#Total Slaughter Island (Rescue Rangers) Prologue

[creativecuteness]

Total Slaughter Island (Rescue Rangers) Prologue

I did promise I would post each week and here's the beginning of my brand shiny new Fanfic based on Evaeee-ry's horror AU I used to love Total Drama as a kid and in a way I feel like I'm writing a love letter. Anyway, enjoy the Prologue and let me know you're thoughts.

The fresh ocean breeze left a salty taste in her mouth and nostrils as the bow rocked to and fro. She stared at her reflection in the clear blue water with purpose. With the cloudless sky, orbiting seagulls, and cool breeze, it was a perfect summer day. Perfect for swimming, fishing, and cold creamy treats, but it wasn’t perfect in fact; to her, the last thirty days couldn’t have been more stressful.

She glanced at her associate out of the corner of her eye. The sun always had a way of hitting his handsome features just right—his short black hair, subtle beard, and brown eyes. He was wearing a white T-shirt with a teal green one over it, dark shoes, and brown khakis. his sorry excuse for a signature outfit.

To many, Christopher McLean was the Canadian equivalent of a Hollywood icon; he has appeared in countless movies, was a host for several radio shows, podcasts, and reality TV shows (put a pin in for that last one), and he was handsome to boot, especially when the light hits him just right. But to her, it wasn’t endearing as much as it was annoying.

Dakota Natalie (age 16) knew full well that Chris’s nice guy act was nothing more than that. His quote-on-quote acts of selflessness were just a way to paint himself as a humble, chivalrous, not your average celebrity kind of guy. But below the surface, the countless fangirls and mutual respect were the many ways he stroked his own ego. In actuality, Chris was an egomaniac, narcissistic, and overall insufferable. Any brave fool who tried to call him out on it would be fired on the spot and taken to court for ludicrous charges. Only a fool would work for Chirs, and sadly, Dakota, their captain who was manning the boat, and two junior high schoolers were those fools.

She turned herself fully to get a better look at Chris as he smoked his cigarette. He truly had no care in the world, and that just added to the young girl’s disgust. How could he be so nonchalant about this? Were his staff and actors just that disposable to him? Or maybe he was starting to feel an ounce of regret and couldn’t risk showing that vulnerability. Dakota liked to think it was the second option, but the logical side of her knew what was going on in his twisted brain.

Chris lowred his cigarette and puffed out smoke, all of which hit the brunette square in the face, making her start hacking as she fanned the air as the smoke stung her eyes and lungs.

“Ugh, yet another reason why I shouldn’t start smoking." She prayed that the repulsive stench wouldn’t linger on her clothes. A brown-skinned girl with purple hair in a braid handed her some water, which she gladly drank. Once her coughing fit ended, she gave Chis the best death glare she could muster.

“Watch where you’re blowing that stuff. Are you trying to kill me too?" She spat, a small part of her wanting to throw the TV host overboard.

“Hey, I gave you a warning, but you were so lost in my beauty, I guess you didn’t hear me.” He remarked teasingly. Even in her observation, she didn’t see his lips moving once he hadn’t said anything to her, and he knew she knew that. Barely anything gets past her.

“Pfft as if.” She scuffed, crossing her arms and leaning back on the railing. “I’m just seeing if you regret leaving twenty-one teenagers on a deserted island while you left to save your own hide.”

Chris’s features softened for once, letting his ego deflate as he gave his assistant an affectionate pat on the head. She had the urge to push it away, but moments like this were rare and far between, so she let it slide. (Just this once.)

“Look, as much as I hate admitting my wrongdoings, you have a point.” He sighed, taking another drag from his cigarette, this time blowing in the direction of the wind (and out of her face). “I shouldn’t have left those kids on the island with a crazy killer.” He spoke, “It’s just seeing Ezekiel’s head and severed body parts I panicked. I didn’t know what to do; what was I supposed to do?”

“Uh, bring them with you!” She snapped, banging her fist on the metal railing, startling their other two helpers, who were playing Go Fish using a barrel as a makeshift table. "Call the authorities and let them handle the rest! But no, you had to selfishly leave, giving those kids no way out, all of which could be dead thanks to you. How do we tell their parents?! They’ll sue you from here to Timbuktu; your reputation will be ruined, and you have yourself to blame for this, McLean!" She yelled, giving him another hateful glare.

Chris had to hand it to her; just like Hearther, her looks could kill, and it left him regretting waiting this long to rescue them.

A Hispanic teenager with short brown hair watched the scene unfold. He thanked his lucky stars that he wasn’t chosen for the show. As Chris and Dakota argued back and forth on the morality of their situation, he eyed the purple-haired girl and motioned for her to invite Dakota to play with them.

She nodded in understanding, not wanting this short-term alliance to be the end of them before their search even began. “Hey Dakota!” She spoke, waving to her, “Why don’t you play with us? We need a third player to even the playing ground.”

Dakota thought for a moment, giving a small glance at Chris, wondering if he had any final words on their conversation, but figured it’d be better to just end it now.

"Fine, deal me in.” She agreed, not giving the former host a second glance as she joined the two acquaintances, her expression still stormy, which showed since she didn’t bother to make small talk; the only time she spoke was to ask for a card. Chris would never admit it out loud, but he hated seeing her like this; Dakota’s dad was an old friend of his. Back before Chris was a big-time movie star, he got his start as a radio host. Dakota’s father worked in audiovisual and kept the sound in check and made sure the equipment stayed in perfect condition. It wasn’t long before Chris had himself a small fan base and was asked to audition for a variety of different roles. (His voice and charisma made him very likeable.) It wasn’t until years later that he reconnected with his old friend and offered him a job in the studio; he had a pet project he was secretly working on and wanted the best AV man on board. Plus, hearing he had a wife and daughter was intriguing; he guessed it wouldn’t be bad to have one of them on board too.

It wasn’t long before he met Dakota and took a minor liking to her; she was sweet, patient, and didn’t talk too much, which Chris minded at first, expecting to be bombarded with questions and the story of his life. Only to have that come crashing down when she stated she had never heard of him. Those words felt like a punch to the gut, and he took it personally. If it wasn’t for his busy schedule and reputation, he’d take her to the screening room and show her his filmography. But he had work to do, and being full of yourself doesn’t make for a good first impression, so he let the remark slide, reasoned his work in America wasn’t as popular as it was in his home country, and gave the family the tour, making a mental note to get Dakota familiar with his acting career when he had the time.

It wasn’t long before he developed a sort of uncle/niece, father/daughter relationship with her. For once, Chris’s ego didn’t get the better of him, and he enjoyed the downtime with the Natalie family; he even gave Dakota an internship, which she seemed to enjoy for the most part. He was on top of the world, and nothing was going to stop him. He was going to achieve his life goal of creating and hosting his own reality TV show, and for the moment, it seemed it would come true. Then he had to go and screw it up; in hindsight, he should have prioritized the players safety over ratings and drama. They only gave a brief overview of the filming location and didn’t even explore the whole island, but in his defense, no one pointed out strange happenings, human-shaped shadows, or anything of the nature. They didn’t know a psycho even lurked in the forest. So, naturally, they thought it was safe. Oh, how wrong they were, and now twenty-two minors could be dead, and a crazed murderer was still at large. And it was all his fault; he never should have left them and swept Ezekiel Miller’s death under the rug. He had more than enough money to pay whatever price his parents would have demanded for losing their son. Heck, he has enough money to pay all the legal fees those angry parents would’ve thrown his way.

And yet he left them anyway; his stupid pride and fear of a ruined reputation were what kept him from loading the campers onto his boat and calling authorities. And as if he didn’t feel bad enough, his favorite person can barely look at him. He showed Dakota his true colors, and now their entire relationship has fallen apart. (But little did he know he'd been showing the cracks even before then.)

McLean looked at his secret fiancée, Chef Hatchet. (It wasn’t easy being a bisexual man in this day and age; yet another act of cowardice Chris can add to his growing list.) They both looked at each other with saddened eyes. Hatchet knew how much Dakota’s distance hurt him behind his ego and selfishness. He was a human being with a heart of gold that was corrupted by his growing fame. Chef always knew his lover wasn’t the biggest fan of kids but hoped bonding with one would have Chis finally agree to adopt some with him. When he got out of the war, Chef worked as a daycare attendant and loved those little munchkins and their mischievous nature; Sure, they were a headache and gave him war flashbacks. Yet leaving them left him longing for kids of his own. He expected the longing to last a year or two before moving on, but it never did. Instead, it was replaced with a desire to raise a few with the love of his life.

Chris wasn’t a bad person by any means, but he sure as hell wasn’t a good one either. And yet that’s why Chef loved him; he too had a twisted mind and some deep, dark secrets he never wanted to get out.

If Chis was Dakota’s second father, slash uncle, Hatchet was her third, and he loved that kindhearted teen with all his heart (something he didn’t know he was capable of). Chef mouthed the words, “Give her time; she’ll come back around.” And they pretended their daughter from another mother, and father was going through a rebellious phase and returned his focus on getting them to the island before nightfall.

Chris just nodded, looking at his assistant, who barely said a word as she watched the two helpers. Who tagged along to widen their search.

“Yeah, things will return to normal eventually. All I need to do is save a few kids, show the world I’m not at fault, and everything will be right in the world again.” He thought he was pretty sure of himself. Though no amount of lying could prevent the elephant in the room, assuming the killer claimed more victims, that amount of trauma and worry is enough to fluff up anyone’s mind. Even if therapy is provided, who’s to say the trauma will become too much and someone could turn to unhealthy coping methods or commit suicide? Heck, for all Chris knew, they lost all hope and already did, making this rescue null and void.

“Face it, McLean.” A part of his brain spoke, “Nothing will ever be the same, and you know it. This act of cowardice will forever haunt you and the campers. So, stop playing hero, kiss your career and Dakota goodbye, and enjoy your last days of freedom. Because prison is the only place you’ll be going.”

And for once, Chris listened to the little voice in his head and kept his head down, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his heart and feeling of dread as Camp Wawanakwa slowly filled the horizon.

#Total Slaughter Island (Rescue Rangers) Prologue #dakota natalie OC #chris mclean #chef hatchet #sierra td #td alejandro #more character will be tagged as the story goes on #I gave Chris way more humanity than I expected but oh well makes him a more complex character #Next chapter comes out next Friday