DJ while the mystic motioned to a nearby squirrel.

xxx

"So, I've been trying to be more useful to Dawn and DJ so I don't hold them back," Sammy admitted sheepishly in the outhouse. "I mean, like, Dawn can read auras and talk to animals and stuff, and even though he doesn't show it much DJ's, like, super strong. I don't really know what I can do, but I don't want Amy to be right about me being, um, useless..."

xxx

"Ooh, look!" a sudden voice said, startling away the squirrel Dawn had been trying to speak to and earning the trio's attention. "If it isn't my little sister Samey and her loser friends," Amy said meanly as she came into view on Lightning's back. "Hey," she snapped at the jock, "stop here so I can get down!"

Lightning obliged with a frown, skidding to a halt and allowing the mean girl to dismount and walk over to her twin's group. "I hope you don't seriously expect to find that suitcase, Samey," Amy taunted. "Because me and Lightning are gonna get it first, got it? In fact, you three are never even gonna get to see the money!"

"Why don't you just leave us alone?" DJ said, stepping forward angrily. "Just go look somewhere else!"

"Umm," Amy pretended to think for a moment before turning a malicious smile towards the gentle giant, "how about not. I'll look wherever I want to, and you can't do anything to change that. Although I don't see why you're even bothering with Samey on your team, she can't even defend herself let alone find a suitcase in the woods."

DJ was flustered, Dawn was glaring silently, and so it was Sammy who spoke up first. "Hey, look!" she exclaimed excitedly, pointing behind her sister. "Isn't that the case over there?"

"Where?!" Amy gasped, quickly shoving her twin to the ground and running off in the direction Sammy had been pointing. "Come on, Lightning, hurry up!" she called with a hint of anger.

"Sha-later, suckas!" the overachiever told the three before running off as well.

A moment passed as Dawn, DJ, and a smiling Sammy regrouped. "Why'd you have to tell them where the money was?" DJ asked in confusion.

"I didn't," Sammy said, finally bursting into giggling laughter. Her two friends quickly caught on and smiled as well.

"That was wonderful," Dawn said, hugging the taller girl. "I can already sense your aura shifting. Soon, your sister will have no hold over you!"

"Thanks," Sammy answered with a faint blush.

/

The scene cut to the suitcase hanging by a rope from a tall tree. Zooming out and panning down, the camera revealed that the tree stood somewhere along the riverbank, and more importantly that Beth, Beardo, and B were walking right under it.

"So anyway," Beth told her teammates, "my Uncle ended up having to just cut the chicken wire, and since I had to go to the orthodontist anyway, I just got my braces fixed then! But you would not believe how much of a hassle it was."

Beardo held his hands out like he was holding a power tool and mimicked the sound of a drill whirring, then switched to the noise of a jackhammer, complete with stance and vibrations – the sound startled B just a bit and he looked up, brow raising when he spotted the case. "Right?" Beardo finished with a smirk.

"Oh, totally!" Beth answered with a vigorous nod. She and her hairy friend were about to leave before B grabbed their arms and pulled them back.

"What's up?" Beardo asked, and the silent genius responded by vigorously pointing above them.

"Oh my gosh!" the farmgirl gasped. "It's the case!" She started to squeal and jump up and down while Beardo made a short victory fanfare. "Now how do we get it down?" Beth added after a moment, and the three cast inquisitive looks up at the tree.

An ominous tune played as the camera zoomed past them to a boulder in the background. Scarlett poked her head up from behind it, smirked devilishly, and rubbed her hands together. Staci popped up next to her and opened her mouth too, but Scarlett immediately pursed her lips and slapped a hand over it.

The camera cut to Chris and Chef in their red helicopter, the host leaning out to get a better look while the cook piloted. "Finally!" the handsome said in exasperation. "This was getting ridiculous!"

/

"So yeah," Sierra explained as the scene moved to her, Sugar, and Jo as the latter parted a bush aside and looked at the tree behind it, "even though all the critics gave it really bad reviews and it totally bombed in theaters..."

"Uh huh," Jo said distractedly as she looked behind a tree.

"...my mom's always considered it one of the greatest movies of all time, and I kinda see what she's talking about, like, Chris so should have won an award for it," Sierra continued without missing a beat, "and-"

"Yeah, I'm gonna have to stop you there," Jo told her, turning away from the branch she had been trying to reach. "As much as I like having dirt on Chris McLean, I kinda need to focus right now, so I'd appreciate it if you cut the chatter." She turned back to her tree and paused. "Actually, speaking of annoying sounds, you've been oddly quiet lately," Jo added, casting a suspicious eye on Sugar. "Got anything you'd like to share?"

Sugar rubbed her chin in thought for a few seconds then shrugged. "Not really," she told the other two, "just thought it was a neat story is all. Oh, and all that buffet food is startin' to work it's way through," she pointed a thumb over her shoulder, "so I'm gonna go use the little girl's room. Or I guess the bush, since there ain't no rooms out here."

Jo pursed her lips in annoyance. "Make it quick," the jock-ette said. "In the meantime, Sierra and I will split up and search in different areas. We'll meet back here in five minutes, got it?"

"Got it," Sierra repeated with a nod.

"I'll try," Sugar shrugged. Jo rolled her eyes, and the three young women parted ways.

xxx

"Uggh," Jo groaned, smacking herself in the forehead. "Could somebody remind why I teamed up with those two? I've seen more useful people stuffed in lockers. At least I managed to get away from them for little while."

xxx

The camera followed Jo as she walked through the woods a bit, scanning around and above her for the suitcase. The sound of a twig snapping got her attention, and after turning left and walking a few more paces she heard voices and ducked behind a tree. Cautiously, she peered out from hiding and grinned.

Shawn, Bridgette, and Geoff were huddled over a spot on the ground, the bald survivalist scratching something in the dirt with a long stick.

"Okay," he said," we've covered pretty much the whole northwestern part of the island without finding a thing. I think we should keep going along the western coast, starting with the giant cliff and working around towards camp. What do you guys think?"

"Seems like a good idea to me," Bridgette answered. "Geoff, how's your ankle holding up? You can keep moving, right?"

The camera zoomed in on the party boy's left ankle, which looked slightly red and swollen. "Yeah, I'm good," Geoff told his girlfriend. "Who'd have guessed it would still be so bad a few days after the finale?"

"Well, I'm glad you can still keep going," the surfer told him with a kiss on the cheek. "Just don't push yourself too hard, okay?"

"No worries, Bridge!" Geoff said happily. "You know you can always count on me! Now c'mon, let's get back to the beach!" He led the way with a smile on his face, and Bridgette and Shawn followed after a moment.

The camera cut back to Jo, still hiding behind a tree and now rubbing her chin in thought.

/

Another cut put the focus on Ezekiel, picking his nose while walking at a fairly casual pace. He withdrew his finger after a few seconds, examined the booger at the end of it, then wiped it on his pants. The camera panned to the right, past Scott and Topher, and showed Alejandro looking back at the homeschooler and shuddering in disgust.

/

The scene moved back to Beardo, Beth, and B as they studied the suitcase hanging above them.

"I wish I was better at climbing trees," Beth commented as the camera zoomed in on the silent member of the group.

"I know how you feel," Beardo added while the camera followed B's view of the surrounding area – aside from the river nearby and a few scattered boulders, trees, and bushes, there wasn't much to work with. "If only we had some other way to get up there."

"Yeah, like a ladder," the farmgirl said as B shrugged to himself and opened his coat, revealing a variety of hand tools stored in the liner. He withdrew a hacksaw after a moment's deliberation, then walked off-screen.

"Or somethin'," Beardo made a springing noise, "like maybe a trampoline." B appeared again, rolling a large boulder closer to the tree his teammates were standing under. The pair noticed fairly quickly, exchanging a confused look but moving to aide the young man nonetheless.

"So why'd you want this rock here?" Beth asked once the three stopped, and B pointed up – the camera followed, revealing the suitcase just above them. "Oh!"

The beatboxer climbed on top of the rock with B's assistance, and after she received the hacksaw he helped Beth up onto his shoulders. The silent genius gestured for her to cut as high as she possibly could, and a few moments later the triumphant music that had been building finally peaked as the rope snapped. "We did it!" Beth cheered as she climbed back down to the ground. "We got the money!" Beardo cheered as well, while B silently gathered up the length of rope that had been attached to the case.

/

The scene moved to Scarlett and Staci, still watching from a distant hiding spot.

"Oh no," Staci said in disappointment, "looks like we lost!"

"Not quite," Scarlett replied with a confident smirk. "Although they may have gotten the suitcase first, they still need to take it to the Dock of Shame in order to actually win."

"Ohh, yah, I getcha," the chatterbox nodded. Scarlett grabbed her by the collar and forced her to hide again, then adjusted her glasses and donned a devilish grin.

"I have an idea," she began in a whisper. "How about you go out there and distract them, while I sneak up from behind and steal the case. Agreed?"

"Okay," Staci said hesitantly, "but how do I distract them?"

"All you need to do is talk to them," Scarlett told her. "Anything will do, just make sure you don't mention me. Is that clear?"

"Uh-huh!" the talkative girl nodded.

"Good," the brainiac finished before crawling away.

/

The viewpoint shifted again, showing Beth, Beardo, and B from a distance as they started to walk off along the river, the case still clutched firmly in Beth's hands. The camera pulled back to show Alejandro, Topher, Scott, and Ezekiel watching them from behind a pair of trees.

"Well then," the charmer said as the team of four looked away from the competition, "it seems we've finally located our prize. Now it's only a matter of stealing it from them."

"Given how two of them are obviously attracted to Alejandro and I," Topher suggested, "I vote that the two of us go over there and use our looks to get the money."

Scott's eyes popped open suddenly, but only for a moment before he narrowed them in suspicion. "And what if Silent B tries to stop you? I've never seen him making eyes at another guy."

xxx

"Like I'd let either of those pretty boys get their hands on the million that easily," Scott told the confessional camera."

xxx

"Why don't we just rush 'em, eh?" Ezekiel offered. "I mean, there's four of us, an' only three of them, so, one of us is bound to get the case, right?"

"Sounds good to me," Scott smirked.

"Well then," Alejandro said, "perhaps it would be best if we each used whatever means necessary to secure the case for our team, agreed?"

He put his hand in the center of their group, and it was quickly joined by the hands of the other three young men as the echoed "Agreed!"

/

"I wonder if I'll be able to get my own spin-off series after this," Dakota pondered as she and Sam walked through a denser part of the forest. "I mean, with the time I spent as an intern I was actually in the show for awhile."

"Yeah, I bet you actually got some decent screen-time," Sam told her. "Although I guess it matters more how many fans you actually got. Not saying that you don't have any," he added quickly at his girlfriend's hurt look, "it's just that only the most popular characters ever get spin-offs. At least, that's how it usually works with video games anyways."

"Hrmm...," the heiress paused to fold her arms and think, "I can't possibly be unpopular, but I guess since I wasn't a finalist my sparkly adorableness won't be enough, huh?"

"Maybe," the gamer shrugged. "But hey, at least you've got your face out there now. Even if you don't get a spin-off this time, you're still closer than you were before. That's gotta count for something, right?"

"True," Dakota admitted. "Who would have guessed that becoming famous would be such hard work?"

/

The shot cut back to a close-up of the suitcase, still in Beth's hands as she walked with Beardo and B on either side of her. The point-of-view shifted to their opposite side just as Staci dashed out into the open in front of them. "Hi guys!" she greeted with a cheery wave.

"Oh, hi Staci," Beth replied neutrally, the boys on either side of her perking an eyebrow each. "If you're looking for this," the farmgirl raised the case up to her chest, "then I'm afraid you can't have it. The three of us worked hard to get it, and we're not interested in sharing anymore." Both Beardo and B nodded sternly.

"Oh, uh, that's totally fine!" Staci said quickly. "Like, congratulations on winning! You know, it was my great-great-Grandma Alice who invented suitcases...," she closed her eyes as she began to rattle on the three in front of her shared a look, shrugged, and walked off in another direction. "...before her, people had to carry around large piles of cash in bags and wheelbarrows, and-" It was then that Staci finally realized her targets had moved on, and she quickly sprinted to get back in front of them.

"Uh, we're not really interested in your stories," Beardo told her, "so could you just let us leave?"

"Umm, uhh, wait!" Staci stammered out as the three started to turn again. She quickly looked around and spotted a flash of red over B's shoulder, and acted quickly upon getting three looks of annoyance sent her way. "L-look! What's that over there?!" She hastily pointed to her right, and was just as surprised as her targets to actually see something.

The background music turned fast-paced as the foursome of Alejandro, Topher, Scott, and Ezekiel were shown running towards them with determined expressions on their faces. The charmer reached them first, skidding to a halt in front of Beth with his hands on the edges of his shirt. "Ladies, gentleman, feast your eyes on this," on cue, he tore open his shirt and revealed his chest, the camera lingering on it as a yellow-and-gold sunburst pattern appeared behind him.

"And don't forget to add a little bit of the 'Topher Experience'," the host wannabe added, coming to a stop alongside his teammate and quickly whipping off his shirt and striking a few poses as well. The tense music was replaced by a beautiful and awestruck tune as the two attractive young men were shown side-by-side.

Staci, Beth, and Beardo couldn't help but stare with mouths agape. "Oh wow," the two girls said in unison as Beardo wolf whistled. B started to sweat, shooting a nervous glance between the two boys still rapidly approaching and the suitcase in Beth's trembling hands. He made a grab for the case but was too late, as Scott and Ezekiel barreled into him and all three were sent to the ground.

"Why don't you let me carry that heavy case," Alejandro said suavely, his missing tooth only barely detracting from the handsome grin he flashed while slowly reaching for the suitcase full of money.

"Yeah..." Beth sighed dreamily, the camera zooming in on the prize as it was slowly handed over to the charmer.

Just as Alejandro touched the case the beautiful music came to an abrupt halt, the camera pulling back to show that Scott had also gotten his hands on it. "Not so fast, pretty boy," Scott said with a devilish grin, pulling the case closer to him.

"You think you can double-cross me?" Alejandro shot back, pulling the case back to him. "You do not seem to know who you are dealing with!" He looked at Topher, who grinned darkly and grabbed the case as well.

"Hey Zeke," Scott called out as he struggled to regain control of the case, "a little help here?"

The toque-wearer quickly got back to his feet and joined the tug-of-war on Scott's side, and with his help the two sides seemed evenly matched. Staci, Beth, and Beardo still seemed to be too enamored with Alejandro and Topher to do anything meaningful, but B was recovering from the fall and shot a glare at the four interlopers.

It was not him who broke the stalemate, however, but a sudden barrage of mudballs from off-camera. All four of the boys holding the case were struck, and Topher was the first to break his concentration. "Not the hair!" he cried in anguish, trying to shield himself with his hands to no avail. The spectacle also managed to distract Alejandro long enough for Scott to kick him in the stomach and pry the suitcase into his sole grasp.

"See ya later!" he taunted as he ran off with the prize.

"Wait up, yo!" Ezekiel cried as he followed after.

The two attractive boys now sullied with mud (which Topher was frantically trying to remove from himself), Staci, Beth, and Beardo snapped out of their respective dazes and looked around in shock and confusion – an expression matched by both Alejandro and B.

/

The camera cut back to Jo as she jogged through the woods, soon coming to the spot she'd split up from her team at. Both Sierra and Sugar were milling around with impatient looks on their faces, and turned their heads when they noticed the jock-ette.

"Where have you been?" Sierra asked with her hands on her hips. "I thought you told us to meet back here, like, three minutes ago."

"Yeah," Sugar added, "I've been done for ages!"

"Never mind that," Jo told them quickly, "I just overheard some good info about where to search next."

Both of her teammates brows raised. "Well what're you watin' for?" the pageant star asked. "Tell us!"

/

A flash took the scene back to Scott as he raced through the woods clutching the suitcase to his chest, Ezekiel following not far behind. They came out from the trees at the top of a small cliff, and the devious farmer finally stopped to catch his breath.

"Good work, guy!" Ezekiel said once he'd arrived as well, a wide grin on his face. "Now we can split the million between the two of us!"

"What are you talking about?" Scott asked with a sneer. "There's no way I'm splitting this cash, with you or anyone else!"

Ezekiel blinked, and chuckled nervously. "G-good one, eh, you almost had me for a second there."

"It wasn't a joke," the farmer said bluntly.

The homeschooler frowned. "But I helped you get the case, eh! You couldn't have done it without me!" He stepped forward and reached for the case, but Scott clutched it tighter and turned away.

"So what?!" Scott barked. "I'm the one who has it right now, and I'm the one who's gonna keep it!"

"If I may interrupt," a know-it-all voice came from behind the camera, causing the two boys to look away from each other and promptly get hit in the eyes with a few globs of mud. The camera panned over to reveal Scarlett smirking confidently with her muddy arms crossed in front of her. "The only reason you got the case in the first place was because of my intervention, and you certainly won't be keeping it for much longer."

"Gah!" Scott said, wincing in pain as he and Ezekiel tried to rub the mud out of their eyes, the farmer taking one hand off the case in the process. "What are the heck are you-"

He was cut off when Scarlett dashed forward and knocked the two boys to the ground with a thud. She sniffed in disdain and stepped on Scott's case-holding arm, then bent over and picked up the prize. "I would say something like 'See you later'," she told them as she walked up to the edge of the cliff, "but I'd honestly prefer it if I didn't. Goodbye," Scarlett finished, calmly taking a small hop off into the open air.

The camera quick-panned downward, showing a wide river with a beaver dam spanning across it. The brainiac plunged into the large pool of water behind it, suitcase still in her hands.

(Fade to Commercial and Back)

The footage resumed with a long-distance shot of the island, before cutting back to Scott and Ezekiel at the top of the small cliff. "Oh man," Ezekiel groaned as he sat up and wiped the rest of the mud off his face, "looks like we got beat pretty hard, eh."

"I can't believe I lost a million dollars to a girl!" Scott growled, slamming a fist on the ground.

"What's her bein' a girl got to do with it?" Ezekiel asked with a bewildered look. "I thought all that stuff about guys bein' stronger and smarter and stuff was all wrong?"

The schemer groaned and palmed his face. "You wouldn't understand..."

/

A flash transitioned the scene back to the river below as Scarlett, soaking wet but grinning nonetheless, pulled herself onto dry land with the suitcase of money firmly in her grip.

/

"Attention campers!" Chris announced over the loudspeakers. "The case is somewhere red," he told them. "Repeat, the case is somewhere red!"

As the host made his announcement the shot cut to a group of six campers as they raced through the woods and heard the next clue – Alejandro, Topher, Beth, Staci, Beardo, and B.

"Well duh," Beth said with a frown, "Scott has it and he has red hair!" She and her team continued on their path, but the the camera lingered on Alejandro as his expression became thoughtful and he slowed down.

"What's the problem?" Topher asked, falling back alongside his teammate.

"I was just thinking about what happened," the charmer admitted. "The farmer only got his hands on the case because somebody else threw mud at us. It's likely that whoever did that will have tried to get the money by now."

"And you think that person is the 'somewhere red' Chris was talking about?" Topher asked in confusion. "But that must mean it was-"

"Scarlett," Alejandro answered with a nod. "I can't prove it, but I think someone," he narrowed his eyes and turned his head, the camera quick-panning over to show Staci trying to tiptoe away, "may be able to do it for us."

"Oh, I hear ya!" Topher said with a nod, and the two handsome boys turned devious grins to the chatterbox. "Oh Staci," the host wannabe called, "how about a quick interview with the Toph-meister."

"I-interview?" the girl said, freezing up and turning around to face the approaching young men. "Oh, um, sure! You wanna hear about my family, right? They're pretty famous for thinking outside the box, it's why I'm totally gonna win this challenge!"

"Actually," Alejandro corrected her, "we were wondering if you've seen Scarlett at all this afternoon."

"Oh, uh," Staci stammered nervously, "would you look at the time? I just remembered I have to, um, go do something else, yah..." She quickly darted away, but Alejandro and Topher just as quickly gave chase.

/

Once more, the focus was placed on the case in Scarlett's hands as she ran alongside the river. "Almost there," she told herself, "just keep following the river back to camp and avoid the others at all costs. Fortunately, the latest clue was too vague to be of any use in locating me, and-" Her eyes went wide and she skidded to a sudden halt, the camera panning forward to show the cause: an of alligator basking in the sun on the shore.

"Naturally," she sighed, "McLean has once again introduced an obstacle in an attempt to make things more difficult. Not that it'll work," she added as she began to slowly circle around the lounging reptile.

The camera pulled back, transitioning into a view of the scene on the main screen of a complex system of monitors. Chris and Chef were watching in director's chairs, and snacking on sandwiches of some kind. "Alligators your idea?" the host asked his assistant. The large man nodded. "Well," Chris said, "hopefully they'll be a bigger challenge once they warm up a little."

/

Back with Scarlett, the brainiac's eyes were locked onto the resting alligator as she edged around it. The background music was slow and tense, and the predator was watching her lazily.

"Hah!" came a short barking laugh that startled Scarlett and caused her to look behind her. "Looks like I finally found you." It was Jo, running out of the woods with a confident smile and pausing a few yards away. "Come on, ladies," she waved her arm forward as Sierra and Sugar came into view, "let's get that case!"

"Crap...," Scarlett muttered, the music getting faster as she turned around and noticed the alligator on its feet and growling at her. She gasped as it opened its jaws and lunged at her, stepping back in time to save herself, but in doing so letting the coveted suitcase get eaten instead. "NO!" Scarlett cried, futilely stretching out a hand as the reptile immediately turned and slid into the river.

"Step aside," Jo grunted as she passed the redhead, idly shoving her to the ground before jumping onto the alligator's back. Scarlett recovered quickly and tried to get back on her feet, but a sudden bodyslam from Sugar forced her to stop.

/

The tense music still playing in the background, the camera quick-panned over to Amy and Lightning as they walked along the shore, frustration on their faces.

"Well that was a waste of time," Amy griped. "My ugly sister must have tricked us."

"Hey, look!" Lightning said suddenly, pointing in the direction of the river. The camera panned over, showing Jo wrestling with the alligator, Sugar holding Scarlett in a 'sharpshooter', and Sierra looking from one fight to the other with a look of concern on her face.

"What are they doing?" Amy asked in confusion before her eyes went wide and she gasped. "The clue! Scarlett must have had the briefcase, and now..." She paused, and her brow furrowed. "Wait, did it get, like, eaten by that thing or something?"

"Only one way to find out!" Lightning said, enthusiastically diving into the river and swimming over to Jo and the alligator. It had gotten her in a headlock but she was biting its foreleg, and when Lightning got to them he grabbed the scaly thing around the waist and started punching it above the legs.

"Butt out!" Jo barked as she got free and reversed the hold. "This is my fight!"

"Heck no!" Lightning countered. "Lightning's the one who'll be gettin' that suitcase, not Jo!" The two jocks held tight, and their repeated punches eventually caused the alligator to spit up the case it had swallowed. Jo and Lightning immediately tried to grab it, but it slipped between their hands and fell into the river.

"Get it, Lightning!" Amy yelled, having taken the opportunity to swim across to the other side of the river. The jocks had already started to swim after it, but to the cheerleader's dismay it was Jo who managed to gain enough of a lead to kick Lightning in the shoulder, knocking him back and herself a little bit forwards.

It wasn't enough to stop the overachiever, but the alligator tapping him on the shoulder and lunging at him when he turned around was.

Without another word, Jo snatched the case and took it back to shore. Pausing only a moment to catch her breath, she quickly broke into a run just as Sierra and Sugar were about to rejoin her.

"GET BACK HERE!" Scarlett shouted, chasing after them.

Amy looked back at her partner still wrestling the alligator only once before yelling "You'd better catch up, Lightning!" and running after the case.

/

"So," Sammy began as she, DJ, and Dawn walked calmly through the forest, "what would you two do with your shares of the money if we win?"

"Purchase a large tract of wilderness," the mystic answered, "and turn it into a nature sanctuary. That way, at least some part of the world will be safe from the ravages of man. It'll also be a good place to meditate and become one with the Universe. Anything left over I'll donate to help save Mother Earth!"

"Sounds pretty cool," the gentle giant nodded as a touching tune began to play in the background. "As for me, I'm gonna take my Momma back home to Jamaica. We had to move when I was little, but she's wanted to go back for years."

"Aww," Sammy cooed.

"You care about your mother very deeply," Dawn said knowingly. "I'm sure she's quite happy to know you've been thinking of her so much."

"I hope so," DJ said with a light chuckle. "But anyway, what about you Sammy?" he turned to the third member of their group. "What are your plans for the money?"

"Oh, well," she blushed and rubbed her arm sheepishly, "this is kind of embarrassing, but I'm not exactly sure." At her friends' questioning looks she continued. "See, I really only signed up for Total Drama in the hopes that I'd be able to get away from my sister for a few weeks, I never thought I'd ever be able to win. But I guess if we do get the money, maybe I should try to, like, move out or something? Although I guess the most important thing is that I keep the money away from Amy."

"True that," DJ told her. "It doesn't seem like she'd ever let you get away with having more money than her. Tryin' to get away from her is the way to go."

"Oh yes," Dawn nodded. "But know that whatever you decide, we shall stand by your side no matter what!"

"Yeah," DJ added with a nod of his own.

Sammy blushed again and smiled. "Thanks! It really means a lot to me."

/

The shot cut to a very annoyed Scott as he stood at the top of the small cliff with Ezekiel, a hand shading his eyes while he scanned the surrounding area. The camera pulled back to show Beth, Beardo, and B running up to them, all three out of breath and the latter with a length of rope coiled around is shoulder.

"We finally...found you!" Beth declared, pointing accusingly at Scott and drawing both boys attention. "Now give us back the case!"

Scott snorted. "It's a little too late for that, sister. Scarlett already stole it from us!"

"W-what?" Beth stammered in surprise.

"How do we know you're tellin' us the truth?" Beardo asked with a suspicious glare.

"Because if I still had the case," Scott explained, "then I wouldn't still be here, would I? But instead, that brainiac blinded us and ran off with the money to who-knows-where!"

"Aww man," Beth complained while B kicked the ground and Beardo made a 'sad trombone' sound, "I really thought we had it!"

"Well tough luck," Scott spat at them. "Now why don't you just go away!" The three frowned at him, but turned back anyway.

Once they were out of sight, Ezekiel gave the schemer a questioning look. "Why didn't you tell them she jumped off the cliff, eh? I mean, it was pretty obvious she landed in the river on account of the splash and all."

"And why exactly should I give them a clue?" Scott replied in disbelief. "They're the competition! And besides, we still have no idea where Scarlett went after that. No point in risking them finding her first."

Ezekiel tapped his chin in thought. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense." Scott rolled his eyes.

/

A tense and fast-paced tune began immediately upon the scene moving back to Jo, Sierra, and Sugar; the suitcase still in the jock-ette's hand and the three still being pursued by both Scarlett and Amy. The odd team ducked behind a large bush and the camera moved to the opposite edge, the girls peeking out from behind it and watching Amy run past. They shared a smirk and the camera pulled out to show them doubling back the way they came.

The focus moved to Amy as she raced forward with a scowl that was rapidly becoming confused. It came to an apex just as she came upon a slightly off-looking piece of scenery...and promptly slammed face-first into a wall. She fell backwards with a bruise on her forehead a generally less-kempt appearance, and stared upward at what she'd crashed into.

The camera zoomed out, revealing it to be an artificial backdrop, painted to give the appearance of the surrounding woodland. A video camera was mounted on top, a blinking red light indicating that it was recording.

"Wh-what?" the cheerleader stammered, blinking and squinting and shaking her head rapidly from side to side. "Like, what is this?!" She got back to her feet and cautiously knocked on the backdrop a few times, producing a distinctly wooden knock. "Oh em gee," she inhaled rapidly, "is this part of the forest, like, fake or something?!" She gasped, and turned an angry look at the camera. "Does this mean everything is fake? Like, you'd better explain this to me, Chris, because it's obvious you're hiding something! Because if I find out that-"

As she yelled, the camera pulled back and faded into the view from the monitor that Chris and Chef were watching. "Wow," the host said, "she looks really peeved! Think I'll just turn this down a bit!" He held up a remote control and pressed a button; the icon that appeared on the monitor and Amy's rant suddenly losing sound despite her clearly moving her lips indicating that the feed had been muted.

"That's better," Chris said with a smile. "More pâté?" he asked, holding up a plate of the meaty dish with a knife sticking out of the top.

"Don't mind if I do," Chef answered, grabbing for the dish.

/

A flash took the scene back to Jo, Sierra, and Sugar as the chase's music resumed. "Looks like we managed to ditch that prissy brat!" the jock-ette said with a grin.

"Yeah," Sierra told her, "but I didn't see Scarlett go with her!"

"Maybe she took a wrong turn?" Sugar suggested.

"Well, as long as she isn't here," Jo the two. They kept running, but the camera panned ahead and zoomed in on a thick vine lying on the ground in front of them, each end leading into bushes on opposite sides of the path. It raised a few inches off the ground and pulled taut just as the three girls got to it; Jo's reflexes were fast enough that she jumped over it easily, but both Sierra and Sugar were tripped.

The jock-ette stopped running for a moment to look back at her fallen teammates in bewilderment. "What the-?"

"GIVE ME THE CASE!" Scarlett shouted, suddenly pouncing out from the bush closest to the camera. The jock-ette managed to step aside in time and the angry brainiac came to a rolling landing a few feet away.

"Uh...," Jo said, thinking quickly as she looked from her fallen partners the redhead, "sorry girls, but I can't let you hold me back right now!" Jo told her teammates hastily. "Catch ya later!" She ran off without a second glance, and Scarlett quickly chased after her.

The camera continued to follow them until Jo came upon a large tree that had fallen and blocked the path. "Crap...," she muttered as she looked around for an alternate route.

"Not so fast!" a voice came from above, the camera cutting up to show Shawn swinging down on a vine, a grin on his face. He landed a strong kick to Jo's chest, knocking her down and causing her to drop the suitcase. "I'll be taking this!" he announced confidently as he picked up the case, his grin faltering when he saw Scarlett approaching with an angry look on her face. He quickly jumped onto the log before she could grab him, and held the case above his head.

"Hey guys, catch!" the survivalist shouted before tossing the coveted container above the confused heads of both Jo and Scarlett, the camera following it briefly as it sailed through the air and straight into Geoff and Bridgette's waiting arms.

"NO!" the jock-ette and brainiac yelled in unison, turning towards the blonde couple and giving Shawn the chance to scurry up into a nearby tree.

"I think we should get out of here!" Bridgette suggested as Jo and Scarlett charged.

"Oh yeah, I hear that!" Geoff agreed, and the two lovers turned and fled with the suitcase firmly in the party boy's hands.

xxx

"Man, with everyone bein' so serious about gettin' the million," Geoff confessed in the outhouse, "I'm kinda havin' second thoughts about tryin' to run around on my ankle. Uh, not that it still hurts or anything," he said quickly with a nervous glance around the enclosed space, "just that I don't wanna slow Bridge down!"

xxx

The shot cut back to Jo and Scarlett as they chased through the woods after the case, slamming and shoving one another in an obvious attempt to get rid of another rival. They were giving each other most of their own attention which allowed Jo to gain the upper hand by shoving Scarlett to the side an inch, causing her to trip over a root she hadn't noticed.

Her advantage was short-lived, however, as the brainiac immediately grabbed onto the cuff of her sweatpants with a cry of "NO!" The jock-ette was taken down, and Scarlett used the opportunity to scramble back to her feet and trample Jo further into the dirt, even going so far as to step on the other girl's head before bounding off into the woods.

xxx

"When the heck did Red get so determined?!" Jo asked the confessional camera in shock. "I mean yeah, there a million bucks on the line, but she never struck me as the type to just take someone down like that!"

xxx

Jo groaned and picked herself up off the ground. Scowling she quickly looked around the forest and slammed her fist into the ground. "Darn it! I lost 'em!"

"Attention campers!" Chris' sudden voice over the loudspeakers turned the jock-ette's attention upwards. "The case is now with a couple of winners who haven't actually won anything yet. Oh, and they're headed towards camp!"

"Hmm, I guess the Red Baroness hasn't caught up to Sharkbait and the other two yet," Jo muttered, stroking her chin in thought. "I guess I might as well go regroup with my own team and try to head 'em off." Pursing her lips in determination, she turned around and ran off.

/

"Remind me again why we're running towards camp before we get the case back?" Topher asked as he and Alejandro ran through the woods, a flustered Staci trailing behind them.

"Because then we can set up an ambush for whoever does have the case," Alejandro told him. "It's similar to what Scarlett planned to do by following someone likely to find the case first and steal it from them when they didn't expect it," he added, "except better. Why go to them when we can let them come to us?"

"I thought it was something like that," Topher grinned. "And I gotta say, I like the way you think!"

"Ohhh," Staci groaned behind them, "Scarlett's gonna be so mad when she finds out I told you two her plan!"

/

The shot cut to a close-up of the video camera mounted on top of the forest backdrop Amy had stumbled upon. The cheerleader was shown rolling a log up to the base of the wall, then backed up a few yards and ran at it. Using the log as a stepping stone, she managed to jump and scramble up far enough to grab the top of the wall, and started to haul herself up with a series of grunts. The scene cut back to Chris and Chef as they watched on the monitors, the host taking a sip from a coconut in his hands and doing a spit-take.

"Uh, Chef, I think it's time you got out there!" the host said with panic on his face. The hulking cook quickly ran over to the red ATV parked nearby and drove off, and the scene moved back to Amy.

The point-of-view now on the opposite side of the barrier, the mean twin was shown pulling herself up far enough to get a look over. "Oh. Em. Gee!" she said in shock, the camera zooming out to show her hanging at the top of a brick wall, the burger-topped menu board and ordering station of a fast-food joint visible in the foreground. "There was a town with other people here all along?"

Just then, a red pick-up truck with the window rolled down and driven by a large bearded black man pulled up. "May I take your order?" a squeaky-voiced employee asked through the menu board's speaker.

"Umm, yeah!" Amy shouted, interrupting the actual patron as he opened his mouth. "I've had enough of that Chef' crappy cooking, so-" She was cut off when a hanging microphone hit her head, causing her to growl and look up angrily. "Uhh, excuse me? You did not just hit me with that thing."

The camera zoomed up and out to show her addressing a nervous-looking white man - the same person who had taken the suitcase away from the Playa at the start of the episode – sitting in the basket of an orange-and-red hot air balloon. Amy growled and grabbed the microphone by the cord it was attached to, and began to pull the balloon down with it. "Uhh, Chris?" the nervous young man frantically said into a walkie-talkie. "We have a situation here!"

"Bail! Bail!" Chris responded in a panic, shown first at his spot by the monitors before the shot cut back to the balloon, the host's voice coming over the walkie-talkie. "Abort! Abort!" The young man did as he was ordered, jumping from the balloon just as Amy climbed into the basket.

"Well now," the mean girl said while grabbing the handle for the burner valve and adopting a savage grin, "Looks like I'm finally gonna show those Samey-lovers who the better sister really is!" She pulled the handle, activating the burner and causing the balloon to ascend – the microphone still dangling out of the basket.

/

The shot cut to Sierra and Sugar walking through the forest together, the taller girl with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face. "I can't believe she ditched us like that," she muttered,

"Well," Sugar told her, "she did say she might double-cross us at some point." Sierra sniffed and looked away, and it was then that the pageant queen spotted something off-camera. "Well, speak of the devil! Look who came back to us!"

"I'm glad I found you two!" Jo said, the viewpoint shifting to show her running up to her former partners. "Zombie Boy managed to steal the money from me, then passed it on to Miss Second Place and her boy-toy."

"So?" Sierra huffed. "I thought you didn't need us anymore."

"I didn't think I did," Jo told her bluntly. "But more importantly, I do now. Because as strong as I am, I'm not gonna risk going up against three people without back-up. So whaddaya say?" She stuck out a hand palm-down and expectantly, but was met with stoney silence from Sierra and Sugar. "Fine," she grumbled, smacking her face with her other hand, "I promise I'll give you a cut of the money if you manage to keep up with me all the way back to the docks, okay? And I won't try to get out of it by tripping you or something."

"Sounds good to me," Sugar said with a shrug, putting he hand on top of Jo's.

The two girls looked at Sierra expectantly. "Well," she said uncertainly, "since you promised...I guess I'll keep helping you." She started to place her hand with the others, but paused a few inches away and turned a sharp glare towards Jo. "But you'd better keep it, okay? I may not seem like it, but I'm not someone to be messed with."

Both Jo and Sugar raised an eyebrow at her. "Uhh, yeah, sure, you can count on it," Jo told her.

"Good," Sierra said, placing her hand with theirs and smiling.

/

"Uh, are you sure about this?" DJ asked as the scene moved to him and Sammy being led by Dawn towards the boathouse. "I mean, I think Chris woulda said something if the case was on the water."

"Maybe," Sammy said. "Although the last couple clues seem like they were probably more about who has the case instead of where the case is."

"Huh, didn't think about it like that," DJ considered, rubbing his soul patch in thought. "But still, you gotta admit he coulda said somethin' if the case ended up on a boat or floatin' downstream or whatever."

"Friends," Dawn said suddenly as they came to the already-opened boathouse, "I know it might be hard to believe, but please trust me on this. The natural energies of the forest have been flowing towards this spot for some time now, and I'm sure the Universe wants us to look for the case from the water."

DJ and Sammy looked at each other and shrugged. "Well, if you're sure about it," the gentle giant told her before the three entered the boathouse.

It was just as cluttered and dusty as when Sammy and DJ had seen it a couple weeks ago, and the eyes of the two wandered around the room as Dawn walked forward determinedly. "I think that should do nicely," the mystic said, pointing to a group of several orange and green canoes hanging on the back wall.

As she and DJ went to take a green one down, the cheerleader looked closely at what appeared to be a spare set of brackets for the canoes to be hung on. She ran a finger along it and furrowed her brow, muttering "No dust?" Her eyes popped open in realization and she turned her head to her teammates as they turned the green canoe they'd procured and started to walk back towards the exit. "Hey, I think someone might have taken a canoe before us!"

"Really?" the gentle giant asked.

"I suppose this place does have a certain...disturbed quality to it," Dawn said with another glance around.

"Huh, maybe someone really did take the case out on the lake," DJ said. "Good catch, Sammy! And I'm sorry I doubted you, Dawn."

"No worries," the petite young woman said happily. "I know you only wanted to be sure we were spending our time wisely."

"Wow, maybe we really do have a shot at this!" Sammy said excitedly as she rejoined her friends and together they exited with their canoe.

/

The camera cut back to the case before zooming out and showing it still in Geoff's hand as he, Bridgette, and Shawn ran through the forest.

"Do you have any idea where you're going?" Shawn asked.

"Not really, dude!" Geoff answered.

"Wait, then why are we following you?" Bridgette said, and the three skidded to a halt.

"Uh, good question," the party boy told them with a scratch of his head.

Shawn quickly looked around. "Hold on, I think we're still on the western part of the island, so we should head this way!" He pointed to his right and the three turned to run again, but were stopped after only a few paces.

"Not so fast!" Jo announced as she appeared on top of a large boulder, flanked by Sugar and Sierra, all three girls with their hands on their hips and stern expressions. "You'd better hand over that case if you know what's good for you!"

"No way!" Bridgette told the jock-ette. "We deserve this money just as much as you, if not more!"

Jo grimaced and said "Fine, be that way. Ladies," she looked left at Sierra, who crossed her arms, and right at Sugar, who chuckled and cracked her knuckles, "looks like we have to do this the hard way. CHARGE!" she raised an arm and jumped off their perch, her teammates following suit as they ran screaming at the competition.

"Oh crap," Bridgette said as her eyes went wide, "run!" In her panic she turned and ran straight into her stunned boyfriend, knocking them both to the ground and accidentally causing the million-dollar suitcase to go flying up into the air – and straight back down onto Geoff's left ankle. He let out a pained cry just before as Jo, Sierra, and Sugar stampeded over them, Shawn only just managing to roll out of their way in time. The camera lingered on the case as it was picked up by the jock-ette, and the three girls ran off.

"Uh, are you two...okay?" Shawn asked nervously once the dust settled. Bridgette and Geoff groaned, and the surfer was the first to pick her messed-up, scuffed, and well-trampled self off the ground.

"I'll be fine in a minute...," she said wearily. "But I guess they got the case back, huh?"

"Yeah," the bald survivalist said, "but that's not all that happened – look!" He pointed at the fallen party boy as he groaned in pain, the camera zooming in as he clutched his left ankle, now quite swollen and red.

"Geoff!" Bridgette gasped, quickly getting to his side and grabbing his hand. "Are you...are you alright? Does it hurt?"

"N-not that much," the party lover said feebly as he sat up reached for the injured joint – the moment he touched it he let out another yelp of pain.

"Oh no, I think it might be broken!" the surfer said worriedly. "What are we gonna do?"

Shawn bit his lip nervously, and the scene faded to black.

(Fade to Commercial and Back)

/

The footage faded back in to a shot of the thousand-foot-high cliff before zooming in on its slope and showing Jo, Sierra, and Sugar charging uphill with the case in the jock-ette's grip. They reached the peak, and stopped to catch their breath.

"Why...why'd we come up here, anyways?" Sugar asked, still panting even while her teammates had recovered. "It don't lead anywhere!"

"So we could give them the slip by diving into the lake," Jo answered. "Although it doesn't look like they followed us."

"They didn't" Sierra said nervously, "but something else did!" She pointed behind back the way they'd come from, and the camera panned over to reveal a growling brown bear walking towards them. The background music became tense but soft as the three young women were forced up to the edge of the cliff by the advancing predator, a small rock falling loose when Jo's foot finally reached then end.

"Looks like we have no choice, girls," she told her partners in a serious tone. "It's time we jumped." The camera cut to the growling bear, then Sierra as she gulped, and Sugar as beads of sweat began to form on her forehead. "On three," Jo commanded. "One...two...," the three girls got into position but kept their eyes on the bear, "THREE!"

First Jo, then Sierra, then Sugar, the three young women hopped off the cliff, and the camera followed them as they plunged towards the lake below.

Until, that is, they passed off-screen and Jo shouted "What the!" Moments later, a large red balloon floated up into the shot, its bottom edge trimmed with orange and, more importantly, attached to a basket with a grinning Amy inside. Jo's right arm had gotten tangled up in the microphone cord still dangling below, Sierra had grabbed onto the jock-ette's waist, and Sugar was hanging on to the fangirl's feet.

"Hey," Amy called down to the other three girls, "if you let me have that case I'll pull you up!"

"No deal!" Jo shouted angrily, the case in question still in her left hand.

"Not to cause a fuss or anythin'," Sugar interrupted nervously, "but I'm slippin'!" The camera zoomed in on Sierra's green shoes, and sure enough Sugar's grip on them was failing.

"Quick, pull yourself up!" Sierra told her.

"I'll try," the pageant queen replied, reaching her right hand up to grab the tall girl's pant leg.

The camera cut back to her left hand just as it slid off the toes of Sierra's shoe, and Sugar plummeted to the water below with a cry of "Crud muffins!" all the way down.

/

The shot quickly panned down to the water around the base of the cliff, where the goal buoys from the first challenge of the series were still set up. Rowing into the scene on an orange canoe were none other than Scott and Ezekiel, who heard the hollering from above them and looked up.

"The heck is that...?" Scott said as he squinted at the shadow descending from above.

Ezekiel's eyes popped open in surprise. "Yo, we gotta move out of the way!" he said, quickly grabbing his oar. Scott followed suit with a look of terror on his face, but they were unable to move out of the way before Sugar landed on their canoe, breaking it in half and causing a large splash.

"Great...," Scott muttered as he, Ezekiel, and Sugar resurfaced and held onto the splintered remains of the canoe.

/

"Oopsie!" Amy said with a gleeful smile as she looked over the edge of the basket. "Looks like you really should've given me that case sooner!" She opened the burner valve, causing the balloon to ascend all the way to the top of the cliff. The bear had been waiting there, but scampered away when the balloon came too close.

"She could've died!" Sierra told her. "Don't you even care?!"

"Umm, no!" the cheerleader answered matter-of-factly. "All I want is the money, who cares about any of you?"

"Well you're not gonna get it!" Jo shot at her. "And I'm not gonna go down!" Clenching the handle of the suitcase between her teeth, she began to climb up the microphone cord.

"Oh yeah?" Amy countered, grabbing the valve handle and using it to cause the balloon to descend below the treetops, causing Jo and Sierra to be hit with pine branches and, as revealed when the camera panned down, the dangling microphone to get tangled around the brown bear's leg, dragging it along for the ride as well.

The camera focused on Sierra's needle-covered face as she frowned and looked down, her eyes popping open in shock and fear. "BEAR!" she screamed, raising her legs up as the snared and snarling bear began to climb up the cord.

/

The tense music faded out as the scene cut to Sam and Dakota walking through the woods at a leisurely pace.

"Like, where are we, anyway?" Dakota asked. "We've been walking around for hours, and my feet are really sore..."

"Hmm, good question," Sam responded with a nervous chuckle. "Uhh, I'm pretty sure camp is around here somewhere..."

The lovers paused and looked around, and Dakota spotted something through the bushes – a young moose trying to reach a branch. "Aww, it's adorable!" the heiress squealed. "I want one! Do you think it's for sale?" she asked her boyfriend in earnest.

"Uhh, I don't think you can buy wild animals," Sam told her, rubbing the back of his head.

xxx

"Man, that Dakota," the gamer chuckled in the confessional. "Beauty, charm, and enough money to give her absolutely no concept of what she can't have." He sighed dreamily, then stared at the camera awkwardly after a moment. "How can one guy be so lucky, and at the same time have so much work cut out for him?"

xxx

"Well that's no good," Dakota pouted, stepping into the clearing. "But if I can't buy one, does that mean I can just, like, take one?" She smirked impishly and tiptoed up to the moose as it tried to jump for the branch just out of reach.

"Uhh, I really don't think you should do that," Sam told her in rising alarm as he followed after her.

"Pfft, I'll be fine," she told him dismissively. "After all, this little cutie-pie isn't gonna hurt me!" She winked at the moose calf and gently put a hand on its head.

The unexpected touch startled it, and it bleated in alarm. "Uhh, that little cutie-pie might not," the gamer announced with a worried look, "but that one sure will!" The camera followed his pointing finger over to a large and angry-looking bull moose, which snorted at the couple.

The footage skipped ahead to show Sam and Dakota running and screaming away from the angry moose.

/

"The case is almost at the campground!" Chris announced over the loudspeaker. "Get your butts in gear, people, it's a million big ones!" The fast-paced and tense music resumed as the shot cut to Shawn and Bridgette carrying Geoff through the woods at an awkward pace, the survivalist holding him under the armpits from behind while the surfer carried his legs in front.

"Come on guys, we have to hurry!" Bridgette said.

"You two should just leave me behind," Geoff cried, "I'm only slowing you down!"

"Not this time," Shawn told him. "I said we were gonna split the money, and I meant it!"

It was then that Chef drove up alongside them on the red ATV. "Hey! Any of you punks seen a hot air balloon go by?" he asked gruffly, stopping as they did. "Amy took it from one of our cameramen."

"Amy has a hot air balloon?!" Bridgette said in disbelief.

"Aww man," Geoff said as Shawn lifted him up onto his girlfriend's back, "how the heck are we gonna beat that?!"

"She's got the case, too," Chef informed them. "On her way to the finish line." Shawn was shown picking up a large club-like stick off the ground. "If I had to bet on anyone," the cook continued, "I'd put my-" He was cut off by a blow to the back of the neck courtesy of Shawn, who frowned as the hulking man fell to the ground.

Geoff and Bridgette winced while Shawn hopped onto the ATV and drove it past them. "Hop on!" he told them. "This is our last shot at winning that million!"

/

"Aww, even after all that we still couldn't find them!" Beth groaned as she, Beardo, and B trudged through the forest, the length of rope still coiled around the silent boy's shoulder.

"Guess we just gotta head back to camp and hope for the best," the beatboxer said in a tired voice. The silent genius nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I hope we can make it back before someone wins," the wannabe added.

A cry of "RUUUNNN!" coming up behind them got their attention, and the trio stopped in their tracks and looked back just in time to see Dakota and Sam running for their lives.

"From what?" Beth asked in confusion moment before her teammates' eyes went wide and Beardo made a series of alarmed dings. She gasped and the three began to flee as well, and the angry bull moose appeared moments later in chase.

/

The scene cut to the balloon drifting over the campgrounds, Amy still in the basket while Jo, Sierra, and the brown bear clung to the dangling microphone cord.

"It's getting closer!" Sierra shouted in a panic as she clutched to Jo who was steadily climbing upwards though at a rate slower than the other uninvited hanger-on. The bear growled and swiped at Sierra's butt, tearing away a small piece of her jeans and exposing part of the girl's pale pink underwear. She gasped and screamed, then started to rapidly kick the bear in the face. The beast was shown getting hit with each blow until eventually, battered and dazed, it let go of the microphone cord and fell to the trees below.

"Impressive!" Jo told her partner with a genuine smile as she grabbed the edge of the basket and hauled both her and Sierra up. "Didn't think you had it in you to beat a bear like that! I guess I made the right call adding you to my team after all."

"Oh yeah, real impressive," Amy said sarcastically as the two young women entered the basket with her. "Now give me the case!" she shouted, making a grab for the coveted item in the jock-ette's hand.

"No way, sister!" Jo replied, holding the case at arm's length as the cheerleader struggled to get at it. Sierra quickly joined in, pushing against the mean twin alongside her teammate.

The camera cut to the beach below as DJ, Dawn, and Sammy rowed up in their canoe, eyes fixed on the scene unfolding above.

"Dude, is that a hot air balloon?!" DJ exclaimed.

"And the case!" Sammy gasped, pointing upwards.

"Oh, I knew the Universe wanted us on the water for a reason!" Dawn added. The three quickly hopped out of their beached canoe and ran into camp.

/

The background music calmed down as the camera cut to the interior of the communal washroom, focusing on Alejandro as he peeked out of the door. "Well, there's certainly something going on out there," he said, turning around to address Topher.

"I suppose now's a good time to go out and do our thing, right Al?" Topher told him, not noticing the brief twinge in the charmer's eyes.

"Ooh, can I come with you?" Staci asked, surprising the two boys by bursting out of a stall wrapped up in toilet paper. "I bet I could be loads of help, yah."

"I thought you said she was dealt with!" Alejandro whispered to his teammate.

"I did the best I could!" Topher whispered back pleadingly.

"Ah, yes, certainly," Alejandro finally told the girl. "Just, umm, wait here, and let us go out first!" Staci nodded eagerly, and the two young men turned for the door.

They opened it to see a large angry bear standing on its hind leg, which immediately roared at them. They screamed and slammed the door shut.

"What's wrong?" Staci asked them in confusion. Alejandro and Topher shared a look, then looked back at the tied-up girl in front of them.

The viewpoint shifted outside, showing the bear giving the door of the communal bathrooms a confused look. It recoiled in surprise when Staci was suddenly shoved out of the building, then roared and swiped a claw at her, removing her toilet paper wrappings. The girl screamed and ran, the bear followed, and Alejandro and Topher dashed out of the building a few moments later and headed in the opposite direction.

/

"Attention campers!" Chris announced, once again via the camp's loudspeakers. "The case is still in play! Don't give up now!"

/

A flash took the focus to Lightning, running through the forest with a determined expression but looking rather beat-up. "Dang alligator," he muttered to himself. "Now Lightning's gotta find a way to get back in the game, and fast!" He spotted something nearby, and the camera panned over to show the Arts and Crafts Center.

"Hold up," the uber-jock said, skidding to a halt in front of the shack, "ain't this where..." The camera's point-of-view moved to inside the small building as Lightning kicked the door open, stared for a moment, and broke into a grin. "Now that's more like it!" he exclaimed excitedly as the viewpoint moved back over his shoulder, showing the gleaming red-and-chrome motorcycle that had been stored inside the Arts and Crafts Center.

"Just gotta find the sha-key," the jock said as he began to look around the room, moving things aside and tossing them behind him until he found a small brass key hidden under a coffee can. He held it up to his grinning face, and the footage skipped forward to him putting it in the ignition.

Its engine roared to life. "Sha-yeah!" Lightning cheered, hopping on the bike and turning it to the shack's open door.

/

"Finally," Scott said as he, Ezekiel, and Sugar walked into the area just beyond the campfire pit. "I thought we were goners when Miss Country Cannonball hit us."

"Well, it's not like I wanted to fall on the two of you," Sugar explained. "I couldn't help it! My hands were gettin' all sweaty! If anything, it's those other girls' fault for not pullin' me up."

"Yeah, yeah," Scott sneered, "whatever. The point is that we're lucky to still even have a chance at the million."

"We just gotta figure out who has the case, eh," Ezekiel said, "and then take it from 'em before they get to the dock."

"Easier said than done," the farmer griped.

"Aww, cheer up!" the pageant queen said happily, putting an arm around his shoulder. "We just gotta find that balloon again, and then, uh, find a way to get up to it I guess!"

"Great...," Scott muttered.

/

The footage cut back to Alejandro and Topher as they dashed across the campgrounds away from the communal bathrooms, only looking back when they heard a large amount of screaming. The two pretty boys ducked behind the cabin as Dakota, Sam, Beth, Beardo, B, and the angry moose came running into the scene once again, the camera moving off the shocked young men to follow the chase.

"Look!" Sam shouted, pointing ahead to a large picnic table set up in the middle of their path. "Maybe we can use it as cover!"

"I really hope so!" Dakota said, and she was the first to duck underneath the table. Sam followed, as did Beth and Beardo, but B – still carrying a sizable length of rope – was lagging behind. The moose caught up to him and lowered its head, catching the large boy on its antlers but in doing so failing to spot the picnic table or the four cowering beneath it. The moose crashed into it, tumbling forward with B and causing the table to flip over, leaving the teens who had been using it as shelter exposed on top of it.

The camera pulled back to show Sugar, Scott, and Ezekiel approaching the scene. "Oh man," the pageant queen chuckled, "that was awesome! Like one of those videos people send in to be on TV!"

"Too bad for you," Scott sneered at the dazed five, "but it looks like that's five less people to worry about winning!" The three began to laugh, and as they did so the camera focused in on the moose as it woke up with B still seemingly unconscious on its back and one end of the rope tangled in its antlers.

"Uh, guys?" Ezekiel said in growing alarm as the moose got back to its feet, spotted the three humans, and snorted. "I think we'd better start runnin', eh!" His exclamation forced a stop to his current partners' laughter, and they ran screaming as the moose began to charge again.

The camera cut to Beth as the commotion caused her, Beardo, Sam, and Dakota to stir. She quickly spotted the other end of B's rope which had been caught under the flipped table, followed it to her friend on the moose's back, and gasped. "Oh no! We have to save him!" she cried, quickly grabbing onto the rope.

Beardo joined her, and when the moose got running again it was unwittingly pulling the upside-down table along behind it like a sled. The cries of the three being chased along with the four being dragged were enough to wake B up, and he immediately grabbed the neck of the moose and hung on as tight as he could.

Amy, Jo, and Sierra were shown watching the commotion from the balloon's basket, at an apparent loss for words as the bizarre procession chased all over the campgrounds. They went past the docks, forcing the trio of DJ, Dawn, and Sammy to make a diving retreat to the beach, then circled around the mess hall and headed back in front of the cabin where Alejandro and Topher quickly scrambled up onto the guarded porch to get out of the way.

The three in the balloon were shown again as they resumed their struggle for the briefcase still in Jo's hand. A sudden yelp from Sierra gave them pause as she looked over her shoulder and saw a splattering of blue paint on her lower back. Another sharp yelp came moments later, this time from Amy as her bare midriff got painted blue as well.

"Hey, watch it!" Jo spat when she took the third hit in her left shoulder, and the three young women immediately began to try find their assailant while defending themselves from the shots that kept coming. One hit the lip of the basket, and the next two hit the burner to no effect, before the camera finally panned over to the roof of the mess hall to show Scarlett standing with a green paintball gun in her hands and a frown on her face.

"Curses," she spat as she dropped her weapon, "it seems I wasn't able to jam the venting mechanism. It seems I'll have to take them down with a different type of projectile after all." She pulled out an orange pistol, the camera moving to the point-of-view looking down its barrel as it was pointed first at the girls in the basket, and then up to the balloon. The camera cut back to a sideview of Scarlett as she shot, then panned up to Amy, Jo, and Sierra as they ducked into the basket.

"Hah!" Jo shouted, standing up a moment after the shot was taken. "You missed!" Scarlett said nothing, and took another shot.

"Uhh, I don't think she was aiming for us," Sierra announced in growing alarm. "Look!" she added, pointing up. The camera panned up to the side of the balloon, showing two distinct holes in the envelope leaking air to the outside. Scarlett was shown firing again before the scene quickly cut back just in time to catch a purple-fletched dart pierce a third hole in the side of the balloon.

"We're going down!" Amy gasped in realization, the camera zooming out to show the balloon descending a little bit past the main campgrounds. "Quick, give me the case!" the cheerleader said, making another grab for the coveted prize in the distracted jock-ette's hand.

"No way!" Jo shouted, and the struggle resumed as their vessel rapidly drew closer and closer to the earth.

/

The tense and fast-paced background music continued to play as the point-of-view cut to Shawn, Bridgette, and Geoff as they rode through the woods on the red ATV they'd stolen from Chef. As soon as they were past the trees they looked up and saw the partially-deflated hot air balloon coming right for them and screamed. Amy, Jo, and Sierra screamed as well, but the trio on the four-wheeler managed to duck under the basket.

And subsequently caught their heads on the lip of the balloon when they sat back up again. The sudden impact yanked the balloon forward a few feet, tipping the basket over in the process before Shawn lost his grip on the handlebars and the ATV sped off from beneath him. The balloon draped over the basket and six campers, and the impact with the ground had finally knocked the suitcase out of Jo's hand – it landed a foot or so away from the deflated balloon.

The camera quickly panned over to the still-running four-wheeler, which began to swerve slightly without a person to control it. It's new path took it straight towards the brown bear that had chased Staci into the branches of a nearby tree, and with it distracted by its quarry it couldn't dodge out of the way. After a brief cutaway to Staci wincing from above, the bear was revealed to have been forcibly mounted upon the ATV. It shot the camera a confused look before speeding out of sight.

Back on the roof of the mess hall, Scarlett smirked and dropped her tranquilizer gun. She slid down the roof and hit the ground with a roll into a run towards the fallen balloon. She slid to a stop in front of the suitcase, picking it up quickly before turning around and sprinting towards the Dock of Shame. "At last!" she exclaimed. "Victory is mine!"

The camera immediately cut back to the balloon wreckage as Jo stuck her head out of the deflated fabric. "Not yet it isn't!" she yelled, scrambling out into the open and sprinting after the brainiac. Scarlett looked back and growled in annoyance, but she wasn't able to keep Jo from closing the ground between them. The jock-ette tackled Scarlett, sending both girls to the ground just past the communal bathrooms. The case, naturally, was wrenched from the redhead's grip, and tumbled towards the Dock of Shame. Alejandro and Topher noticed and ran after it, quickly followed by the two girls involved with the fumble.

Another cut took the focus back to the eight campers involved with the moose – three still being chased, one still riding, and the last four being dragged along on an upside-down picnic table, all of them screaming to the best of their abilities.

"SHA-YEAH!" an excited cry sounded, momentarily stopping the screaming as Lightning, on top of the roaring flame-detailed motorcycle he'd found earlier, crashed into the open right between the trio of Sugar, Scott, and Ezekiel and their antlered pursuer.

/

"What the-" Chris said, doing his second spit-take of the day in front of the monitors back at Playa Des Losers.

"My bike!" Chef Hatchet exclaimed, standing up out of his seat. "I knew I shoulda hidden that key better!" He took off with a scowl on his face, leaving Chris to linger at the monitors. His look of shock faded into a grin as he pumped his fist, then followed after the cook.

/

Sugar, Scott, and Ezekiel jumped to the side as the motorcycle flew past and the moose skidded to a stop long enough to glare at Lightning and change course, bringing five teens along for the ride.

The camera followed the uber-jock as he shot a bewildered look over his shoulder, then became even more surprised when he looked forward again. The viewpoint changed to show that he was rapidly approaching the fallen hot air balloon; several people seemed to be struggling beneath the fabric but one had already managed to free herself.

"AMY?!" Lightning shouted in surprise at the sight of his former partner standing in his path with part of the balloon held over her head.

"LIGHTNING?!" Amy echoed, quickly rolling out of the way of her lover's stolen ride, and in doing so causing the part of the balloon she had been raising to catch on his head.

Unlike Shawn before him the overachiever kept his grip on the handlebars, and the motorcycle's engine was powerful enough to drag the entire wrecked balloon behind him – including Sierra, Shawn, Bridgette, and Geoff together in the basket.

They were followed by the ever-angry moose being ridden by B and dragging Beth, Beardo, Dakota, and Sam behind it.

The camera cut back to the case as it kept tumbling towards and along the Dock of Shame, chased initially by Alejandro, Topher, Scarlett, and Jo until it got closer to the beach at which point Dawn, Sammy, and DJ joined the pursuit down the docks.

The motorcycle, balloon, and moose reached the beginning of the docks as well, Lightning's blindness causing him to hit one of the supports and go flying as the four still in the basket of the balloon kept sliding forward. The moose came to a similar stop, bucking B off its back – and because of their grip on the rope that was still mostly around B's shoulder, Beth and Beardo flew forward as well while the upturned table carrying Sam and Dakota merely slowed to a stop. The eight who had lost their rides crashed into the seven who had been running at the end of the Dock of Shame just as they caught up with the million-dollar suitcase, and as the tense background music finally peaked the entire group was sent crashing into the lake.

Watching the scene from the helicopter, Chris and Chef winced.

Scarlett surfaced first, and looked around with desperation on her face.

The camera cut to the case floating on the lake, and it was promptly swallowed whole by a man-eating freshwater shark. A gull swimming nearby pointed a wing and laughed, and only to be eaten itself moments later.

"Great!" Jo shouted angrily. "Now what?!"

The sound of footsteps on the dock got her attention, and the camera panned over to show the helicopter landing on the dock and the two adults hopping out. Chef immediately ran back up the pier and out of sight, while Chris stepped towards the fifteen floating campers – B and Beardo and Beth; Lightning and Sammy and Dawn and DJ; Sierra and Jo and Alejandro and Topher; Scarlett and Shawn and Bridgette and Geoff.

"Soooo," Chris told them with an angry look, "you lost the case! Waaaaay to gooo. I didn't wanna have to do this," he put his hands on his hips, "but since none of the fifteen of you officially won, you all officially tie. Which means," he grinned and held up a single finger, "you will all have another shot at winning the million dollars!" He paused as they cheered off-camera before holding up another finger and adding "In season two!"

xxx

"Season two?" Alejandro asked, raising an eyebrow at the outhouse camera.

xxx

"Does he mean we have to go through all of that again?" Shawn added.

xxx

"Oh em gee, I'm so excited!" Sierra squealed. "I get to spend another season with Chris McLean! This is so exciting!" Her face fell after a moment before she added "I hope I'll be able to update my blog first..."

xxx

"Really?" Sammy asked the host cautiously. "Because I don't really remember anything about a season two in the contract..."

"Well then," Chris told her, "you shoulda looked more closely. It's called the fine print – read it, live it, love it!" He pointed finger pistols at the contestants, then the air, then waggled his fingers and formed a heart as he finished speaking.

"Ooh, good one, Chris!" Topher told the host with a grin. "Gotta love the fine print."

The focus moved back to the dock as Chris addressed the seven campers not in the lake: Staci, Sugar, Ezekiel, and Scott; Sam and Dakota; and Amy who only just arrived. "As for the rest of you," Chris told them, "your treasure hunt ends here!" He crossed his arms and gave them a smug look. "Along with all your hopes of ever winning any money off of being on this show!" Scott and Sugar glared at him as he continued to speak.

"The good news, though," the camera cut back to his wide grin, "you'll be watching all the action on season two, from the sidelines!"

"Hey!" Amy protested. "How come Samey gets to be on season two and not me!"

"Tut, tut, tut!" Chris told her impishly. "Fine print!"

xxx

"Samey is not gonna get away with this," Amy said in the confessional. "And neither is the show. They were in enough trouble already, but now? Now they're really gonna see why I'm the better sister."

xxx

Beardo opened his confessional with an extended remix of a certain video game's victory music. "Oh yeeeaaaahhh," he finally said, adopting a rhythm to his words as he continued. "Another chance to, show off my skills in new, situations. Excellent." He resumed beatboxing before the footage cut to static.

xxx

"Aww, I can't believe we missed out on the new season!" Dakota pouted, sharing the outhouse seat with her boyfriend.

"Well, at least we won't have to go through all the challenges." Sam told her.

"Yeah," the heiress replied, "but how am I gonna get more camera time? I don't think I'm famous enough yet!"

"Don't worry," the gamer answered, "I'm sure you'll think of something. If anyone knows how to work the camera, it's you."

"Aww," Dakota blushed, "thanks!"

xxx

The footage cut back in to Lightning grinning in the water as a faint drumline began in the background. "Oh yeah!" he cheered. "One more sha-chance at the gold, and this time, Lightning's goin' all the way to the endzone!"

"This is so exciting," Beth lisped to her friend. "I think we could really win it this time, right Beardo?"

"Right on!" the hairy boy told her. "That million's as good as ours!"

"In exactly two days," Chris McLean announced as the deep and exciting music used for recap segments began to play, "you will all report to a brand-new location, for a whole new challenge! And, the last one standing will receive one million dollars!" He threw his arms up dramatically, then pointed straight at the camera. "So don't forget to tune in," he held up a film slate and raised the clapstick, "to Total! Drama! Action!" On the final word, he clapped the stick and grinned.

(Fade to Credits)

Author's Note - Post Script

The ending just doesn't seem as dramatic to me without the background music to listen to, but hopefully that's just me. And more importantly, the cast for next season has been revealed! Alejandro, B, Beardo, Beth, Bridgette, Dawn, DJ, Geoff, Jo, Lightning, Sammy, Scarlett, Shawn, Sierra, and Topher.

I bet you're wondering why I chose fifteen to start with instead of fourteen as in canon. The answer lies in a reviewer by the name of Impoik, and the answers I gave to a few of their reviews near the middle of the season as I recall. Basically, they caused me to rethink the roles of the characters I had, at that point, decided would only compete in one season. At the time, I had already begun o think about the eliminations for Action, and i realized that 'E-Scope' was going to be a problem - none of my planned line-up was the type to get back in the game on a technicality like that. The solution, then, was to give one of the one-season-wonders another chance to play - in this case, I will admit that it was B who was redeemed as he obviously cannot compete in World Tour. Thus, I have the right elimination numbers, and now there's only two players out of the original cast who will be limited to a single season of competition.

For the chapter and challenge itself, I just had to focus on giving everyone a reasonable chance at getting to the Dock of Shame on time, give everyone a fair amount of screentime regardless of their future roles, and of course set up how the tie would occur. There was also a few other things to set up events next season that I had to include, but those of course will become more obvious in time.

Regarding the teams I chose for the challenge, a few were obvious (DJ, Dawn, and Sammy for instance), while some took a bit more thought to iron out. I decided to include a team of four guys as in canon, but instead of having them stick together I thought it would be more interesting if they ended up splitting up. Team BBB I thought was a cute sort of grouping, while Jo, Sugar, and Sierra were sort of leftovers who I thought would be fun to stick together. I don't know if any of them will be as popular as Team E-Scope in canon, but hopefully they were good regardless.

And with all that said, I just want to give one last thanks to everyone who read this story, and an even bigger thanks to those who reviewed - whether you did so only once or kept at it chapter after chapter, you all were a big motivation to keep getting new episodes out quickly.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you all. It's been one amazing ride.

That's all for this series! Season Two is scheduled to debut on January 30th at the earliest, so be on the look-out for Total! Shuffled! Action!

- Fangren