#i did scream when etho died i shrieked

[buzzfella]

im so well about ethos death

"im going home everybody, im dying in my home"

he ran away from his friends to keep them safe on both deaths. (all he knows how to do is run, but this time he can use it to protect). and he just wants to die with some reminded of them. that yes, he wasn't a survivor this time, he stayed and he protected. he was loyal and he built a home for his allies and they were safe. but he couldn't get through the door.

[enpr-ss]

Oh no is this going to happen again?

HOW DOES CLEO KEEP GETTING AWAY WITH THE EASIEST TASKS?!?!! Mumbo absolutely losing it evident in the high pitch of his voice.

Omg another replacement.

WHAT IS THIS DUAL TASK HOLY SHIT. Well at least it’s not a pokemon battle where their task success depends on their creature winning. Bro a wither is so much easier than a warden? Where’s tango when you need him. LOL MUMBO. He’s so dead.

Grian knows EXACTLY what he’s saying and what the fan response is. He’s totally pandering. It’s great. Rip Mumbo. MARTYN AT THE PERFECT TIMING. The wither painting in the background is honestly perfect setting. BDUBS?!!!! LOL Is there a special mod recipe for nametags? Omg Mumbo. HE WALKED OFF AGAIN!!! The heck is wrong with his resource pack. Well at least he didn’t lose the footage or the audio.

How does grian only have half a heart left. Bro. PEARL TORMENTING ETHO AGAIN!!! Omg was it Lizzie?!?!

ETHO’S DISHWASHER!!!! THE SHADE!!! TRULY WASHED UP!!! They even had the suspenseful tension music.

Wait jimmy’s dead already? And Lizzie after? SKIZZ?!?! Omg everyone’s dying this session. Wait Lizzie died first? Then why funeral? Etho you mad man.

OH MY GOD I GOT JUMPSCARED!!!! That’s the most terrifying thing ever.

“There’s a point Grian, when Chaos Scar comes-“ *sees the warden finally* “OH MY GOD WHAT IN THE WORLD”

What’s the meaning of 1 Stick Wither?! I don’t get it. BRO THAT SHRIEK ATTACK ON MUMBO!!?! SO COOL. rip Mumbo truly. WHO JUST DIED?!?! Is Scar STILL running from the wither all this time?!?! LOL. grian telling Scar to combat log. I can’t believe that worked.

Why would Grian aggro the wither before going to secret Keeper??! Why. AND HE DIES AS HE HITS THE BUTTON LOL. BIGB NO. SCAR. who got the last hit?! Etho hit the button asap!!! What you lingering around for.

Did that make you juuuump? MUMBO DIED TO HIS OWN FENCE POSTS?!?! LOL.

Omg canary curse broken

What a session. I really thought Etho had the harder task but I guess not.

That moment of silence and Grian and etho turning to look at each other when Mumbo is so close with his shotgun guess.

THE REVERB LOL. AND THEN BDUBS COMING THROUGH.

“Craft yourself some boots” immediately fails and makes an illegal helmet. Is mumbo’s task to disobey grian every other command? Why would he get on the strider. HE JUST WALKED OFF THE BLOCKS INTO LAVA AHHAAHA. THE BELATED LADDER.

The blazes omg. And the belated saddle. Skizz?!?!

The tense music! OMG HE DROWNED?!?

GRIAN CHEATING WITH ADMIN PRIVILEGES LOL.

Bro the warden spawning right behind Etho….

Scar just casually chatting while etho lures the warden in the background. Jimmy screaming. That clever invis pot. Everytime someone encounters Scar he’s just running for his life screaming for help. What a good view of Mumbo getting absolutely hunted down.

WHY WOULD YOU NEED TO HELP THE WARDEN?!? AND HE BROKE THE GAME BY DYING ON THE BUTTON LOL.

[loreanth]

DOUBLE LIFE SPOILERS AHEAD

*distant shrieking*

Pearl WON

Pearl and Scott were the last duo left, Pearl who spent the first session gathering resources and making sure Martyn didn’t die, only to be rejected by her soulmate and blamed and abandoned by Martyn, Pearl who was called crazy by the others and treated like a live bomb any time she was near them, whose only company was her dog, Pearl who brought death with her wether she meant too or not.

She won, and she deserved it, and Scott AGREED.

That last session, Scott clearly cared, was reaching out to her, and she was scared to reach back, she trusted Scott yes, but still preferred the idea of partnering with Impulse and Bdubs, because they had been the only people who weren’t terrified of her mere presence (except Scar but he has like, no survival instinct), because while she trusted Scott not to kill her she still didn’t feel welcome, he still had Cleo and still clearly cared about her, enough so that even as a Red he didn’t want to hurt her, so where was her place with him? She didn’t know, and so went somewhere she did know her place, because while she couldn’t trust the other reds it was at least familiar, she could ally with them and only have to watch her back, only look out for herself even if there was no one looking out for her.

And then she was forced to chose there as well, join the other reds and risk Tilly’s life with someone who was a known threat to them, or slink back to Scott because at least she knows he won’t hurt Tilly (even when they were enemies, he never tried to hurt Tilly), and of course she chose Tilly, because Tilly is the only constant she has now that her tower is gone.

And then Etho and Joel die in the Nether and she hunts down Impulse and Bdubs and Tilly dies and Cleo turns on Scott and Martyn turns on her and she kills them and it’s just her and Scott left.

And even has Scott says she deserves the win more, he pulls out TNT and she runs because she assumes he’s going to hurt her because that’s all they’ve done to each other this season, but Scott has won before, and he knows what the ghosts demand, and he knows neither of them are making this out alive, and instead of killing Pearl, instead of hurting her anymore, he blows himself up, a quick, painless death for the both of them that technically makes Pearl the ‘most victorious’

And it’s just, I’m screaming, Scott saying ‘you deserve this more’ and Pearl thinking he means death and not victory, Pearl running from him, scared of being hurt anymore, Scott extending the last olive branch he can to the person who, though they weren’t friends or even friendly, remained loyal to him even when his chosen partner turned on him.

And finally, in the end, Pearl forgiving him, for abandoning her, for hurting her, accepting that in the end he did care.

I hope that they get to be happy together, as ghosts.

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

soooo... can we get a what might have happened if Jimmy's worst fear came true and Dogwarts tried to sacrifice Scott?

okay this ended up being kinda self indulgent lol hope that’s okay

...

Scott is starting to regret letting the Dogwarts trio take him and Jimmy back to their base, but he can’t exactly back out now. It’s his own fault, really, for asking if there’s anything else he can do to support Dogwarts from a distance, rather than putting up their banner.

He shoots a sideways glance at Jimmy, who seems even more nervous than him. Scott resists the urge to reach out and take his hand.

Finally, they arrive at Dogwarts. Scott is more than worried to see that a new platform with torches surrounding it on all four corners has sprung up in the middle of the carrot field. It looks innocent enough but something about it gives it an ominous vibe.

Unfortunately, this is exactly where Ren leads Scott.

“What is this?” Scott asks warily, putting one foot on the step up.

“This is the Altar of the Black Heart,” responds Ren ominously. “For Dogwarts to truly achieve full power, it requires a sacrifice. The death of an outsider.”

Scott’s eyes widen as he realises what this means. “Whoa, whoa, hold on a second!”

He backs away a few steps but bumps into Etho, who takes hold of him in a surprisingly strong grip.

Jimmy starts forward with a gasp but Martyn grabs him and pushes him down, holding him in place. “Scott!” Jimmy cries uselessly.

Ren stands on the hill just above the altar as Etho drags Scott into place and tries to hold him down. Scott struggles against Etho’s grip, causing Etho to backhand him across the face.

“LEAVE HIM ALONE!” Jimmy screams. “SCOOOOOOTT!”

Blood trickling out the corner of his mouth, Scott coughs and tries to fend Etho off again.

“I’d stop resisting if I were you, Scott,” comes Martyn’s cold voice.

Scott glances over at him. His heart freezes as he finds Martyn holding a sword to Jimmy’s neck. “No!” he gasps. “Don’t!”

“Then hold still.”

After a moment, Scott squeezes his eyes shut and falls still, letting Etho push him to his hands and knees in the centre of the altar.

“Scott…!” croaks Jimmy. “No…!”

Scott forces himself to meet Jimmy’s terrified gaze. “It’ll be okay, Jimmy,” he whispered, just loud enough for Jimmy to hear. “Just stay strong for me, okay? Stay strong.”

“A sacrifice must be made!” announces Ren, spreading his arms to the skies. “Do the honours, Etho.”

Etho nods and raises his axe.

Jimmy looks away, starting to hyperventilate. He can’t watch this.

Scott closes his eyes.

“STOP!”

Everyone freezes.

Scott dares to look up and spots Grian standing a little way off, fists clenched. “I don’t know what the hell is going on here but it stops now!” Grian shouts.

Taking advantage of his distracted state, Jimmy wrenches free from Martyn and dashes to hide behind Grian.

On the altar, Etho pushes Scott further down to the ground and holds his axe threateningly over his back. “It would only take one swing,” he warns.

“Stand down, Grian,” commands Ren.

Grian holds up a block of TNT in one hand and a flint and steel in the other. “Let Scott go now,” he orders. “Don’t make me blow this place up.”

“How much damage do you think you’re gonna do with one block of TNT?” Ren scoffs.

“Who said anything about just one? We snuck in here while you lot were out and planted TNT all over this place. All it’ll take is one little lit block and the whole place goes up.”

Ren narrows his eyes. “You’re bluffing.”

“Am I?” Grian says challengingly. “Do you wanna find out? I’m sitting pretty on my green life but you? You’ll be taken out in an instant.”

Everyone present knows the implications of this. Ren is the leader of Dogwarts and he put himself down to red on purpose. If he dies, the Red Army will become nothing. It will negate everything Ren’s worked so hard to build up. Grian may die too if Dogwarts explodes but that’s nothing compared to what Ren will lose.

“All you want is for us to release Major?” asks Ren after a moment.

Grian nods. “That’s right. Release Scott and let him, me, and Jimmy leave this place safely.”

Scott can feel himself trembling, not daring to lift his head to look at Jimmy. He has no idea if Ren will agree to this or not. Even if he does, Etho could choose to end him anyway.

After an agonising pause, Ren says, “I will release Major if you promise not to blow Dogwarts up.”

“I agree to your terms,” Grian responds.

Scott and Jimmy simultaneously let out a breath of relief.

“Etho, let him go,” Ren orders.

Etho releases Scott, who climbs to his feet and takes a few cautious steps away from him.

Just as Scott jumps down from the altar, Etho whips out a block of TNT, lights it, and tosses it. It lands in front of Scott, who scrambles to the side to avoid it. The resulting explosion sends him flying into the wall of Renchanting. He hits the ground at the base of the wall, unconscious.

“Scott!” Jimmy yells, dashing to his friend’s side.

Grian curses under his breath. Ren may have called his bluff but Etho didn’t. Now he’s been exposed. There’s no TNT under Dogwarts. And they’re all in incredible danger.

Etho darts forward.

“SCAR, NOW!” Grian shrieks.

A second later, an arrow flies out of nowhere and hits Etho in the leg, sending him down.

Grian dashes over to Scott and helps Jimmy lift him up. Carrying him between them, the two flee out of the gate and down the hill towards the desert.

Scar appears at their side moments later, carrying a bow. “I shot Ren, like, twice in the arm,” he pants. “I think that’ll slow them down.”

Grian doesn’t waste his breath in responding.

Luckily, the Red Army seem not to be following them, and they manage to make it to the desert with no problems.

As the group head up towards the desert house, Scott awakens with a quiet groan. Jimmy hears this and his heart leaps, but he can’t quite summon the energy to speak yet.

Grian and Jimmy lower Scott down just outside the house. No sooner have Scott’s feet touched the ground than his knees buckle and he collapses into Grian, who helps him sit down against the side of the building.

Jimmy immediately drops to his knees beside Scott, using the edge of his scarf to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth and his chin. “Are you okay?” he asks urgently, his voice shrill with panic. “Did you hit your head? You’re still bleeding! How badly did Etho hurt you? Are you-.”

Scott cuts him off by grabbing him in a tight hug. Jimmy hugs him back, both of them trembling from adrenaline and fear.

“I’m okay now,” says Scott in a hoarse whisper, before glancing up at Grian, who’s standing a few blocks away, trying not to listen in. “Thank you for saving us, Grian. How did you know we needed help?”

“Actually, we were just on our way to plant a load of TNT under Dogwarts when we saw your predicament,” says Grian. “I know we’ve never really been allies but I couldn’t just stand around and let them kill you like that. What were they even doing?”

“Oh, god knows. Either way, I really appreciate it. If you ever need help, just call on us and we’ll be there.”

Grian nods back. “Thanks, Scott. Same to you.”

Jimmy turns his head to glare back towards Dogwarts. “They’re barbaric,” he growls. “I-I can’t believe I almost lost you.”

“Hey, it’s okay.” Scott clasps Jimmy’s hand reassuringly. “I’m okay and so are you. We’ll get them next time, okay? Side by side.”

After a moment, Jimmy nods and squeezes Scott’s hand.

“Side by side.”

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

Heyo, reporting back to request a continuation of a continuation of a continuation, if you wouldn't mind! Aka, please more 3rd Life Villainpulse angst, I'm so invested (and very curious as to whether his latest murder attempt was an actual success, or if he really should have stuck around to verify the death...)

i genuinely rly love this! i’ve got such plans for it now that i think i’ll make it into an actual proper fic.

i’ve also now posted it on AO3, titled Stand For Nothing! link here

…

Impulse is getting concerned. It’s been over five minutes and no death message in chat. It should’ve happened by now. He had been worried about being found near the scene of a death — it’d already been about five minutes since the meeting and someone would’ve gone to find Skizz, so his items would almost certainly be found — but now he’s starting to think he should have stuck around anyway and made sure the job was finished.

He had been intending to stay here at his villager trading centre until the death notification came up and then he would run back to Dogwarts and play the distressed best friend.

But no death message. So his plan has to change.

When he makes it back to Dogwarts, he finds Ren standing outside the Renchanting building, his face pale. When he spots Impulse, he quickly beckons him. “Impulse! For the love of god, where’ve you been?!”

Impulse blinks. With no death message in chat, what can Ren be so worked up about? “W-What? What’s happened…?”

“Skizzle’s been attacked! We heard an explosion outside our walls and when we went to check, we found him out there, passed out. He’s in a critical condition but Martyn’s with him now and hopefully he’ll recover.”

Impulse can only stare at Ren with an open mouth and a pit in his stomach. Somehow, in all the possible outcomes he pictured for this scenario, he never imagined Dogwarts would actually find Skizz alive. After three perfect murders, it seems he got careless.

“O-Oh my god,” he manages to choke out. “C-Can I see him?”

“Not yet, but Martyn will tell us when we can.”

Ren takes him down into the living area under Renchanting. There, Etho is pacing back and forth in front of a closed door, clearly deep in thought, but he glances up as Ren comes in. “Ren, you found him.”

Ren nods, even though it wasn’t really a question. “Any word?”

“Not yet. Martyn has three healing potions in there with him though, so I’d say Skizz’s chances are really good.”

Impulse has to strain to keep his expression steady at that. “G-Good. That’s good.”

Something changes almost imperceptibly in Etho’s expression, but Ren, clearly not noticing, rubs Impulse’s back reassuringly. “He’ll be okay, Impulse. Don’t worry.”

All Impulse can do is nod, not trusting himself to speak.

Finally, after what feels like hours, the door opens and Martyn appears, his body blocking the view inside the room. “He’s awake,” he reports, a very serious look on his face. “Ren.”

Ren quickly ducks into the room, but when Impulse starts to follow, Martyn blocks him. “Not you,” he says coldly. “Etho, stay with him, please.”

Impulse’s heart freezes. There’s only one reason Martyn would stop him from seeing his injured best friend.

Skizz has told him everything.

He takes a step back and bumps into something behind him, causing him to jump.

“What’s going on, Impulse?” asks Etho casually, an only-just-discernible undertone of danger in his voice. “You seem a little tense.”

“My best friend almost died,” Impulse replies coldly, but even he can tell his words are unconvincing.

“Indeed. I wonder how that happened?”

“I don’t like what you’re implying, Etho. Why would you have any reason to suspect me?”

Etho just folds his arms and says nothing, infuriating Impulse. “You said I was the only person on this server you really trust!”

“That was before I joined these guys. I’ve had a weird feeling in my stomach about you for a while, Impulse. Something hasn’t felt right since this whole thing started, but I assumed it was just me trying to apply rationality to this irrational world. But one thing never changes, Impulse. No matter how much you try to change it.”

Impulse falls silent, scowling at the ground. He’s already given away too much in his tone and expression.

He glances sideways at Etho, who has his eyes fixed on the door Ren and Martyn went through. Realisation dawns on him: Etho isn’t expecting him to put up a fight. Etho thinks he has nowhere to go.

Now is the time, then. He can’t afford to wait any longer; when Ren and Martyn come back out here, it’s over. Impulse knows he can’t take on three people at once. This is his last chance to escape alive.

So when Etho shifts position a few seconds later, Impulse strikes. Before he can react, Impulse sweeps Etho’s legs out from under him and shoves him into the wall as he’s falling. Without waiting around to see the result of his attack, Impulse takes off running.

He makes it out of Renchanting and is just about to run down the hill towards the crastle when an arrow whizzes by him, nicking the sleeve of his t-shirt and causing him to lose his balance. Suppressing a scream, Impulse topples down the hill and lands in the shallow river at the bottom. He tries to continue onward but has to stop as he puts weight on his left foot and realises he must have twisted his ankle during his fall.

Gritting his teeth through the throbbing pain, he looks up in time to be able to dodge another arrow fired at him by the figure on top of Dogwarts’s wall.

He has to keep going.

Every step on his left foot is agony but he pushes himself on, half-galloping down the hill on the other side, the crastle in his sights.

“Bdubs!” he shrieks as he draws near, his heart racing. The Red Army is likely right behind him. “BDUBS!”

The person he’s calling rushes out of the castle over the drawbridge just in time to catch Impulse as he finally loses his balance and pitches forward.

“Impulse! You’re soaking wet!? What the-?!”

“Th- They’re coming for me,” he croaks. His eyes flicker up and he spots two faces in the windows on the second floor. It’s time for the performance of his life. “Dogwarts turned on me! They think I killed Tango and Cleo a-a-and made you kill Joel!”

“What?!” gasps Bdubs. “That’s ridiculous! Why would they think that?!”

“I-I don’t know but th- They’re gonna kill me, Bdubs…!”

“Not on my watch!”

Bdubs quickly ushers Impulse inside the crastle and into the waiting arms of Jimmy. Together, the two guide Impulse upstairs and lay him down in the bed Grian has placed in a position safely away from the slit windows.

“What happened, Impulse?” Bdubs asks softly. “How did they turn on you?”

Impulse takes a shaky breath. “Something happened to Skizz. He… He got attacked. Then he told everyone it was me and that I’d killed Tango and Cleo and manipulated you into killing Joel.”

“First of all, that’s utterly ridiculous,” Bdubs snaps. “I killed Joel because he was about to kill you. And second, why on earth would you want to kill Tango or Cleo?”

“I-I think you might’ve been right, Bdubs. I th-think Etho was responsible for Cleo’s death. And now he’s got Dogwarts trying to make me a scapegoat.”

Bdubs’s gaze darkens. “Despicable little-.”

“BDOUBLEO!”

“Stay there,” says Bdubs.

He strides to the window, flanked by Grian and Scott, armed with his crossbow. “What do you want, Ren?”

Down on the ground, having left Skizz in the care of BigB, stand Ren, Martyn, and Etho, staring up at the castle. The latter two hold bows, while Ren is armed with a sword and shield.

“We know Impulse is hiding out in there,” Ren announces, with the regal but dangerous air of a king. “Hand him over to us, Bdubs.”

“No way in hell,” Bdubs snaps back. “He told me everything!”

“We can guarantee you he did not,” responds Martyn steadily. “Not the truth, anyway. He’s using you, Bdubs.”

“YOU’re the ones using HIM! As a scapegoat!”

“Impulse isn’t the angel you think he is, Bdubs,” Etho says darkly. “You’re protecting the person who killed Cleo.”

“No, YOU killed Cleo,” snarls Bdubs. “And I bet you killed Tango too and tried to blame it on me! You’re just trying to frame anyone you can so you can get away with it!”

Despite the pain and stress he’s experiencing, Impulse can’t help feeling proud of himself. The seeds of doubt and suspicion he’s sown between Bdubs and Etho are paying off now.

“Bdubs.” Ren’s voice drops slightly as emotion creeps into his tone. “He attacked his best friend and left him to die. If we hadn’t found him in time, Skizz would have succumbed to his injuries alone and terrified in the middle of nowhere, murdered by his own best friend.”

“What exactly is Impulse’s motive supposed to be, here?” Scott asks suddenly. “You say he killed Tango and Cleo, orchestrated Joel’s death, and tried to murder Skizzle. Why exactly would he want to do that?”

“Skizz claims Impulse said it was because Tango “knew too much” about something,” Martyn says. “Some kind of secret that Impulse is keeping. And that Cleo’s and Joel’s deaths were “necessary to push the war forward”. That’s his motive, Scott. Impulse wants war, and he doesn’t care who he hurts to get it.”

“We ARE talking about the same Impulse, right?” demands Bdubs. “Our Impulse? The sweetheart who wouldn’t hurt a fly? Are we sure Skizz didn’t just misremember? He's a little unreliable like that. Maybe he said it was someone else who-.”

“Don’t you dare!” Martyn bursts out suddenly, his voice filled with the most venom anyone had ever heard it. “Don’t you DARE say that! You weren’t there, Bdubs! You didn’t have to fix his broken ribs and his fractured neck and his shattered arm! You weren’t there when he finally woke up after several minutes of crying out and panicked breathing like he was having a nightmare! You didn’t hear the way he cried, how terrified he was when he told me what happened, the raw agony in his voice! That’s not the demeanor of someone who MISREMEMBERED! Skizz has gone through hell today and it’s all Impulse’s fault! So I’m not leaving here without his head, in one form or another!”

“YEAH!” Ren yells in agreement, hitting his sword against his shield. “No more arguments. No more wasting time. If you don’t give us Impulse right NOW, we will declare war on you and take him by force.”

Inside the crastle, Impulse’s heart skips a beat. This is it: the moment of truth. Either everything he’s been working towards will finally come to fruition… or Bdubs will hand him over and he will die.

Bdubs straightens up, a steely look of determination appearing in his eyes.

“Then consider us at war.”

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

V, my beloved. Can I please get some nice Tango and Etho buddy moment? My heart needs it.

Why yes, yes you can! :D

Summary: A glitch on the server sends Tango into a death loop. Etho rushes to save him before something even worse happens. 

CW: slightly graphic description of death. Nothing too bad but just putting it there in case.

...

  Something is very wrong with the server. Tango can feel it as soon as he jumps into the end portal. There’s something deep down in his code that feels genuinely unsettled by being in the End, and what worries him is that there’s no need for this. He’s been to the End thousands of times, and he’s not even here to do anything particularly stressful like fight the ender dragon. There’s no reason for him to be so scared. 

  As he makes his way towards the end gate, a message comes up on his communicator. 

<Xisuma> Server’s a little glitchy right now guys, be careful not to die, just in case.

  Tango shivers. It must be the glitches that’s causing him to feel so uneasy. Well, no matter: he’s usually very careful anyway. He shouldn’t have to worry about dying. 

  Unfortunately, he looks up at exactly the wrong moment and finds himself looking straight at an enderman. 

  The creature immediately shrieks and charges at him. Tango yelps and scrambles back, dashing to the side. He tries to activate his elytra but server glitches are often unkind to fliers and he can’t get a rocket to fire. When trying again and again yields no results, he decides to take a risk. 

  He jumps off the end island in a place where he knows there is a platform underneath him. If worst comes to worst, he will take a bit of fall damage. 

  Sure enough, his elytra fails again and he falls a few blocks down to the small platform underneath the island. Sighing, he gets to his feet and dusts himself off, momentarily forgetting why he was in such a hurry to fly away in the first place. 

  A shriek sounds from directly behind him.

  He spins sharply round, but it’s too late. 

  The enderman hits him twice in rapid succession, knocking him off the platform. 

  Tango tries desperately to activate his elytra and rockets, but it still doesn’t work. He drops into the void like a stone. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  Sighing, Tango lets himself respawn, expecting to wake up in his bed back in his base. Or if not there, the spawn island. 

  But when he reappears, he finds himself suspended mid-air in the void, nothing as far as his eye could see. He can’t even let out a scream as he falls again, the life getting rapidly sucked out of him just as it had done just seconds before. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  He reappears in the void again. Before he can react, he’s falling again, taking more and more damage until finally…

Tango fell out of the world.

  This time, he manages a few hoarse screams for help as the void takes him for the fourth time. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  He pulls out his communicator and only just manages to type a very quick message before the end comes for him again. 

<Tango> HELP

Tango fell out of the world. 

  He experiences the same excruciating pain over and over again. The agony of having the oxygen sucked from his lungs, of his throat being torn out, of his limbs being bent and snapped, of the pressure building rapidly in his face until his eyes feel like they’re about to explode. All this happens in less than five seconds but it always inevitably ends the same way. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  He falls.

Tango fell out of the world. 

  He hurts. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  He dies. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  And there’s nothing he can do about it. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

Tango fell out of the world. 

  “I GOT HIM!” 

  It takes Tango a few seconds to realise he isn’t falling anymore. He isn’t hurting or dying. Instead, he’s suspended mid-air. Something is gripping his hand, stopping him from falling. He’s dangling over the void but it no longer has the power to hurt him. 

  “Can you pull him up?!” shouts a familiar voice. 

  “I’m trying! Get over here and help me!” 

  After a moment, a second hand closes over his wrist and he feels himself getting pulled upwards. He has no strength left to try and help, so he just lets himself hang limply. The void has not only taken all his items but every ounce of his energy. 

  Finally, he feels his knee touch something. He’s pulled up onto a solid surface, but the world is still blank in his eyes. Even though he can feel himself kneeling on a proper surface, his eyes cannot see anything except the void. 

  He blinks a few times. Has he gone blind? Or is his mind playing tricks on him? Has he died in the void so many times that he’s gone genuinely insane? 

  “-an you hear me?” One of the voices from before becomes audible in his battered ears. “Tango, say something if you can hear me.”

  Tango’s mouth opens but he can’t get any sound to come out. 

  “Buddy, it’s Etho,” the same voice says soothingly. “You’re safe now, I promise. Can you nod for me to show you can hear me?”

  This he can do. Tango manages a slow nod. 

  “Oh, thank god…” Etho breathes. “X, what’s wrong with him? Why are his eyes like that? Why isn’t he moving? Why can’t he talk?”

  “His code is severely damaged,” says the other voice worriedly. “That death loop’s really done a number on him. I don’t know if he’s fully aware of everything around him but at least we know he can hear us. That’s a good sign. Ask him yes or no questions while I try to repair his code.”

  “O-Okay.” Etho’s voice is shaking audibly. “Tango, can you see me?”

  Tango slowly shakes his head. 

  “Can you see anything?”

  Another head shake. 

  Etho’s next three questions also result in a head shake. Can you talk? Are you in pain? Can you move? 

  “Argh, the other hermits keep messaging me,” mutters Xisuma irritably. “Etho, send them a quick message, will you? Tell them to back off.”

  The hands holding Tango’s disappear. A pause follows this. 

  “Please don’t actually write that, Etho,” Xisuma sighs. “I know how you think.”

  Etho chuckles weakly. “Sorry. I’ll let them know we saved him and we’re working on getting him home.”

  “Thanks.”

  In the ensuing pause, Tango finds between his continuous blinks that the world is starting to swim into view. He can now make out the fuzzy outline of someone sitting in front of him. It must be Etho.

  He opens his mouth again and tries to speak, but his vocal chords are so damaged that all he can manage is a faint gurgling sound. 

  Etho’s hands immediately grasp his again. “I’m still here, buddy. I’m right here. X, can we get him back to the overworld? He can’t be comfy kneeling on hard endstone.” 

  Tango blinks as his vision starts to go black. Exhaustion is threatening to overwhelm him and he actually wants to let it. He’s so tired. Too tired to stay awake. 

  He finds himself sagging against Etho. The last thing he’s aware of before he passes out is the sound of Etho’s heartbeat. 

…

  Tango’s falling again. Pain explodes from his neck, his stomach, his head, his arms, his chest, everywhere. He tries to scream but his voice is ripped away from him and he can see Etho right in front of him but he can’t reach him and Etho can’t hear him and Etho can’t help him and-

  “Tango!” Etho’s voice sounds from somewhere in the distance. “Tango, you gotta wake up!” 

  Tango sits bolt upright with a strangled cry. Seeing the blank world still in front of his vision, he cries and buries his face in his hands, tears flowing from his eyes. 

  He feels someone sit down next to him and wrap their arms around him, gently pulling his head close to their chest. Tango takes deep breaths, letting himself relax as he registers the sound of Etho’s heartbeat. 

  “You’re okay, Tango,” Etho whispers. “You’re safe, I promise. I hope you can hear me.”

  Tango slowly opens his eyes. 

  The blankness is gone.

  He can see the bed below him. And the floor below that. And the walls around him. His vision has finally returned. 

  He slowly pulls away and sits up straight, almost starting to cry again as he gazes into the face of his close friend. 

  “Etho,” he croaks. His voice hasn’t fully returned yet but at least he can speak again. 

  “Hey.” Etho smiles widely and places his hands on Tango’s shoulders. “How are you feeling?”

  “B-Battered.” 

  Etho gives a quiet chuckle. “Yeah, a death loop will do that to you. You gave everyone a massive scare, buddy. Impulse and Zedaph especially. Xisuma had to send them to the mining desert to do some grinding to take their mind off it.” 

  Tango grimaces. “I didn’t mean to. What happened to me? How did you save me?”

  “X and I tracked your death signatures to that spot in the End. I can imagine what it looked like for you but to us, you kept respawning a block or two away from the ledge and then falling again. It took me at least four tries to catch you, so… I’m sorry it took me so long.”

  “No, don’t apologise. You still saved me. Yeah, to my eyes, it was like I respawned in the void and then just died again and again and again. Even when you got me out, I couldn’t see anything except void.”

  “I thought that might be the case,” says Etho, nodding. “Your eyes were all glassy and white. I’ve been in a death loop before and even though it wasn’t a void one, I know how it feels to get your code scrambled up like that. X said he only just managed to salvage everything the void tore up.” 

  Tango shivers. “I could’ve died permanently today, couldn’t I?”

  “...yeah, you could’ve.” Etho gives a reassuring smile. “But you didn’t. And don’t worry, if this ever happens again, I’ll save you.” 

  Tango gazes at Etho. One of the things that sticks out in his mind about when he was plucked out of the void is the way Etho’s voice cracked when he yelled at Xisuma to help him pull Tango up. Tango has never heard Etho’s voice crack like that before. That’s how he knows Etho was truly terrified back there, perhaps terrified at the thought of losing him forever. 

  But he doesn’t bring this up. Instead, he smiles. 

  “Thank you, Etho.”