บท 3: Not so Happy Campers, Part II

We were all standing there, at the cliff, while Chris was probably yapping about the rules as I tried my best to ignore the cries of Sadie and Katie, who had yet to do that little team change they did in the original Total Drama, I was paying more attention to the fact that Cody apparently had Skills that were translated to the System

[Programming]

[With Programming, you gain access to a variety of languages and can understand what lines of code are supposed to do simply by looking at it. You can also write scripts to optimize resource gathering, automate combat strategies, or develop intricate puzzles and games for others to play.]

[Construction]

[As you progress in Construction, you unlock new blueprints, and techniques to tackle more ambitious projects. Designing and customizing structures to suit your needs, whether it's establishing a home base, constructing elaborate traps, or even dungeon cores.]

Now, did I understand why I was only able to see it now? Not really, but I blame the island's whole existence. Taking this moment to enjoy looking at my teammates in swimsuits, with the sunglasses, it did help a lot to not look as creepy, that and the fact that they were more worried about the sharks.

"So, who wants to jump in first?" I heard Bridgette ask as Duncan already had a smirk, an answer already formed in his mouth.

"Ladies first," Duncan said as he eyed both Courtney and Bridgette mirthfully.

"I could go first if no one feels like it," I said then as people turned to look at me, as I was currently going through some sunscreen. What? I was susceptible to skin cancer in my previous life, I got used to pass it whenever I'm out nowadays.

"...Y'all want some?" I asked as Sadie politely asked for it, and shrugging, I gave it to her.

"I forgot to bring some because I thought there would be some at the resort," Oh, right, the resort lie, heh.

Not wanting to take much time from the competition, I simply gave my straw hat and the sunglasses to DJ before I jumped, and I swear I could've heard an eagle cry somewhere! I swear bro, is this what Assassins feel when they jump into that minuscule pile of hay? Because this is awesome! No wonder they do this every single chance they get, I would be doing this too.

***

"You know, I didn't take the short guy for being the adventurous type... but then again, he did bring a goddamn axe, so what the hell, better than the dorkus maximus over there," Duncan said on the confessional.

***

"Usually I'm the first with that kind of thing, but he didn't even looked surprised thorough Chris' speech," Bridgette confessed to the camera.

***

I was already on the boat as the others kept jumping, a whole lot of waiting as they kept jumping, up to a point where I could clearly see Sadie and Katie jump.

"Hey Cody, thanks for the sunscreen," She said as I shrugged.

"It's just sunscreen," I said it simply.

"By the way, I'm Katie, I'm a Killer Bass now since Chris let Izzy change places with me to let us stay together," And so it happens again, I wasn't sure if it would've happened a second time around since Justin and I were on different teams, but what the hell.

Waiting on the rocking boat was a lot more boring than I thought it was gonna be, probably because my only memory about doing anything sea related was surfing, which was just my dad's attempt of making me get some of his hobbies, and driving a jet ski, which was my dad's.

After seeing Harold hit the water, nutsack first, we were told by Chef, who was driving the ship, that he was getting us onto the sand since we had to make way for the Gophers since they couldn't possibly let all 22 hang on the dinky ship Chef had.

"So, since you guys just found out that we're making money, what are you guys planning to do with it if you guys won?" I decided to throw the ice breaker a couple minutes later now that we were finally on land.

"Sadie and I will be having a tour around the world, I mean, it's a hundred thousand, right?!" Katie said for the duo.

"I will build a gym," Eva said as well, yeah, sounded about right.

"Pay my bail, then... I don't know, maybe open a bike shop or a mechanic's shop," Huh, didn't expect that from Duncan, if only because of how he was acting later in the series.

"I will build my own series of summer camps, in homage to Steve's camps," Well then.

It was just some time later that DJ and Courtney came to us, chicken hats on their heads, signifying their surrender towards the challenge.

I made the same question to them.

"Build a restaurant for me and my Mom," That's so sweet DJ, but I'm also pretty sure that you guys almost killed people with your recipes.

"I will make sure that the money is appropriately invested onto my college funds so that I can become a lawyer," She said as I raised an eyebrow.

"You planning in doing college here or going international? I don't think Chris actually told us if it were Canadian Dollars or American Dollars? Or if it's tax free." I said as she looked pensive.

"I was thinking of going to Harvard University," That's a scam girl, although that's true on my world, maybe this one's better?

"Hold on, what even is the difference between American dollars and Canadian dollars right now?" Duncan asked.

"Wait, we have to pay taxes on it?" Geoff then asked as I nodded.

"The difference between the Canadian dollar and the American dollar is of 1.24, so technically, if it's a hundred thousand American dollars, then we get 124000 Canadian dollars, and on taxes? Well, it wasn't stated if it's tax-free or not, but if it's anything like Euro millions, in certain countries, then it's a 19% taxation on it," I explained as the Gophers were jumping right now, shame that I can't hear the fight between Leshawna and Heather.

"Wait, how much would that be post taxes then?" Courtney asked as I shrugged.

"81000 if we're getting Canadian dollars, assuming the tax rate is correct, and if we're getting American dollars, then we're getting 100,400 Canadian dollars, after conversion," That is of course, assuming they would pay the change 1:1, which is not true, on my world at least.

"What about you, shortie? What are you planning to do with the money?" Duncan asked curious.

"Oh, I'm most likely not getting that money, so nothing really," I gave them a short laugh as some interns put down some crates, I'm assuming those were the crates with the hot tub to build, so, after finding out that we still got the disadvantage, thanks to Courtney goading the Gophers into jumping by saying she didn't believe them, something that I only knew because I had watched Total Drama before, we were forced to push those crates while the Gophers had that carriage.

"...Eh, fuck it," I said as I took out the multitool axe, I just had to build a simple carriage and use Eva's strength with it.

"If you don't mind me telling you guys what to do, let's try to feel around which crates are lighter, and leave the heavier ones for me and Eva to handle," I said as they begrudgingly did it, with DJ being the one that would be doing most of the hard work with the lighter charge.

"What about us, short stuff?" Eva asked gruffly.

"Well, I've seen that carriage, I'm planning to build something like it, certainly not as pretty, but as long as it works, who cares?" I said as Eva and I cut off some of the trees, with me doing more with the woodwork, thanks to Cody's innate skill, than of my own experience, wonder how he got it? Maybe it's to explain how he built Gwen's head instead of a ship.

Not that long after we began, we had a rudimentary makeshift sled, which was enough to put some of the crates.

"Let's hope that they sent DJ to help us, so for the time being, it's just the two of us," I told her as I pushed the crates while she took the sled.

"...You're stronger than you look," Eva said, which if it had been someone else, I would've believed that was some attempt of small talk, but Eva wasn't 'someone else', she was the ridiculously built Slavic woman who put the fear of God on the Sasquatch.

I mirthfully smiled at her, "The term you're looking for is featherweight," I said as she blinked a couple times.

"You fight?" She asked surprised, if the tone in her voice and the raised eyebrow in the otherwise emotionless face were to deign it something.

"I'd say that my skills at boxing is better than my body allows me," I told her as she looked pensive, but then I decided to say something else. "I'm also planning to work out during my stay here, so I was wondering if you had any knowledge in designing plans to work out, since you want to build a gym," I said as Eva let out a grunt.

"With Chef's diet, it will be almost impossible to figure out a good enough workout regime, but I can make something worth it," Nice.

Some time after Duncan, DJ, Geoff and Bridgette appeared to give us a hand, while they were wondering about Eva's sled, she pointed at me, quickly explaining about it so that they could stop fucking around and give her, and myself, a hand or two.

We decided to simply make a pile of crates on Eva's sled and we all pulled together. As a team.

"What are the other guys doing?" I asked as we were all pulling the sled.

"The twins sat on poison ivy, something stinged Courtney's eye, Harold is currently trying to open the crates with Justin," Bridgette said as I thought about it.

"You brought that first aid kit, didn't you? Think you have some anti-allergic stuff?" Geoff asked as I shrugged.

"I might, I did bring a lot of stuff," Mostly for myself, but eh, I don't want to sound like an asshole, no wait, actually, I could leverage this!

Took us less than I believed, and I was quick to tell them I was gonna search for my supplies. And there it was, benadryl, which was well, for the poison ivy and the mosquito bite.

I also decided to bring the anti-mosquito spray just so that everyone can spray it on themselves.

"Courtney, bring your face here," I said as I waved my Benadryl around, quickly passing through her face as if I had experience with that type of thing... I did, I was an highly allergic in my previous life, and so is Cody.

Courtney took this moment to take control over the team, which I simply raised an eyebrow, but fuck it honestly, I would just help around since I was the one with a system plus actual construction skills, hopefully that would put me in their good graces, and not just you know, a target on my back. Killer Bass had always been a team where your relationship with Duncan mattered more than how much you bring to the table, as Harold can contest to, after all, the Napoleon Dynamite lookalike won two challenges in a row and still got screwed over.

By then the BFFFLS or whatever they call themselves came over, still itchy, but not as much, so I let it brew on the backseat as I asked, and Courtney ordered, for them to help us. Somehow, I don't think people really like Courtney ordering everyone ad nauseum, but hey, I'm just here to have a good time while I'm still understanding this system of mine, of course, so I just let Courtney do her thing so that in the worst case scenario, I'm not the one going home tonight, while still showing my worth by actually building a kick-ass bathtub.

"I'm surprised that we're doing half as good as we are when there's so many girls in this team," Oh Zeke, never change, unless it's anything World Tour related, he was dumb, but he didn't deserve to be Gollum.

As Ezekiel learns about a woman's scorn, we just kept doing the challenge. Impressively enough, Ezekiel's comment is actually what screwed the Gophers' cooperation.

"TIME!" We heard some time after, with Ezekiel passed out after Leshawna gave him a tour of how 'weak' she is.

"Gophers... what happened?" Chris McLean asked as he raised an eyebrow at the fact that the bathtub had some of it's wood broken apart.

"Leshawna here threw the sexist homeschool in the air, he hit the bathtub," Heh, thanks again.

I will make up for you next time we meet since I'm pretty sure you will be voted off today, tough luck my dude.

"And Killer Bass, nice bathtub, somehow I was expecting the reverse, but this is a good way to get our gears running," McLean said as I shrugged, maybe he thought it was gonna be like in the show, but it's all different, yet not that different since Ezekiel's still getting kicked out first.

We celebrated as McLean declared our win, we decided to party out, but hey, at the bright side, at least the Gophers still have a bathtub, all things considered, that's not that bad.

Not even Chef's shitty looking gruel made anything to hamper our enthusiasm, and that's when I decided to say something stupid.

"So, Katie, Sadie, you still itching from that poison Ivy?" I asked as they nodded.

"If you don't mind, I can certainly pass that Benadryl on the area affected," I said as the BFFFLS stammered, skittishly so, and it was quite cute.

"W-We, I mean... The poison Ivy got us in the butt," Katie stammered as I nodded a couple times.

"I'm aware, that's why I'm offering myself," I said as the silence overtook the place.

***

"Damn, that guy has game, or at least he talks the talk," Geoff said in disbelief.

***

I ducked underneath Eva's attempt of slapping me from my 'blind spot', before I gave her what I believe is a cheeky grin.

"Calm down Eva... if you wanted a massage session with me you just had to ask," I said as I finished eating and walked away before she could throw something, or maybe even someone at me.

Anyways, while I still don't understand this whole System or how exactly it uses my Karma, I know exactly what I need to do, and that's to make money.

"Let's see how far I can abuse this programming skill that I have," Even if I have to be hated by this world, I will make money out of it, I don't give a rat ass if everyone hates me for bringing TikTok 15 years earlier.