#martyn if youre seeing this here's my thoughts

[zhukzucraft]

=> Martyn: Listen to Tango's insightful and crucial flashback

Tango: All I wanted was to build my Lovificator, you know?

Martyn: Your what now?

Tango: Oh just, you know, a redstone contraption!

Martyn: Ahhh

Tango: So I got enough redstone and iron to skadoodle some hoppers and repeaters together.

Tango: And with some bip bap boopin ill have the signal go around in a random direction.

Martyn: Hmmm!

Tango: Just need to attach like sixteen dunking platforms and we'll have ourselves a nice little game show to find love!

Tango: And I gotta hurry 'cause - you see - the other way is not that pleasant! I don't want to be the shmuck that meets his soulmate by dying!

Tango: No offence MJ.

Mumbo: None taken, mate.

Mumbo: It's not an experience that's high on my list of recommendatons either.

Martyn: I see

Tango: So I'm looking for the right spot near Spawn, yeah? And then it starts.

Tango: I'm getting damage from nowhere! Left right and center!

Tango: Thank void there were some chickens around, bless their souls.

Martyn: Woooow

Tango: Thought it was over by the time I found Joe here chasing bees, but noooo

Tango: More than half my hearts gone! Again!

Joe: Yeah this guy was pretty hard to lure back out of his little panic dirt hole.

Joe: If Impulse didn't come around with hay bales I don't know if I could've convinced him to upgrade it to a bunker.

Mumbo: wait wait wait

Mumbo: There were hay bales here? How many?

Skizz: Yeah and where'd they go?

Tango: Well

Tango: I-I needed target blocks so I-

Mumbo: Are you actually joking??

Tango: Hey gold medal, no interrupting my flashback, mmmkay?

Martyn: (no...)

GoodTimesWithScar has earned the advancement [We Need To Go Deeper]

Martyn: (no way)

=> Pearl: Keep Your Friends Safe

Start Over -- Go Back

[orangeocelotmartyn]

Martyn calls Iskall to ask to join Vault Hunters

transcript under the cut

Martyn: So, I-I don't know what I'm going to do now. I've got (coughs) a lot of time between now and when Rats SMP starts, um, in October, so…we gotta figure something out. My gosh. I tell you what, actually, I do have one idea. Let me…let me make a call real quick, hold on. Let me see what I can do…there we are. (Discord beings ringing) Martyn: Give me a second. (call is picked up after ringing a few times) Martyn: Hello. Iskall: Hello? Martyn: Hello! H-how are you? Iskall: Hello? I--wh--I thought we agreed not to ring each other on Discord. Why--how have you managed to get my Discord to send me a notification-- Martyn: Look-- Iskall: I--this is so cursed. Martyn: Look, we don't need to go into the semantics of it, okay? Barry and the Belbs, they've got a lot of programming knowledge, they know how to break things, um. Iskall: It's the one guy, its the one man, it's the--I knew it. Martyn: It's always Barry. Iskall: It's always Barry, yeah. Martyn: When you ask how, its always Barry. Um, so, this is a random call. My calendar has just opened up, uh, for-for the forseeable future, I got nothing till I have to go back to Paris, um, so I was wondering if I could join Vault Hunters? Iskall: Oh! Uh, I mean that's starting in eight days-- Martyn, hopefully: Yeah? Iskall: Uh, and your schedule cleared-cleared up (clears throat) Do you not know--this is, this is not how you join an SMP. You don't just call your friend and ask if you can join. You have to call your friend, give them a bribe, and then you can join. Martyn: Okay, wh-what bribe, what bribe do you want? I-What--what do you need? Iskall: I-I. Now I have to think about it. Martyn: Yeah, cause I was going to say, whatever you were gonna say, I don't have it. But what I do have is desperation, and uh, pluck, and puns. And that's all I can really bring to the table. Iskall: You know what, I-I-I d--okay, will you be-its a difficult server-- Martyn: I heard there was an okay, I heard there was an okay! C'mon! C'mon! I'm in! Iskall: I didn't say okay yet! Martyn: You heard-I heard 'okay!' Iskall: We gotta do the interview! Okay, we gotta do the interview. Martyn: Oh, okay. Iskall: Okay, here we go, okay, here it is. Are you an enjoyer? Martyn: Sometimes. Iskall: It--"sometimes," okay. I, uh, hold on, let me note that down. (clears throat) "Sometimes." Have you played before? Martyn: Played what? Uno? Yeah, I played Uno before, yeah. Iskall: Okay, 'Uno' is good, yeah, Uno is good. Martyn: Cool. Iskall: That-that's a pass, there, okay. Uhh, lets see here, uh its not that I'm coming up with questions, I just, I've got a terrible headache today-- Martyn: It's fine, its all good-- Iskall: --and slowly reading the script that I have for like, new members to the SMP-- Martyn: You know what I heard, I heard pity is the best medicine. Iskall: (small pause, snorts to himself) Martyn we'd love to have you, we'd love to have you. Martyn: Yeah!!! Vault Hunters SMP here! We! Come! Iskall: Heck yeah! Martyn: Let's do it!

[cherrifire]

Please share your thoughts on the other 5 cutie marks, I'd love to hear!

Hi everypony! I got like 20 asks for the Dogwarts cutie mark lore so I'm here to speak my truth!

Before we start, I would like to write a quick reminder that a pony's cutie mark is not always their "special talent", but can also represent who they are, their personalities, and a possible destiny. Different cutie marks have different meanings and interpretations, but they're not just about representing what you're good at.

That being said, let's start with the cutie mark design I'm proudest of!

Ren's Cutie Mark

Ren's cutie mark is of a sunrise and looks pretty simple at first glance but there was a lot of thought that went into this one.

First of all, I bet you're wondering why a sunrise? Well, in the show, it is pretty typical for unicorns with great magical abilities to have one relating to space (examples being Twilight Sparkle, Sunset Shimmer, Starlight Glimmer, and Sunburst). And I figured since I wanted Ren to fall into a similar position of potentially becoming an alicorn, I gave him a cutie mark following the same trend. And I chose a sunrise to reflect the way Ren seems to glow when he enters a room. The way he carries himself is very warm and bright it just catches your eye in a similar way the sun would.

Also, Ren wears sunglasses. So a sun-themed cutie mark seemed appropriate.

Additionally, there are a couple of smaller details I want to point out too. Like the sun rays, if you look at them for a moment you'll see they're shaped like little crowns! I of course had to put a crown in thanks to how much Ren likes to play royalty, so I snuck it in there. And then the red spots underneath could both be interpreted as the sun reflected over water or blood. (But of course, this is a kid show AU so there wouldn't be any blood in Ren's destiny, just a fun reference to the red king and his whole thing about blood dyeing the snow red)

Martyn's Cutie Mark

I explained this one in an earlier ask but I thought I'd explain it again here for anyone who didn't see it!

Martyn's cutie mark is of a chopped log and a small stick.

This one is mostly a play on the name "Littlewood" but has other meanings too. As a character, Martyn tends to travel and explore quite a bit. In the Life Series specifically, he is usually the last one to find a permanent base and even then doesn't spend a lot of time in one place. Always on the move. Additionally, he's more of a wild card compared to other characters, always trying to be as unpredictable as possible.

The smaller detail here is the little swirl on top of the log is the same as the one on his Minecraft skin's shirt.

BigB's Cutie Mark

Cookies! Cookies! Cookies! BigB's cutie mark is of 3 cookies where one is trying to eat the others. There are also a few sprinkles there made to look like action lines.

We all know BigB loves cookies so of course I had to give him a cutie mark with cookies in it. For this one, I decided to follow the cutie mark trend of "symbol/item important to the pony duplicated 3 times" (examples being Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie) but I added a bit more creativity to it with the top on trying to eat the others to represent just how tasty they are 😋

Additionally, rather than the first cookie trying to eat the others, you could interpret it as opening its mouth to talk. Because BigB can not keep a secret to save his life! In Double Life when he started "secret soulmates" with Grian, he didn't last a day without opening his mouth. He told Ren about it immediately because he felt bad for keeping things from him.

Also worth quickly mentioning: People pointed out in my original post that they don't think BigB would be the element of honesty because of his behaviour in Secret Life. But that's just Secret Life. I think Secret Life to BigB was like that episode of My Little Pony where Discord makes the main 6 act the opposite of their true element. BigB was just going through a weird phase of telling very obvious lies because a book told him to.

Skizz's Cutie Mark

Skizz's cutie mark is of a lightning bolt from a couple storm clouds hitting the ground.

I think this is the cutie mark with the least thought put into it, unfortunately. There was still though just not as much as the others. The big thing I thought was fun was I made the lightning bolt shaped like an "S" to stand for Skizzleman. But other than that, this cutie mark sort of has the same meaning as Rainbow Dash's cutie mark. Quick like lightning, loud, bold, dangerous, and powerful.

Impulse's Cutie Mark

Impulse's cutie mark is of a lit-up lightbulb.

I absolutely crowded this cutie mark with the letter i. If you look closely, there are 6 of them. Impulse's design also has an i-shaped pattern on the belly if you look closely enough. But that's more of a fun easter egg and doesn't exactly reflect Impulse as a character.

There are a couple of reasons I chose a lightbulb for Impulse, the first and probably most obvious is that he's a redstone guy! He's a technical guy who likes to work smarter, not harder. So I figured the My Little Pony equivalent would be a light bulb/electricity. The second reason for the lightbulb is that it's usually used as a visual representation when characters have that "eureka!" moment in cartoons. When someone has a brilliant idea a little lightbulb turns on above their head. So since Impulse is the ideas guy, I figured a lightbulb would work for his cutie mark.

Etho's Cutie Mark

Etho's cutie mark is of a snowflake with a missing branch.

I promise there is more to this cutie mark than just "Canada is cold" even if that's part of the reason I wanted to give him a winter-themed cutie mark. While it is fun to make a nod to Etho being Canadian, I thought a winter-themed cutie mark would be fun to represent how he sometimes presents himself. Cold and a bit mysterious. I think deep down once you get to know him, those attributes melt away, but for people who have never met him, he may be intimidating that way.

I'll be honest, I don't watch a lot of Etho content, but I do have a few friends who identify as Etho girlies so I did my research. I was told in his Minecraft Let's Play World, that he has a snowflake build somewhere. I believe they said it was an iron golem farm? (Please correct me if I'm wrong) but I thought that was perfect for the cutie mark. And if you're wondering why there's a branch missing, it's because one of my friends said he was incapable of finishing builds sometimes so I thought that would be fun to include.

-=+=-

Alright. Rant over. To celebrate, here are a few pony doodles so I can put this post in my art tag.

[jellieland]

(Spoilers for. Real life?? I guess???)

---

Five figures stand, solemn, at the celestial summit of nowhere. They discuss matters of great import, and observe the fragile gossamer thread that is all that surrounds them, and-

Oh. No, nope, nevermind. They're just arguing again, aren't they.

"-don't know what you expect ME to do about it!" snaps the Red One.

"I don't know, Grian, how about literally anything?" asks the Scarlet Moon, raising an eyebrow.

"I mean, you could at least tell us what's going on out there," says the Ruby Star. "I don't think that's too much to ask, Grian."

"Riiight, like that'll help," says the Bloody Victor, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, for goodness sake, Martyn, do you have to make this difficult every single time?" snaps the Red One. "Anyway, we've got loads of time to work this out. It's only just started, even if it was a bit earlier than I thought it would be," he grumbles, irritated.

"Oh! Look!" calls the Coquelicot Loner, from where he is peering away from their circle at something that would look, to anyone but the five present, entirely indistinguishable from any other patch of the universe. "They must be done! Someone's coming!"

"What?" The Red One frowns. "Don't be ridiculous, Scar, there's no way-"

A brilliant beam of starlight shoots down from the heavens, and tears through their little circle like a formula one car cutting through the middle of a picnic.

It leaves behind...

Huh.

What. What is that.

There is... a. Person? But the proportions are all wrong, nothing this world has ever seen before. The limbs are mismatched, twisted, not quite connected. The movement is... disturbingly smooth, except when it jerks and jumps at seemingly random moments.

Whatever they are, they regain their balance, look around, and... laugh. "Oh, hey guys!" they say. "You know, I really didn't think this counted. But here we are, I guess!"

"Mom?" says the Coquelicot Loner, squinting at her. "Why are you short?"

"Oh my god, Scar, you can't just ask people why they're short," says the Ruby Star, apparently on autopilot.

"Yeah, and, uh, not to be rude, but more like why are you an eldrich horror? But, like, more so than usual?" says the Bloody Victor, backing up and looking rather alarmed.

They raise an eyebrow. "Oh, we're doing this now, are we?" They shake their head. "You know what this is perfectly well. We did another game, and I won. Deeply surprising, I know, but here we are!"

The Scarlet Moon tilts her head. "I mean, not that it's not nice to have you here, I guess, but that seemed real quick for a whole game, Cleo."

"Yes, thank you Pearl," says the Red One, narrowing his eyes. "I quite agree. Just how violent WAS this one that it's already finished? And WHY was I not informed?"

Cleo laughs. "To be honest I don't think anyone expected it to matter. And, I mean, sure it was violent, they always are, but it was all pretty light-hearted to be honest! Not a lot of drama, you know." She looks around, and seems to remember something. "Oh, Scott, I let a zombie kill you at the end! Sorry about that, I didn't realise quite how low you were. It was pretty funny, though."

The Ruby Star blinks, and shrugs. "I mean, fair enough. Hey, that means Divorce Quartet is all here, now!"

The Coquelicot Loner squints. "...Does that make you my stepdad, Scott?"

"No," says Cleo.

"God no," says the Ruby Star. "For, just, so many reasons."

"Yeah, I am not doing that again," says Cleo.

"So... So, hang on," says the Red One. "You're saying, in your game, it was all just. Cool and fine and calm. No pain or blood or sacrifice. No agonising entangled web of alliances. No cold-blooded, cold-hearted backstabbing?"

("Hey!" says the Bloody Victor.)

"I mean there was plenty of blood, technically. And Martyn did sort of try to stab everyone in the back and then run away."

("...Yeah, ok, fine," says the Bloody Victor.)

"But no, not much emotional turmoil, all in all! It was pretty chill, really!" They glance around the circle. "It was nice to see Ren again, too! I think he was off roleplaying with Martyn most of the time, though."

"I'm going to kill you," says the Bloody Victor, despairingly. "How is that fair?!"

"Life isn't fair," says the Scarlet Moon.

"Oh, you-"

"Can you shut up for five minutes," snaps the Red One.

As the bickering continues, the Coquelicot Loner and Ruby Star sidle up to Cleo, avoiding her wavering, eldritch outline.

"So!" says the Coquelicot Loner. "How's dad?"

Cleo gives him a look. "Scar," they say.

He holds up his hands. "Ok, ok! Just asking!"

She shakes her head, not without affection. "Is this really all you do here? Just stand around and irritate each other?"

"No!" says the Coquelicot Loner, seemingly deeply offended.

"Yeah, pretty much," says the Ruby Star.

"Ok well that's stupid," says Cleo.

"Yes," says the Red One, having extricated himself from the continuing altercation between the other two. "This is extremely stupid." He claps his hands, drawing everyone's attention and finally ending the argument, for now. "All in favour of erasing the past few minutes from existence and pretending none this ever happened?"

"Aye," says everyone but Cleo.

"What," says Cleo.

"It means you get to go home and you don't have to stands around in a circle with us lot for the rest of eternity," says the Scarlet Moon.

"Oh. Yeah, definitely do that," says Cleo.

"Wonderful," says the Red One, and clicks his fingers.

...

Five figures stand, solemn, at the celestial summit of nowhere. They discuss matters of great import, and observe the fragile gossamer thread that is all that surrounds them, and-

The Coquelicot Loner speaks. "Well, that was fun, wasn't it! Do you-"

"I thought we just agreed that didn't happen, Scar," snaps the Red One.

Oh, ok. Alright, they're arguing again.

Yeah, we probably don't have to stick around and listen to this any longer, either. I don't expect it's going to change anytime soon.

[riacte]

some thoughts about some ren ships:

ren/martyn: it's fine and it's cool until springtime comes and there's a melancholy in the tepid, humid air that clings to your skin and clogs up your lungs. and it's really fine until you start planting carrots again in the way he did and you realise all the small moments in your life have been defined by those few months you spent with him. there's a before and an after. his influence has melted so casually in your daily life that you don't realise it. it takes years for the intensity and absence to sink in even though it's always been there. and you finally understand. what you felt on those carrot fields was love. (note the past tense. note that you're a liar.)

ren/doc: words cannot describe what happened in that damned van. they're not husbands, they're FREAKS. they almost wish they did romantic shit like stargazing and going on dates but it's just a lot of being cooped up in the tiny van and the intimacy of repairing each other's prosthetics and lying in the same bed and staring at each other for hours while listening to nothing but the hum of the air conditioner and each other's breathing. because they're "bros".

ren/cleo: they practice "on and off platonic smooching". whatever that even means. physically affectionate to the point of being disgusting. they can stop and start back again at any time but somehow it's healthy. despite all the intense pda and cuddling and shit, no one emerges emotionally devastated. their dms are just spamming heart emojis.

ren/false: he's been lowkey crushing on her for so long he's genuinely forgotten about it. from her point of view, he's been acting this way around her since forever so she's also forgotten about it. they exist in this miraculous and meticulous limbo in which no one crosses a line because they don't think about it. they have the keys to each other's bases and water each other's flowers. one day they wake up and make each other breakfast and look out at their beautiful mess of a shared garden because it's their sixtieth day of accidental cohabitation and go "how did we get here again".

ren/iskall: i know it's long gone and the magic's not here no more and we can't go back to who we were. maybe i'll joke about "wrong person, right time" but that feels like stabbing myself in the chest with a dull knife. i look at you and from the bottom of my heart, i feel love. regardless of what kind of love it is. when i see you smile, i can still feel it against my lips. so maybe we still wear each other's clothes. so maybe you still drink from that ugly mug i got as a gag anniversary gift. so maybe you still consider sending me a love letter as a joke. best friends to lovers to neighbours. jokes and casual flirtation and even more casual declarations of love. i love you and you love me but we both know it's not the same anymore. still, it was good. for a while, we were good.

[autumnwhistles]

Introducing Last Life: The Unofficial Musical! I've been working on this for a while and have finally finished recording the first song, out of something that looks to be 45 at the moment but I'll probably trim that down.

The musical follows @inthelittlewood's version of events (Watchers are canon, etc) because his lore is awesome, but you don't have to understand that to listen to it, since it wasn't even revealed in Martyn's perspective until the last episode. That'll be the same here, with the Watchers just playing the role of the chorus/narrators (who mainly sing this song), and some being the voices that speak to Martyn in his POV.

Because I'm following his lore, c!Martyn is the main character, and there's also a lot of focus on c!Scott because he was the winner of the season (and in my mind there are a lot of contrasts and parallels between the two, with Scott defying the rules of the game while Martyn is following the instructions of those who made the game, and occasionally trying to question it/break out of that cycle but being manipulated back into it – see the start of his episode 8). However, I am trying to give justice to other characters and POVs as well, since Last Life was due to the creation of everyone and I don't want to dismiss anyone's contributions as unimportant. Throughout the musical, the Watchers/chorus informs us about wider events at various intervals (through song), and I'm trying to give a lot of other people solos/duets too – for example, I'm writing a Tango solo song ("You Bet Your Life") at the moment; I'm planning to do a "Die For Me" for Cleo; Joel and Scar have a duet about various perceptions of them after Joel has turned red (they're not interacting with each other but are singing at the same time); etc. It'll definitely take a while to finish, but I do plan to see it through. There are also going to be musical and lyrical analyses on here explaining my thought process behind a lot of aspects of each song.

Full lyrics here!

[mellozheist]

Hi guess who got no sleep last night (thanks doctor's appointment) and decided to watch your animatic again

I quote myself about 1 hour ago in a treebark channel on a discord server my friends and I made (to anybody that reads this i am so sorry):

(Also I'm sorry if somebody's uncomfortable with swearing :'D)

"[Link]

I'm sorry I still can't handle this animation's existence peoples

I can't with it

I'm crazy

Like REN PUTTING HIS HEAD BACK ON AND CALMING DOWN MARTYN WHO'S PANICKING?????

REN BEING SO CALM AND THEN FUCKING CRAZY IN THE NEXT SHOT?????

FUCKING HELLO????

THE VERY FIRST FEW SHOTS WHERE MARTYN IS LOOKING AT REN BEING ALL EXCITED AND BLUSHING??????

THE END????????

THEM HAVING THEIR PINKIES WRAPPED AROUND???? I EVEN SENT MELLOZ AN ASK ABOUT THAT AND THEY TOLD ME "oh yeah they indirectly promised to see each other in the next life series :3" MELLOZ IS SINGLEHANDEDLY KILLING THE TREEBARK SHIPPERS WITH THIS ONE

MARTYN HOLDING REN'S HAND AND KISSING IT BEFORE DYING ALSO

GUYS I BEG

I CAN'T WITH THIS

I CANNOT

I AM UNABLE TO

Oh my gosh FCUKING REN PUTTING HIS HEAD BACK ON AND LOOKING AT MARTYN WITH THOSE DANG EYES

Guys I need to resist spamming this thing in here

But at the same time IT'S SOOOOOO TEMPTING

FUCKIN

LOOK AT IT

[Link]

GRIPPING MY HEAD FURIOUSLY

THIS WHOLE BEHEADONG SCENE

I JUST NOTICED REN'S NECK DOESN'T LIGN UP PROPERLY IN THE SHOT WHERE MARTYN KISSES HIS HAND

GUYS I'M INSANE

GIYS I'M INSANE

LOOK AT THISSSSSSS

Furiously rattling the bars of my cell is that what it's called

Honestly I never thought I'd go insane over a ship called treebark

IT'S FUCKING BAUMRINDE IN GERMAN

BAUMRINDE IS SUCH A SILLY SHIP NAME ISTFG

I don't think I've ever loved an animatic thid much

I'VR NEVER LOOKED AT AN ANIMATIC SO CLOSELY

THE FACT THE FIRST SCENE IS SO SWEET AND THE SECOND ONE IS ALREADY REN BEING BEHEADED

I wish they won. I wish Ren or Martyn was the winner of 3rd Life

CAN'T I HAVE L8KE

A LITTLE FAIRY THAT MAKES MY WISHES COME TRUE?

C'MOOOOONNNNN [insert a bunch of screaming emotes here]

AGH I CAN'T

...what if i copied every single message and sent melloz this as an ask to show my appreciation

CUZ I SURE DO APPRECIATE THIS ANIMATIC

[Link]

WATCH THIS. WATCH. OBSERVE. NOW. I BEG.

I'VE WATCHED THIS FOR 5 TIMES IN A ROW NOW

I'M VERY SANE

I STILL CAN'T GET OVER REN'S NECK NOT ALIGNING PROPERLY

also the feather and the poppy but this is the treebark channel

Not

Not desert duo

I CAN'T

.........do i send this as an ask i am very sane i promise

One of my very favourite scenes though is the beheading scene, funnily enough

Me literally passing out when I see gore but not here cuz idk baumrinde <333333

Also here

HIS NECK.

IS NOT.

ALIGNING.

Or what if it's his head falling off after death cuz he died and that determination is no longer there to keep dogwarts, causing his hesd to fall off

New headcanon i think

And I just noticed I watched this like 6 times now DESERVED THOUGH

Gonna watch it again

I love them so much

I love this animatic so much

Guys I can't

WAIT DID MARTYN'S EARS TILT DOWN IN THE REN DEAD SCENE

HOLD

WAIR YEAH

HIS EARS TILTED DOWN

I CAN'T

Somebody stop me

Actually no

Oh also the song choice IS PERFECT????????

WAIT REN'S PONYTAIL IS GONE IN THE LAST SCENE HIS HAIR IS OPEN

YAAAAAYYYYYY

Anywhoozles

[Link]

WATCH THIS.

I BEG

EVERYBODY THAZ DOESN'T IS MISSING OUT THIS IS SO COOL"

And with that, Melloz you're amazing, EVERYBODY WATCH THE ANIMATIC EVER >:D

I have so much fun reading this, It's like I'm in a theater seat watching this happen with 4D sound surrounding Lmaoooo

Thank you for sending this to me I really appreciate this <3333

I'm so happy you eating all the details I put in hehe

though the part where you describe Ren's neck as not aligning is probably just my error in art but that's also a really cool headcanon!

I might adopt that headcanon :d Like drawing Martyn carrying Ren's head

you really made my day Thank yooou :D

hope you get a good night sleep bud

[definitelynotshouting]

Can you tell us something about Martyn or Scott in your hunger au? Completely your choice on what, I just want to see what they’re like in your au

[A COMM CALL; QUIET SPEECH FILTERED THROUGH LOW CRACKLES OF STATIC]

MARTYN

I'm not gonna lie, I didn't actually expect you to help them.

SCOTT

[A RUSTLE]

Why not? It's not like I had to do anything, really. Just— point them in the right direction and, I dunno, let them sort it out.

MARTYN

[Dryly] Yeah. I guess I just thought you'd be more... angry.

SCOTT

Me? I'm not— I wouldn't say I'm angry. Why, are you angry?

MARTYN

[SLIGHT PAUSE]

...

Y'know, that's hard to say. I don't think I'm not angry, but I'm not, like... actively mad, either?

SCOTT

Well, there you go, then. It's about the same for me, not much else to it.

MARTYN

...

Fair 'nough, I suppose.

SCOTT

Honestly, I'm surprised you're not more angry, considering all your— y'know, stuff.

MARTYN

What, just 'cause I knew Grian way back when?

SCOTT

Well yeah, obviously. You've known each other for a long time.

MARTYN

Have we? I'm not so sure anymore.

...

[Almost speaking to himself] He's felt weird for a while now, ever since he came back from Evo.

SCOTT

What's that supposed to mean?

MARTYN

Call it a hunch. I dunno, but he just feels— off. Wrong. Different? I can't put my finger on it.

[RUSTLE OF FABRIC, AS IF FROM A SHRUG]

Or— well, he did. Not like I've seen him around in a while.

SCOTT

[HUFF OF LAUGHTER]

Your superpower is freaky, Martyn, did you know that?

MARTYN

So you keep telling me.

[Teasingly] BigB thinks it's cool, though, so I don't give a damn what you have to say.

SCOTT

[Audible smile] BigB's got the superior opinion, yes, of course.

[A PAUSE]

MARTYN

...

So have you had any news yet? About if they've found him or not?

SCOTT

[With some surprise] You really want to know?

MARTYN

Yeah, man, tell me. He's still— I mean, I guess friend's a strong word now, but I still care.

SCOTT

Um, yeah, Jimmy said—

Hm.

...

MARTYN

[SMALL INCREDULOUS NOISE]

Jimmy said, did he?

SCOTT

I'm not sure why you're surprised. We do still talk, y'know.

MARTYN

Oh yeah, just— wasn't sure, is all, what with the whole— y'know, after the whole ranchers thing.

SCOTT

[Stiffly] Jimmy is... look, just because he has a boyfriend now who isn't me doesn't mean we can't whisper sometimes. Also, this is like, one of the least romantic topics you could ever talk about, so—

MARTYN

[BARK OF LAUGHTER]

God. Tell me about it.

SCOTT

Well I would, but you're too busy trying to interrogate me about Jimmy. I've got better things to do than sit here and pine, y'know?

[BRIEF SILENCE]

MARTYN

So, they found him?

...

[Press X to doubt] Right.

SCOTT

[LOW SIGH]

Yeah, they found him. Tango told Jimmy, who then told me; a bit of he said, she said...

He's in pretty rough shape.

MARTYN

[SMALL SCOFF]

That so?

SCOTT

According to Tango, yeah. Look, I didn't ask for any details, don't shoot the messenger. All I know is Jimmy said he's really sick.

MARTYN

[Wearily] Yeah, that sounds just like him. Goes haring off into the— the bloody sunset and comes back wrong immediately after. That's great.

[Slightly more upbeat] Cool, man, well— thanks for keeping me updated. I 'ppreciate it. Good luck with Tim.

SCOTT

[A LONGER SIGH]

I don't nee—

[ANOTHER PAUSE]

Okay, yes, yeah. I'll keep you up to date as best I can.

MARTYN

Maybe whisper Tango directly while you're at it. Cheers, Scott.

SCOTT

Mhm. See you around, Martyn.

[CLICK]

[ween-kitchens]

little majorwood drabble i’m not gonna finish so tumblr can have it

“it was martyn, right?”

martyn yelps, spinning around to see scott looking far too pleased with himself. is that just his resting face? martyn wouldn’t be surprised.

“yeah- yes. it’s martyn.” he says, scrambling to regain his composure. not that he had much to begin with, anyway.

scott tilts his head ever so slightly, pressing his lips together in thought. that’s his scott alright, just.. different. he wonders if doc is laughing at him right now—martyn is a fool for this man, whatever universe they end up in. 

“y’know, you seem familiar.” scott says.

“do I?” martyn says, feigning confusion. “have I met you before I came here?”

scott’s mouth slips easily into a smirk, and martyn knows what he’s about to say. “only in my dreams.”

martyn snorts, attempting to deflect how flustered he feels from that simple little line. “ah, I bet you say that to all the boys.”

“well, yes,” scott moves ever so slightly closer. “but I only mean it with a few.”

“oh, how I long to be a part of that privileged group.” martyn says dramatically. scott’s expression slips into amusement.

“alright, I guess I ought to know your name without having to ask before I make a move.” he grins.

“i’m sure I didn’t say that.” martyn winks. 

it was meant to be a joke, but he swears he sees something flicker in scott’s expression—something akin to that softness martyn only got a taste of in the coral isles.

“you’re a charmer yourself, I see.” scott says, and there’s a note of gentleness that makes martyn dizzy.

“that’s me.” martyn says. “they call me the siren.”

“oh, do they?” scott says, curious as a cat.

martyn snorts. “no.”

scott laughs, and oh man, martyn is done for. “i’d like to get to know you sometime.”

martyn’s heart swoops so violently, he’s honestly slightly concerned it’s flown away. he wouldn’t be surprised, if he’s honest. “how could I say no?”

[sherlockggrian]

tried my hand at writing a little secret life. I've had this scene in my head for a few days, and I just wanted to establish how I see Grian and Scott's characters this season. A heart is just a heart. (heavy on the desert duo). Enjoy.

This was stupid. Grian winced against the stinging pain in his shoulder from where the arrow had whizzed past. Barely a scratch, and still he cringed at the fact that it wouldn’t heal until the next time he visited the secret keeper. And it was right under where the leather strap crossed his shoulder, and he was stupid for leaving the safety of his lit-up hill at all. He gathered his breath, keeping the shield close up against him as he panted behind the tree. He felt the thunk of another arrow hitting the trunk, and took a deep breath before whirling around, squinting in the darkness. He managed to dart forward and cut down the skeleton, which withered on the ground beneath him. Grian grunted, kicking the bones amongst the rocks. He rubbed the scratch on his shoulder, feeling where the fabric was ripped and he was bleeding slightly. It was fine. He’d just have to watch it for infection. Bandages were a damn commodity, he thought, feeling slightly dizzy at the prospect of having to visit Scar’s stupid trading hut for supplies. Because of course he got everything from the Secret Keepers.

Grian readjusted his shield, shivering slightly in the cool night air, before turning back toward the distant glow of his base. As he was about to step forward, something shook in the bushes behind him, and Grian whirled around, instantly brandishing his sword. Metal clanged in the air as he crashed into something, and whatever it was stumbled back, shaken.

“Jesus Christ, Grian”, rasped Scott, whose startled face was now illuminated by Grian’s lantern.

Grian lowered his sword, sighing. “Don’t jump me like that, Scott,” he grumbled.

“Relax, nobody’s red yet,” said Scott lowly. He was wrapped in thick dark blue cloth, his wavy hair falling in parts around his elf ears. His unnatural green eyes blinked slowly in the darkness.

Grian shoved his sword back into its sheath. “What are you doing all the way out here at night? You know it’s dangerous. I thought you were across the river, with Gem and Impulse.” Grian motioned vaguely into the copse of forest, where mountains rose in the distance.

“I could ask you the same question”.

“My base is just up the hill,” muttered Grian.

Scott sighed. “It doesn’t matter what I’m doing. But I don’t mean to interrupt your nightly walk, either. I’ll be on my way.”

Grian glanced down at Scott. Upon further observation, he was clutching his left arm tightly, and Grian could see dark blood soaking through the cloth. “You’d better bandage that,” he remarked.

“It was stupid. Spider jumped me from above, I wasn’t even thinking, I can’t believe I-”

“Come on,” Grian muttered, motioning for Scott to follow him up the hill. He picked his way up the red rocks, feeling the dry, seeding grass brush against his legs as he climbed. “There’s no point in wandering around like that.”

Mist shrouded the dark valley below them, with the glow of Scar’s hut and the distant village cutting through the darkness. Grian was sort of glad he could see Scar so easily from the hill. That was partly what had made him choose this place. That and the rocky, red hills behind him provided a little shelter from the cold nights that were beginning to descend on the world.

Scott shivered, and Grian dumped down the bundle of firewood he’d been collecting. “It’s too fucking cold at night,” he muttered, and Scott hummed in agreement, already tenderly unwrapping the cut on his arm.

Grian ducked into the small lean-to he’d built against the trees on the hill, and pulled out a roll of bandages. He tossed it to Scott, then bent down the arrange the fire. It was the least he could do, he supposed. They were all still green, after all, except for Martyn, though Grian hadn’t seen much of Martyn recently. Which was usually for the better.

“You’re on your own this time.” Scott cut into the silence after a while.

“So,” said Grian. “It’s better off that way. This always ends in chaos, anyway.”

Scott grinned “Only cause you’re here.”

Grian cringed a little, unsure if it was supposed to be a joke. “Yeah, whatever,” he said. “I’m better at picking apples than pretending to be loyal to somebody”.

Scott sighed. “That’s a little harsh, don’t you think.”

It wasn’t a question. Grian went silent for a bit, scanning the edges of the darkness around them. A prickle of unease had crept up on him, like the feeling he got when he knew there was a creeper behind him, but couldn’t react in time. Scott was studying him with that look he always had, like he could read everyone like a book. Then again Scott had always been able to see through exactly what Grian was.

“The tasks are easy now,” muttered Grian, fiddling with the flint and steel in his hands, “but wait until we turn red. They feed off of negativity. They’ll have us at each other’s throats eventually. It always ends that way”. He made a point of pronouncing the they, avoiding the inevitable we that he refused to speak into existence.

Scott grimaced. “Yeah, well, it doesn’t have to. I was thinking, what if it’s different this time. What if-”

“It’ll never be different, Scott, you and I both know that.” Grian turned to look at Scott, who was standing in a hunched position, still wary of his surroundings.

They were silent for a few moments, green eyes looking into green, perched within a tense energy that cut through the cold. Grian felt a little guilty, but then again, he felt that most of the time these days.

Scott broke his gaze, turning to look over the valley. His eyes landed on Scar’s small glowing shack. “You’re still watching him.”

Grian sparked the flint and steel a little more aggressively than he meant to. “So? It’s better than teaming with him. We both know what happens. What’s happened. We’re just gonna end up killing each other. I’d rather not get attached this time.”

Scott laughed, which both annoyed and comforted Grian slightly. “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” he admitted. “But it still feels…pointless, like, what are we fighting for?”

Grian lowered his gaze. “You know you can’t beat them.” Scott’s voice went darker. “You’d say that, wouldn’t you.”

Grian tensed, sensing Scott’s hand slide over the handle of his sword. He realized that Scott remembered more than the others - being a previous winner, he had clearer memories of the past games that the other players could only allude to. And there had always been something up with Scott anyways. Something Grian couldn’t describe.

“I would have teamed with you, you know,” Scott went on. “I thought we’d agreed, that we would find a way to stop this. But you’ve just given in. You give them everything they want. You’re not even supposed to be here. We could do something, this time could be different, we could stay together, we could-”

“Don’t act like you know what you’re talking about,” hissed Grian, staring into the fire that was starting to crackle and pop in his face.

“I’m just wondering why you’re even here.” A few rocks tumbled down the hill behind Scott. “You have the power to stop them and yet you-”

Grian flew to his feet, and in a few seconds he had his knife pressed against Scott’s neck, breathing hard into the elf’s look of surprise. “You really fucking think I want to be here? You think I want to see my friends keep dying, over and over? You think I can just snap my fucking fingers and they’ll listen to me?”

Scott let out a careful, steady breath. “That’s not what I meant.”

Grian lowered the knife a little, still tense. “They hate me just as much as they hate you, Scott.”

Scott didn’t seem to know what to say. He paused for a moment, glancing at the cold, dark desert behind them, and the warmth of the fire. “We’re on green, Grian. It’s alright. I don’t want to kill you.”

Grian sighed. “I know,” he muttered, and the knife clattered as it landed on the rocks at his feet. He turned back, looking at the moon that glittered coldy above the distance mountain that seemed to hum on the edges of the world, and some darker part in Grian fluttered. He choked it back. He had been hearing their voices in his head a little more recently. “I just want to protect my friends,” he admitted. “And I can’t, not really, but I can try. You and I both know the only way out of this world is to die. If I wanted out I would have killed myself the moment this started. But I don’t want them to do this alone.”

Scott released his grip on his sword, and ran his hand over the wound on his arm. “I…I know.”

A puff of smoke rose from Scar’s chimney. Grian wondered if he was awake.

“You broke the rules for him, though. You always do it for him. Even though you pretend not to.”

Grian winced, knowing the words were true. “I just…I don’t want to know what would happen if they saw him,” he admitted. He knew Scott knew what they were talking about. He knew Scott knew the word watcher, knew Scott had come looking for him last time, had told him of Martyn’s dreams and threats, had screamed at him for answers, had looked into Pearl’s eyes as he’d blown himself up, had faced the watchers himself, at the end, when he’d won, all those years ago. Scott and his endless optimism, his sense of righteousness, his refusal to follow the watcher’s rules that made him such a target of them, that made them torture him, over and over. If it was anything, Grian saw himself in Scott, himself before the watchers had given him the ultimate punishment.

“What happens if you fail a task?” asked Scott.

“I don’t know,” sighed Grian. “Nothing good.” He remembered the look in Jimmy’s eyes as the Secret Keeper's face had flashed red for a moment, locked in a world only he could see. And the change in his temperament afterwards. “I just don’t want them to find him. I don’t want them to find out how much he-” means to me.

Scott nodded.

“I’ve kept him safe this long,” Grian went on, fear tugging at the bottom of his stomach. “I learned, after the first time, it’s better to do that from a ways away. You know I- last time, when he was- he had 10 seconds left, and I couldn’t let him run out of time, I knew if he ran out, that he’d see them, so I-” Grian gulped, remembering the way his sword had run through Scar’s chest, the way his eyes had slowly faded from red to hazel before his body fell to the ground and lightning crashed overhead, and a handful of sand had slowly appeared in Grian’s hourglass. The panic in his mind at the thought of Scar’s hourglass running out on his own, and Scar being forced to come face to face with the watchers. The only way out of this world is to die.

Scott took a seat beside the fire. He stared at the flickering flames, pulling Grian out of his unpleasant memory. “I’m worried about Gem,” he admitted. “I don’t even know how she got here. But I wanted to keep her safe,” he went on. “And I- I’m worried about Jimmy.”

Grian let out a long breath.

“You never bothered protecting him, did you?”

Silence. Grian wanted to eat glass. He cringed, flashes of Jimmy on the end of his sword flickering in the back of his mind. “Jimmy and I couldn’t be more different.”

“He’s your brother.”

“That was a long time ago.”

The fire popped and sparks fluttered up into the night air.

Grian changed the topic, turning over a log. “You know you came to me last time,” he breathed. “You wanted to do the same thing. To fight them. But it didn’t work. It never works. You believed in Martyn, and they still took him, just like Pearl, just like Jimmy. He promised you he’d fight them with you, together, and he lied. The red takes everybody. It’s better to die with your allies than to make it to the end, and have to watch what’s bound to happen. To have to face them. In fact it’s better not to have allies at all.”

Something unreadable passed over Scott’s face, and deep down, Grian wondered if what he’d just said was really true.

He remembered what it had felt like when Scar had given him the heart, earlier that week. A gentle flutter in his chest, a warm feeling, something completely opposite to the cold, tumbling darkness that settled in his stomach. It was like a breath of sun on a cloudy day, a shred of warmth in the autumn cold. Scar was all of those things. Scar was laughter, the gold that still lingered in the trees and shrubs, the pounding heat of the desert and the quiet grip of nightfall. Scar would bicker with him, and Grian would play along, and they would reach some sort of agreement eventually, which would usually end with Scar selling him something. Still, Grian knew how the story went. He would probably end up with a knife in Scar’s chest, only because Scar would never kill Grian, he could never - Grian would never let him.

“Good luck, Grian,” whispered Scott, after a long pause of staring into the fire. “You’ll need it.”

Grian wrenched his eyes away from the smoke in the distance and glanced at Scott, who was wrapping himself back up in the thick cloak. He tossed him a chunk of bread that he’d been gnawing on. “I’ll see you around.”

Scott’s green eyes flickered for a moment, but he only nodded, turning away from the fire. “You were always good at keeping secrets.”

Grian watched him go, wondering absentmindedly what task the watchers had set him on, to have him wandering the world alone, at night. Or maybe Scott was breaking his own rules, too, off to find Jimmy, wherever he was.

The smoke from Scar’s hut had all but dissipated, and all that remained was the dark hum of the secret keeper, the statue that rose into the night. Grian tore his eyes away from it, but the image remained, and he winced in sudden pain as the familiar words echoed in his mind.

YOU WERE ONLY MEANT TO WATCH.

He replaced it with thoughts of Scar, remembering how they’d trained for this, far far away in a world that perched on the edges of Grian’s conscious memory. He felt Scar’s heart beating inside his chest, and the distant taste of a kiss, and what it felt like to fly.

The fire flickered on into the sky, and the edges of the desert frosted over, and the world turned. Stars glimmered above, and Scott’s shadow vanished into the darkness. The scratch on Grian’s shoulder still stung.

A heart was just a heart, after all. He was bound to lose it soon enough.

[auriidae]

more of these guys :] (part 1) (part 2)

classpect thoughts under cut! yippee

these absolute fools gave me SO much trouble. i changed each of their classes and/or aspects like twice while drawing this lmao.

pearle was going to be a rage player initially! i had her down as one for the chaos — yknow, ‘red’s my favorite color’ and all that. but the catch ended up being that in this au, as rage represents in-game chaos and bloodlust, it only exists while the game is in effect, and so rage players don’t have much dominion over stuff that happens after that period ends (which has all sorts of delightful implications for grienn’s character, but anyways). meanwhile pearle definitely continues playing and also grows as a character even in times of peace. i was thinking in terms of comparing her arc in double life to secret life in particular — ‘she left the tower’ and all that, yknow? she went from being terribly isolated and functioning on a completely independent scale, winning only for herself, to being a key member of a team and finding a purpose in helping them. which is pretty incredibly space-coded, in my mind! my personal qualification for space players is that they’re destined to be lonely, often physically separated in some way from others, for a while but not forever — because space is about creation, after all. and if you look at being a witch from the perspective of reinvention — what pearle manipulated or reinvented here was herself. she found her place in the story and the person she wanted to be. witches are also some of the most powerful characters in terms of specifically manipulating their aspect, i think, which is great because i’ve heard she's pretty great at pvp lol

ignore that martyn’s color palette is not particularly great it’s hard to unify the design of a character who is super rustblood-coded but also inextricably linked to the colors green and yellow of all things. i’ll redesign him later. anyways! at first i had thought there might not be any light players in this session — since light is about sort of seeing through the laws of the game and often deliberately defying them, as well as having a certain degree of control over narrative agency due to this. and because, yknow, the life series is a minecraft youtube roleplay series, realistically the ccs aren’t going to be playing any characters that go out of their way to completely ruin the game or refuse to play it by the rules altogether. but then i started thinking — and i don’t know an awful lot about martyn’s character so forgive me if i’m going a little bit off the rails here — does martyn want to understand? because if he as a character tries to understand and affect his destiny even though he’s ultimately limited by the nature of the story itself, then he could totally be a light player. so that’s where i was coming from here. think about how he won limited life in the end, for instance — not by playing into what the game itself had been leading up to, but by acting on and finishing his own story. he’s a knight because i do think knights are a certified Narrative’s Little Guy class — they persevere through so much pressure and often also have that sort of dual persona thing, both of which are particularly endearing to an audience. it’s hard work, keeping up with the narrative and fulfilling his own quest for understanding while he’s at it!! but he does it!!

renn is Such a blood player guys he is such a blood player ohhh my goodness. playing the game in terms of your relationships with others, right? basing how you go about it on allies and interactions, and being a leader above all else? i’d say that’s pretty ren the dog coded tbh. i don’t have too much to say here because i think seer of blood renn is pretty self-explanatory — he sees the entire game as a game of relationships and ties. he has a lot of knowledge about this field specifically, and shares it with his allies in the way he helps direct them and keep them alive. the reason he’s blood instead of light is because he puts his allies over knowledge, i think — he’s far too busy dealing with all that stuff to speculate for too long what the purpose of it all might be, and that would detract from his goal (of winning alongside others or dying nobly), anyway.

again questions abt them are open forever always :3

[orangeocelotmartyn]

Martyn meets Sausage for the first time, and picks a fight with his dragon

Martyn: "A dragon? Will Sausage let you--uh, will you let Sausage ride you?" Undecided, currently, undecided. Know what, I'm gonna do this--

---

Martyn: I heard him. I think I heard Sausage. (three seconds of silence, then he gasps at the same time a goat horn plays) I see him! Hold on a minute--oh, this could end badly, I may not have the durability for this--or the stamina for this. Oh gosh. (four seconds of tense silence) Oh gosh. (the goat horn plays again) Sausage: Yes! Martyn: Hold on, hold on--! Sausage: You're making it, come on! (Martyn makes it, laughing in relief while Sausage cheers) Martyn: This dragon can fly, bay-bee! Sausage: Wow, you're so thick. Martyn: Dude, I am, I'm a big dragon. Sausage: Stand next to me, let me see something? (a brief pause, Martyn going into 3rd person so he can see what Sausage wants) Sausage: Oh my good god, you're a thick and tall boy! Martyn: Mhm. Sausage: I thought I was tall, being elf. You're a big dragon man. Martyn: You've never met a dragon quite like me, I promise you that much. (goat horn goes off) Wait, is that somebody else--? Sausage: I rode a dragon the other day. Martyn: Did you do the horn just then, or somebody else? Sausage: That's me! I just like tooting my own horn from time to time. Martyn: Oh, jeez, okay-- Sausage: I've been looking for you, I have something for you, for a particular-oh, you know, icy boy. Martyn: Okay, what is it? Sausage: I found this and I can't use it 'cause I am fire but oh god--I'm a fire, uh, man, so, I found this, right here. (he drops a 'Glacial Gladius' on the ground) Martyn: (gasps) Whoa, hold on a minute. Sausage: Glacial.

----

Martyn: I'm gonna come through your portal, I wanna see where you live. Sausage: Come over here! Come to RPG Town. It's a lovely little establishment-- Martyn: Oh, is this where RPG Town is? Sausage: (unintelligible)--with the thick, you're so thick you pushed me out! Martyn: Yeah, sorry, one at a time when I'm here, one at a time.

---

Sausage:--and, one of your family members is-is outside. Martyn: Oh, um, I'm not--I'm not really-- Sausage (at the same time): This is Buns, right here. Martyn: --speaking to, uh, other dragons, right now. Sausage: '--to other drag--' Oh, oh yeah, he's looking at you funny, I think he remembers you. Martyn (sounding dubious): Maybe. Sausage: Look at him, he's staring you down Martyn: Yeah, I've-- Sausage:--oh, he went to bed, he went to sleep. Martyn: I've fallen out out with--maybe just about all of them--I dunno, maybe it's a different story if they're down here, but. I'm not sure. Sausage: Oh, hmm. It's okay--y-y'know, Buns will be nice, B-buns is with me, also, Buns is with Ren, too, we're dragon bros, so, now you're part--you're an official dragon, so, uh, we can all be a nice happy family now. Martyn, quietly: Well, I mean at least he has wings. Sausage: Yeah, he does--oh, what happened to your wings? Martyn (sounding cagey): Mmm, don't wanna talk about it. Sausage: Ooh, it's gone? Did you cu--you got them clipped? Martyn: No, no. Sausage: Yeah? Maybe we could do some magic later on to make them grow back. Martyn: You can-you can do that? Sausage: Yeah, well, I am, uh, working towards my mage-ing, you know? A very powerful mage--also, a very powerful high elf. You like my ears? I pierced them last week. Martyn: Oh wow, yeah look at--oh, you go invisible whenever you crouch. Sausage: Oh, yeah, its a special power. Oli's very upset because I've stole his thing, because he's an actual thief, and he kinda like, goes invisible on command. Me, I've just got this cloak. I bought--I got this cloak. (gasps) Is that long hair braid on the side? Martyn: It is. Sausage: Oh, very fashion. Ooh, fashion, beautiful! Martyn: I think I need to take the backpack off for you to be able to see it all properly, hold on a second. Sausage: Oh, take your backpack off, yeah, let me see it let me see your backside! Martyn: There it is. Sausage: Oooh! Ooh, that's very nice. I have man-bun, You see my--I have man-bun. Right there in the back. Martyn: Oh, wait, hold on. Sausage: I have man-bun. Martyn: Stop crouching. (starts laughing) Sausage: Oh sorry I'm invisible I forgot! I have man-bun, I have man-bun. Martyn: Oh, yeah, I see the man-bun. I mean, I got-- Sausage: Oh yeah, it's a little man-bun. Martyn: I got dragon ears, but, that's about it. Sausage: Oh, those are very good ears, yeah, yeah very aerodynamic. Y'know, I-if I'm riding you, I could hold on to those and we fly, once we get your wings back. Martyn: Oh my gosh. Sausage: I could use those to steer. Martyn: Well, this was good-- Sausage, laughing: You're so tall, oh, man-- Martyn: I can't believe we've--I can't believe this happened naturally.

---

Sausage:--it's this one, you're gonna love this. Watch this. Stand right there, ready? Martyn: Uh huh? Sausage: (unintelligible) Martyn: ...the hell just happened? (Sausage laughs, and then Martyn hits him with his frost breath) Sausage: Ohh, you-- Martyn: Yeahhhh, brrr, cold! (uses his frost breath into the air) Sausage: Oh-oh my god, you have cold power-- Martyn: Uh huh. Sausage: Do it in the face--do me in the face. (Martyn hits him in the face with his frost breath, and the sound of damage takes place) Sausage: That is the-that's the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my life, you just blew me in the face-- Martyn, at the same time (and moving over to Buns): Lets see what he thinks, you're looking--(uses his frost breath on Buns) Sausage: Oh no, he's going to kill you--! Martyn: Oh, god, oh jesus, oh god, I'll leave, I'll leave I'll leave I'll leave-- Sausage: Oh no! It's okay-- Martyn: (sighs in relief) Okay. I mean--all interactions have to end sometime or another. (a few seconds of silence as he breathes out a laugh, attacks a skeleton) Ay yai yai. I didn't think Buns was--I mean, it makes sense, right? But I dunno. The frost had to happen eventually.

[ilexdiapason]

(part one here) (part two here)

Oli leaves Martyn with his laptop in the living room while he brews the pair of them a cup of tea each in the kitchen. When asked whether he’d like milk and/or sugar, Martyn hesitated for way too long before saying he’d just like to have the same thing Oli was having. So, two teas with milk and three sugars it is. Let it never be said Oli breaks British stereotypes.

When Oli brings the tray back through with the teas, Martyn is still glued to the laptop, looking fairly shellshocked. “What’s that look for? You found anything?”

“No, just… thought I’d go find some of the YouTubers I was subscribed to, see what I missed. Didn’t realise Minecraft had come back in such a big way.”

Oli chuckles and takes a seat. “Yeah - I mean, it was a lot of us playing on Rats, did you never wonder?”

He looks up at Oli, raised eyebrows under that headband of his. “That was Minecraft?”

And…

Yeah, no, Oli’s not even gonna try and broach the implications of that question.

“Tea,” he says instead, gesturing to the tray on the coffee table between them.

Martyn sets the laptop down to the side and picks up a mug (Don’t Talk To Me Until I’ve Eaten This Mug, a personal favourite of Oli’s). He cups it gently, as though he’s not used to the heat - and maybe he isn’t. “Never used to drink tea,” he comments, “though mainly that’s cause my mum wouldn’t let me put the sugars in when I was twelve, and I pretty much swore it off out of spite after that.”

“Well, it’s not for everyone.”

He sips at it anyway - flinches away from the surface, from the burn, most likely. “Nothing wrong with it,” he reassures once it’s safely back on the tray, “just needs a few minutes to chill.”

“If you wanted ice tea, you could’ve just said so,” Oli quips.

“No, it’s - it’s good! I like the…” His hands flail aimlessly, gesturing at a meaning Oli finds himself entirely incapable of grasping. “I promise.”

“Alright.”

They sit in quiet for a few minutes after that, Oli drinking from his own cup and watching the laptop for any correspondence from his coworkers. He’s got some code that needs correcting, which a supervisor sent over, but he doesn’t think his brain is gonna be switching gears from this situation back to C# any time soon.

Eventually, Martyn picks the cup back up and tries again. This time he seems to be able to get a good mouthful of tea down, and another few teaspoons’ worth down his face and on his shirt. “Oh - are you alr- do you need some kitchen roll?”

“Uh,” says Martyn, eloquently. “Probably.”

So it is kitchen roll that he fetches, and it is kitchen roll that Martyn uses to attempt to dab his new tea stains out of his shirt. It’s also at this point that Oli notices something unusual. “Is your arm okay?”

“Hmm?”

“That looks like scarring, right? I mean, I assume it was a while ago, but -”

“Yeah, no, yeah, that’s old. Told you, didn’t I? Cats are vicious.”

He’s grinning, but Oli doesn’t exactly want to take a joke from the old Minecraft server as the only explanation. “Seriously. It’s not more stuff to do with this missing person situation, is it?”

The grin drops. Now, Martyn looks more resigned than anything. “Yeah. Wasn’t, like, torture or anything. I just got a bit banged up. You know how it gets.”

“Erm - well, I don’t, actually.” He’s never got a bit banged up in a way that left him with lasting scarring all down his limbs. “So now would be a great time to get some more explanation, if you have one.”

“I don’t,” says Martyn, quick as anything.

“So, what, I just send you home, and things go back to normal, except you’re in the Discord now?”

He studies Oli. There’s something really cold in there, a light that went out a long time ago. It’s clear that going back to normal isn’t really on the cards for Martyn, that even if this missing situation is all neatly resolved, it’s left him a different person from the one that his family know.

(But again - how do the video games square with all of this?)

When Martyn speaks, eventually, it’s not to answer the question. “Oh, fuck, Doc.”

“... Doc?”

“He’s - it’s this guy I knew, back home, he’s - god damn it, he still lives there, if I - fuck, fuck, I can’t go home, I can’t.”

This sudden switch from broken bleakness to a high-emotion panic is one that Oli neither anticipates nor knows how to respond to. “Hey - slow down, Marty, give it a minute,” he says, hoping that by delaying Martyn he can give himself more time to think about how to help with whatever the problem is.

“Fuck,” and is Martyn starting to cry? “I can’t go back, not if he’s gonna hear about it, and he will, I’m gonna be on the fucking news for how long I was in there, fucking -”

“Martyn,” Oli says, loud and authoritative enough to cut off his catastrophising. (Well, the concern might be entirely validated; Oli doesn’t know who this Doc guy is, after all. Still, he didn’t get that Psychology degree for nothing, and he’ll use the buzzwords if he wants to use the damn buzzwords.) “It’s okay. You’re not home, not right now. Nobody knows where you are, not this guy, not even your mum yet. Which would probably be a terrifying thing to say in any other case, but I’m guessing it’s not as bad for you.”

Martyn nods mutely, tears on his cheeks.

“So - alright, and you don’t have to tell me anything if you don’t want, that’s fine, but I’m just asking - who is that? To you?”

“He’s, uh.” Martyn’s voice cracks, wet and directionless. “He’s just a guy I know. Used to fix my consoles up for me, upgrade ‘em. Sold me some pretty sweet parts for the PC, too, even had a GPU on hand when the shortage was happening. God, NFTs aren’t still big, are they?”

“No, thank god, that bubble burst a long time ago,” Oli can’t help but smile. “Sounds like he was alright. What was the catch?”

“Um. He… kinda hired me? For something? That was pretty dangerous, but he didn’t have anybody else for the job? And then I realised he was - basically breaking a lot of labour laws, quite recently, did not realise how big of a dickhead he really was until… I don’t know how long it’s been. Anywhere from last night to a few days ago. But if I go home… well, he’s gonna be there, and he’s gonna want that job done, and he’s not gonna care that I’ve quit.”

Oli takes another sip of his tea while he processes all that.

Martyn sits up straight, very suddenly, and announces, “I was not being sex trafficked.”

One choked-on swallow later, which thankfully goes back into the mug for the most part, and Oli is laughing from the shock. “No, no, I didn’t - ack - didn’t even cross my mind, Marty, don’t worry. But that’s… good to know.”

“Yeah,” says Martyn.

“Yeah.”

He picks his own mug back up and, slowly but surely, drains the rest of it. There’s a constant wince in his expression that suggests he doesn’t really like tea, but Oli’s not about to stop him from drinking it if he’s decided to drink it. When he’s done, he clears his throat. “But, uh, yeah. If I go back home, Doc’s gonna catch wind, and he’ll probably find a way to get me right back into the mess I just got out of. And I don’t want that, obviously, so… I’m gonna have to… do something else.”

“I mean,” says Oli, making another probably-stupid decision, “my sofa’s free if you need to crash?”

“No, I should - I’ve gotta make good on my word to Mum, don’t I? Gotta show my face. Just… carefully, and quietly, and not answering to any strange men with retro games playing on their third monitor when they’re not using it.”

“Alright,” he repeats, but it feels more like willingly sending this clearly young adult straight back into the terrible situation from which he’s just escaped than it does bringing him home.

And, seriously, where do the video games fit in?

(part four here)

[marivoid]

(TW: Dehumanization, talk of opening up a mechanical bird to empty out its stomach, fantasy racism? I guess? Martyn fears one character in this story based on appearances- You'll see what I mean.)

Entry 36

Day 229

"I told you! Ohh, look who has an upset tummy because they wanted to drink something other than clean oil?" Martyn kept a steady pace as rubbed the bird's back. "But noo, mister smarty pants wanted to drink WATER."

A defeated caw left the sickly bird trapped in Martyn's arm. Poor Brian had been sick ever since this morning. With Martyn's water bottle being knocked over and tiny claw marks all over the metal... It wasn't hard to put two and two together.

"Oh I know. I know. Water and oil don't feel nice now does it? We're going to a shop, don't worry. Get a nice mechanic to take a look at you and empty out your stomach. Then I'll get you some clean oil. Sound like a deal?"

Another quiet caw, with a hint of hopefulness. Martyn would take that response if it meant Brian wouldn't try to take off.

Thankfully the shop was just as the hostess had said. Two blocks down, take a right, and look for... The building covered in all sorts of colors. "This... Is the place we're supposed to go to, Birdy."

A very hesitant caw.

"You and me both, bud." Martyn shouldered his way through the door. "Hello?" His eyes glazed the room, taking note of the rather plain interior. A few wooden chairs, checkered tiles, tools laying about everywhere... Yep. Definitely a mechanic's office.

With nobody in sight.

"Are they closed? Oh I hope not." Martyn stepped away from the door with a small grunt. "Sorry for any turbulence on Martyn Air, Brian. We shall provide you snacks as compensation." He said in response to the flurry of caws.

"I didn't know a crow- Helllllo." Martyn's eyes flicked up to a man leaning through the door. Who just so happened to be covered in an insane amount of colors. "Are you a paying customer by chance? Did you have an appointment with Doc?"

"Doc?" The Doctor? Was he here? "No, no, no, my little friend here decided it would be a smart idea to dunk his beak in my water bottle."

Another caw, sounding apologetic.

"Oh don't apologize to me! It's your tummy that you need to say sorry to." Martyn rubbed his head with a quiet sigh. "If you can't already tell, poor Brian here needs his stomach panel cracked open and checked. Think you could help?"

The other shook his head quickly. "Not me, no can do. I work on chems and spray paints. I can see if Doc is free to help? He works with machines more than I do. He could help you a lot more than me."

"As long as he helps Brian."

The multi-colored man eventually left Martyn in the waiting room. "Well. There you go! We're getting you some help, little fella." Martyn sat down in the closest chair with a small huff. "We just gotta wait a little bit. Get the Doc to look over you. Empty out your poor stomach."

A part of Martyn's mind wondered. What... What if this was THE Doctor? Could his arm problem be solved? Could he finally embark on his way home? Was... The G.U.I.D.E even his home anymore? What about Scott? He's alive! But... He hates his guts. His stupid mouth went blabbering and rage took over... Not to forget that bird guy beside him could have been the Canary Flight Master! He had managed to piss off two people in one day! Embarrassing, really.

"Hello?" A far deeper voice lulled Martyn out of his thoughts. And oh. Oh. He wished that his thoughts would consume his mind at that very moment.

The... THING towered over Martyn by an easy two feet, if not more. (And Martyn was a proud 6"0, a height that isn't all that common in the Crashlands.) But it wasn't the towering height that threw Martyn off. No, it was the pale green skin that clung to the man like glue. The way copper clung to the man's every breath, the twitch of his hand as it rested above his shoulder- The horrific glowing red eye that seemed to bore through his soul. The horrifyingly large horns that looked so impossible and yet were possible all at once.

Martyn had seen some weird things. He'd seen a LOT of oddities and impossible things in the Crashlands. But this. This takes the cake. Whatever this FREAK was, it was a danger. And with how still Brian had gotten in his arms, his bird agreed.

"You were requesting an audience with me? A problem with your... Bird?" That voice sent a shiver down his spine and NOT in a good way.

"Y-You are Doc?" Martyn cursed the way his voice stuttered. "Yeah- Yes! Yes, Brian. He... He drank some water this morning a-and..." His grip tightened on Brian subconsciously. That hand was getting so close to his bird. And the THING noticed. And it smiled.

Fucking SMILED.

"Don't be so jumpy! I promise to not harm him." The abomination assured. "As long as he doesn't peck me, we're fine!"

Brian's small caw rung through Martyn's mind. Right. Brian. Do this for Brian. He stared up at... Doc... And let out a sigh. "Okay. Let's....If it will help out Brian."

"Yes. I think it will."

(More to be added, the author is sleep deprived.)

[moseslikellamas]

♱𖣂 Redfork Menace ♱𖣂 pt.18

Benjicot Blackwood x Bracken!OC

Summary - A dance is held.

Warnings - fem!reader, suspense, adult language, period typical misogyny, condescension, adult language, feelings of shame, feelings of guilt, manipulation, benjicot brainrot, Kieran Burton fancast.

Word count - 2k

Hiiiiiii. I decided to skip the other questioning scene mostly bc I just didn’t wanna write it. I might do a flashback to it later but 🤷🏻‍♀️. Anyway!! I hope we all have a homie like Martyn who will forgive our crimes no questions asked. Here’s some nice Harp music if u want the vibes. All the songs mentioned are in asoiaf.

Shanda was oddly excited given the circumstances, Benjicot had, as he promised, ripped her to shreds during questioning. It was embarrassing to even think about it. She had never been very good at hiding her emotions, displaying them on her face clear as day. He had known that and used it to a harrowing degree. It was lucky she had Martyn to back her up or it would’ve been even worse. Her brother was another can of worms she still had to deal with. But none of this was why she was spinning around her room, excited.

After the disaster of questioning, Lord Elmo had made an announcement.

“Alright you mangy cunts, before I break your hearts and shatter your dreams, I have a proposal. And no, it is not voluntary. You will show up.”

Grumbles went up at that but he had only shot a look that communicated death on protest into the crowd before continuing.

“We’re going to have a dance tonight. That’s right, a proper ball! Now, when was the last time we were all together like this? This is an opportunity for you all to start fresh and build some new relationships. You will behave or I promise a little dance with a pretty girl will be the least of your worries.”

The room was buzzing with whispers before he even finished and Shanda had missed whatever he said after that. As she had already made her way through the crowd to her brother.

“I believe we’ll have a chance to sneak out before it ends to truly talk. I swear, I’ll tell you everything.”

To his credit, Martyn hadn’t been upset at all. Just nodded before he melted into the crowd, losing her and any prying eyes. It was just as well he did as Alysanne found her right after.

“Come on, let’s find something for you to wear.”

Shanda had decided to forgive Alysanne as she hadn’t testified against her. Not that the testimony wouldn’t really contribute one way or the other in the end. It was the thought that mattered. So she let her lead the way.

“How do you know these halls so well?” She asked after the third winding corridor they had turned down.

“Go to enough of these trials and you get bored. Elmo’s like a grumpy uncle, doesn’t mind me poking around a few places. Given I do my part to sway the idiots at home when sentencing rolls around.”

“Are you ever successful?”

Alysanne laughed, grabbing her arm. “Sometimes. Mostly no, but I do try my best.”

Shanda nodded, that was as she figured. At last they came to a door that looked the same as any other but when Alysanne pulled it open, it appeared to be a clothes storage room.

“How strange. Why do they have this?” She asked, looking in at all the various pieces.

“Hand me downs. Elmo says they’ve got generations of Tully ancestors' clothes in here. Which is why he doesn’t mind that we borrow some. Now let’s look.”

Shanda had not looked long when she came across the dress she wanted. It was made so that two pieces joined together over one another. The sleeves were a part of the undergown and blue, so dark it was nearly black. The overgown of the dress was an intricate gold design with calla lilies stitched on in white. It took her breath away. She hadn’t even bothered to see what Alysanne was getting, just grabbed the dress and left.

That led her to where she was now, happily spinning around her room in the beautiful gown. It would be nice to have a single night where she didn’t have to worry about anything. She could just dance and eat, then sneak away to beg her brother's pardon for lacking the good sense the gods gave her. She thought it was ambitious of Lord Elmo to think they could pull this off without any quarreling. But perhaps everyone could behave for just one night.

A knock sounded at her door. She moved to answer it and was delighted to see Martyn standing outside.

“Seems we’ve finally convinced them I’m not going to abscond with you.”

She snorted, taking his offered arm. “Yeah right. Lord Elmo probably tripled the guards for tonight. Fat chance we’ll be sneaking anywhere.” She said loudly enough the guard at her door could hear. It was the first time she had seen him actually stand outside her door.

She dragged her feet so they would not arrive so soon.

“Martyn, I should’ve warned you. I knew he was going to be insane. I, well, suppose I was ashamed.” Her face was tinged pink with remembrance.

“I don’t care. I never did. That day Royce pushed you in the river, I nearly cut his head off.”

She stopped at that, putting a hand on his chest shocked. “You didn’t.”

He rolled his eyes at her before continuing to walk. “Obviously, he’s still here. But I strongly considered it, crazy thing is he would’ve let me. He just accepted that I would kill him and that he deserved it.”

Shanda frowned, her brother had a haunted look in his eyes telling her.

“It’s not right. All of us are fighting. Our mother would be livid to see it, Shan.”

That tugged a smile on her face. Their mother would be yelling at them all.

“‘Family’s all you’ve got!’” She mimicked and Martyn chuckled.

“Too bad she left us with this family and not some other one.” He sighed.

“Come on, let’s find Royce. See if we can’t get him drunk enough to forgive me.” She exclaimed as they entered the great hall once more.

All of the tables were removed, besides the few that held food and drinks. Beautiful streamers of blue and red covered the corners of the room, embroidered with the Tully sigil. Shanda was awe struck by the bead work on them, they flashed iridescent giving the impression of real life scales.

“Let me talk to him first.”

He was gone by the time she replied off handedly, “Yeah, sure.”

She had gotten up close to the banner, admiring the impressive needle work. The beads were pieces of broken clam shell, sewn into the fabric. It must be tedious work to break the shells and then make holes in them.

“A Tully specialty.”

She jumped at Lord Elmo’s booming voice. She’d been so focused she hadn’t noticed him approaching.

“It’s beautiful. Must be awfully tedious work though.” She smiled up at the lord.

“No more so than presiding over court.”

She blushed at that, feeling a bit ashamed.

“I suppose not.”

He clapped her on the back. “Ah don’t worry about it! It always works out in the end. Though, not so well. Or else you all wouldn’t keep coming back.”

On that rather contradictory note, the lord left. Flowers of spring was playing in the background as she looked around the room. It was evident that the riverlanders had taken Lord Elmo’s words to heart. As she saw many of them talking cordially and a few brave souls had even dared to dance.

“May I have this dance, m’lady?” It was Beck Grey who asked.

“Is that? No, it couldn’t possibly be Rebecken Grey. He’s only five two and has a gap tooth.”

Beck smiled at her, every tooth gleaming in the torch light as he led her onto the floor.

“Amazing what seven years will do for a man, is it not?”

They spun around the floor together effortlessly. Beck was a cousin of hers on her mother’s side and it had been a great deal of time since she had seen him.

“I have to agree, it will do wonders. My knees are not half so knobbly now and my aim is much improved.”

“So I hear. Is that how you managed to almost slay Benjicot?” He smiled coyly at her.

“Oh cousin, a dance is not enough for secrets I’m afraid. But if Aunty Harra really wants to know, tell her I’m sure we can work out a deal.”

He shook his head at her ruefully. “Some things never change, eh?”

Before she could answer him they were interrupted.

“Mind if I cut in?”

Shanda would’ve advised her cousin that yes they did mind but he had already stepped aside. He shot him a nasty look as he walked away but he just winked.

“How are you enjoying the dance?” Benjicot asked once they began to move together.

The song had switched to Fallen Leaves which was slower and much sadder.

“Fine before you butted in. Can’t find another pretty girl to bother in all of the riverlands?”

They swayed back and forth, barely turning about.

“Why should I? I’ve made my intentions clear.”

“How about common decen-“

He interrupted her, pulling her closer so he could whisper in her ear.

“Decency is me covering for you while you sneak out to try and rebuild your sibling bond.”

She pulled back aghast. How did he know? Rolling her eyes she blew out a frustrated breath.

“Stop spying on me!”

“Okay sweetheart, but you might want to make your move now. I think the little one is making a break for it.”

Shanda saw what he meant as she met Martyn’s eyes across the floor. He looked exasperated and was quickly going after a hurried Royce.

“Shit.” She muttered before rushing after them.

Benjicot pulled her up short though.

“Wait, half the room will see you follow if you go now. Dance one more with me.”

He was probably right but she really didn’t care at the moment.

“No, I’ll miss them if I wait!”

But he held on to her firmly as the song shifted into the familiar tones of Fall of Maidenpool. She wrinkled her brow as the harp picked up.

“Lord Elmo’s a bit on the nose with this one.” She laughed.

“What do you mean?”

She gave him an incredulous look. “You’re joking right?”

When he stared blankly at her she groaned and explained.

“It’s about the fall of Maidenpool, the defeat of a Riverlander by the Andals. Florian the brave, one of the last great kings. It’s a metaphor for all of us. Hatred, spite and violence are our Andals, and we let them in every day. Tearing ourselves apart from the inside and because of it our lands are weak, disorganized. Ready for a collapse, just like Maidenpool.” She sighed, gutted at the thought.

When she looked back at Benjicot, he was staring at her.

“I think you’ll be safe to go now.” He whispered.

She was out of his grasp and out the door in the next instant, the sound of Maidenpool drifting further away as she looked for her brothers. Walking along the halls it didn’t take her long to hear them.

“…sense of it!”

“Just wait! She’s coming to explain.”

Martyn’s expression was one of relief as she rounded the corner and layed eyes on him. Royce was standing upright looking tense, whereas Martyn sat calmly on the floor.

“See,” Martyn beamed. “Here she is.”

“Right well, explain then.”

“Royce, you hot headed fool.” She held up a hand to silence him when he tried to interrupt her. “Listen to me. However much I grieve that mother went away in hopes of procuring me a suitor, I do not hold myself responsible and do you know why?”

He silently raged in front of her.

“Because our mother could not be swayed nor bullied into doing anything less than what she set out to do. There was nothing you, me or even our father could’ve said to pull her back. Secondly, I have not given up hope on finding her killers and if you give me some time I just might.”

“Oh bullshit, Shanda. You can’t sneak your way into finding everything out.”

“No but you can fucking negotiate your way into just about anything. Pull your head out of your ass! The entire riverlands is here, Royce. Waiting in that room for three very interesting Brackens to chat them up. They are dying for us to talk to them, make a move. Do something useful and help me!”

She could see the struggle playing out in her brother's mind across his face. He made a frustrated noise before running his hands through his hair.

“What do I say?”

Shanda smirked at Martyn before the three of them set to scheming.

[moss8e]

For the ship kiss thing, 38 & mean gills please :3

A number and a ship and I will write it

Kiss number 38. because they’re running out of time.

Ship: Martyn/Scott (Meangills/Majorwood)

Words: 606

Notes: This is much longer than I thought it would be, but I love it so much, I also love how I wrapped up the ending, loved making this <33

"Alright, we all have 30 minutes left" Scott said, brushing himself off from the ash that clung him from the lava he had just flung himself into, "one last meal before we end this all?" he smiled at the other two.

It was just Impulse, Martyn, and Scott left in this world, and the time was ticking down quickly.

"I'm afraid we would all chat it away and not actually eat" Impulse laughed, shaking his head.

"He has a point, we would stall" Martyn said, keeping his eyes on the ground, avoiding eye contact with his teammate.

"That's fair" Scott laughed as he just stared at Martyn for a long moment, "can you excuse us for a moment Impulse? I would like to speak to Martyn privately if you don't mind"

Impulse looked between the two before throwing up his hands, "Oh yeah, sure, I'll be back in 15 minutes, I want to get all of the ties and put them together, one last thing you know"

"Of course, we'll wait for you" Scott nodded with a smile, watching as the Imp rushed off to the Ties tower that had seen better days, before the smile turned sad,

"Martyn" he said as he slowly walked over to the blonde, "what's wrong my love?" he asked, tilting his head as he placed his hands on Martyn's chest.

Martyn let out a breath, eyes shutting as he turned his head to the side, "everything has gone so quickly"

"Time runs out quickly, we often forget how fast it run by us" Scott hummed out, reaching up and brushed some loose strands of hair behind Martyn's fin, "this game has really shown us that our time is limited and that we should enjoy every second"

Martyn snorted, wrapping his arms around Scott's waist and turned back to look at Scott, "Do you think that is why Grian called it 'Limited life'?"

Scott chuckled, "I would hope so, if not, then I need to have a talk with him after this" he laughed as he wrapped his arms around Martyn's neck, pulling him in close to make their foreheads touch.

"so, what happens to be on your mind?" Scott asked, letting out a soft breath.

"we have less than 30 minutes left here" Martyn said after a moment of silence, "I have less than 30 minutes to be with you"

"Oh Martyn" Scott said softly, "we'll still have each other"

"Not like this" Martyn said, his grip on the blue hair one tightening, "I won't be able to hold you like this, I won't be able to hold you at all, I won't be able to see you light up and smile in pure joy when you show me your builds, I won't get to kiss you, I won't have you close to me again"

Scott stared up at Martyn, letting out a breath as his gaze saddened, "then kiss me, hold me tighter and kiss, let's make most of the little time we have left and pretend we have all the time in the world together and-"

Scott couldn't even get another word in as Martyn pressed their lips together, and they just melted into it, lost in the world where it was just them two, not a single other soul.

They still had each other even if the clocks were ticking down until there was nothing left of them, nothing left of anyone or anything.

The sand trickles down the hourglass like the dust that will be left behind in the wake.

But at least in the remaining time that was left Scott and Martyn had each other.