#3rd life grian meets Secret Life scar

[vesperionnox]

[ Day 172 ]

When Sun meets Earth

[scarianheadcanons]

Grian is already married before he meets scar, to tarius. but after evo, grian met scar, and grian was a traumatized little pesky bird who didn't trust anyone. Scar was the first one to calm grian down, and cause of scar's presents they got closer. Then 3rd life happened. Creeper incident wasn't supposed to kill scar. Just scare him.

They became closer, so close that before the big 3rd life war they started dating.

But when they were the last two people alive, grian was praying to the watchers and whatever gods there was to change the rules, to let them both live. But of course it doesnt happen.

When everyone returned to their servers, no one but grian and the other evo members could remember. Grian couldnt stand looking at scar for a while, so he avoided him. Grian realized that scar couldnt remember and cause of that they weren't dating.

While grian was avoiding scar, last life happened. This caused more feelings to raise in grian, so after last life ended. Grian decided to tell scar everything, about the death games and the watchers. Everything.

For a while scar hated grian for keeping this from him, but scar realized that grian is the only person he could talk to. Once again they started to get close again, right before double life they started dating (again).

Right before secret life, they started to plan their wedding.

And now scar is lost and grian is a wreck.

MAN WHAY THE HSLL (/pos)

[applepixls]

theres something to be said about the accidental symbolism of the horns in double life

grian got ponder originally which is a doo doo dudooooo kinda pattern and then got seek which is the same pattern but with a scratchier sound and offered it to scott

their stories then mirror in both having previously done a series with their partner and this time (somewhat) rejecting them (and later being tortured by them) only scott fully rejected pearl to live across from cleo while grian still kept scar around but tried to be secret soulmates with bigb. and ultimately scott and pearl did the whole sacrifice for the other person to win thing, reprising grian and scar's 3rd life ending same pattern, different sound.

(theres also something to be said here about how they are similar people, you can see it in the quiet agreement to stand around and get butted at by goats and in the bit where scott punches scar, sees grian take damage and "*he knows" and he knows he knows he knows and scott realizes what grian realized, that grian is once again trailing reluctantly after scar to keep him safe but also knows he shouldn't tell scar cause grian hasn't. they're both very intelligent in similar ways and it shows)

later on grian got another ponder (which he offered to scar instead of the seek he initially gave him) and mentioned how there was a reply to it (sing, du dudoooo) that he really wanted (and later jimmy and tango got)

so more narrative comparisons. the two soulmate pairs at that point have matching horns, grian and scar are ponder and jimmy and tango are sing. notoriously jimmy and scar are the two that everyone was scared of being partnered with because they die and take damage a lot. the thing i find interesting is how different their narratives are grian and scar had already been partnered and worked together previously, meanwhile, jimmy and tango had barely spoken prior. you'd expect that the two who were already friends and found out they were partnered (or at least grian found out) in a more or less positive way would choose to be friends, no? and you'd think that the two who didn't know each other and met by dying would have an awkward stumbling dynamic and possibly resent (in character) each other, right? but turned out it was the opposite way around (because of personalities blah blah blah). its not super related to the horn patterns I'll admit but something about the way.. its almost as if grian's horn says this is how it is (this being like rejecting scar because of their past) and the ranchers horn being like what if it doesn't have to be (something about clean slates, seeing people in new light, reintroducing yourself, taking all the best of a person despite a bad circumstance like yknow. killing them when you first meet. don't know anyone else whos accidentally blown up someone when they first met cough cough 3rd life cough)

please feel free to add your thoughts

[w1ngedv01d]

AU Concept:

The life games pull people in from different moments in time. In Limited life, a lot of people were pulled from the same time period- from when Scar and Bdubs were children. But the other games they're pulled when adults, but not in the same order as the seasons came out. They didn't experience the games chronologically, and people who are pulled from the same time in their lives in one game might not in the next (For example, in 3rd life, Bdubs is actually older than Scar, because they were pulled in different years, but Scar was born a few years before Bdubs)

The only person who experienced the games in complete chronological order (3rd life first, then Last Life, so on until Secret Life) was Grian

And he doesn't realize until Limited Life, when he meets Scar&Bdubs as clearly not adults, that everyone has been pulled out of order or in previous times of their lives

[ladyevol]

A little sketch of my favorite version of my favorite MCYT ship :3

These are 3l Grian and Sl Scar, aka the winners, who get to meet after their games are over as they are brought back to life by the watchers as the winners. Now, Grian at first thinks that Scar is 3l Scar whom he has been expecting (since they both '"won" 3rd life) but, instead, it is Secret Life Scar who, while he was friendly to Grian through most of his game, was nowhere near this close to him.

Grian finally realizes that this isn't his Scar and that this probably means his Scar is actually dead and he will never see them again. Scar, on the other hand, feels jealous of his other version for having someone so devoted to him as Grian and craves that connection despite Grian's attempts to stay away from him (he partially blames Sl Scar for his Scar not making it, since there can only be one version of a person as a Winner) so when he starts developing feelings for Sl Scar, he also feels increasingly guilty. Meanwhile, Sl Scar develops feelings for Grian beyond that of friendship, which he is terrified of because he doesn't know if Grian feels the same, and even if he does, if he is just a replacement for his Scar

Do you see the vision? Do you understand???

(Reminder that I ship only the characters, not the real people.)

[the-somwthing]

3rd life Grian was a green life and he was absolutely insane, trapping everything with tnt and being the most deranged for a while, Grian is so perfect for being a red life even when he isn't a red life.

Secret life Jimmy's the opposite, he turned red and yet he barely cares about making traps and half asses them, he is all jittery while he waits for Skizz to go to the meeting, he feels "sick to his stomach" about splitting the heart fondation apart, he is absolutely devastated when he accidentally kills Lizzie and panics all the way to her house were he apologizes profusely. Jimmy is not made for being a red is he.

He is certainly not built for being red, I think he has like 3-4 kills the entire series so far (and he’s been present for every season)

But let’s give him this credit here he is really good at being intimidating imo the only reason people AREN’T intimidated by him is because they know him and his track record. If they didn’t, I imagine it would be like Scar in 3L where they’d think he’s terrifying and later realize he’s silly. Except Scar had more kills to back up his scary rep. Though Jimmy’s kill on Lizzie DID scare everyone (including himself lol)

But aside from skills I think his biggest problem is as you alluded to his attitude. He literally said he was tearing up at the thought of betraying Skizz. He’s too nice to be a red name!!!

(The point about not making traps isn’t really valid for secret life imo cuz his tasks haven’t required traps so far so of course he’s not bothering to make any. His second one could’ve used a trap sure but if you’re hurting them in person it’s easier to tell if you succeeded)

[mcytrecursive]

Nomination Overview - Space AU

We have had over a hundred source materials nominated already, so it's time to start looking at some of the works that people intend to request or offer! And the first one to look at is Space AU, which has been nominated 8 times, ranging in length from a 2847 word one-shot to a 299,349 word epic.

Title: Out To the Galaxy Steady She Goes  Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48639868/ Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP Author: TheDepressedCanary (FPSCanarussia) Characters: GeminiTay, ZombieCleo, PearlescentMoon, FalseSymmetry,Xisumavoid Length of the work: 28,277 Genre: Action/Adventure, AU, Family, Friendship, Space AU, Space Fantasy (SciFi/Fantasy cross, not sure how to tag it) Type: Fic Summary: Sailing ships cross worlds and stars, hunted by pirates and monsters. Ancient ruins sit undiscovered, concealing long-forgotten secrets. Space is vast and full of wonder. Pearl, in grief, clutches at every opportunity. Gem just wants to know more. Cleo - well, who can say? Yet the stars are not kind, and every journey holds its dangers.

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Title: Space Mining AU Link: here and here Fandom: 3rd Life SMP Creator: wszczebrzyszynie Relationships: Team Ranchers, Cledubs, Ethubs, Scarian, Treebark, Convex brothers, ImpSkizz, Flower Husbands. Zedaph, Doc, Pearl and Gem are also characters. Everything mentioned as platonic, except romantic Jizzie. Characters: Tango and Jimmy Genre: Action/Adventure, AU, Drama, Post-Apocalyptic AU, Space AU Type: Art Series Summary: Space Mining AU. Tango was an engineer, became a wanted terrorist after he blew up Callisto, a moon where he was doing illegal skulk mining. He blew it up alongside other miners after finding out that skulk is alive, parasitic and infecting people, but he ended up being the sole survivor of the explosion, and the skulk wasn't completely sealed off. He ends up living with Desert Duo for a while (a pair of also dangerous criminals), and that's where he meets Jimmy. It kind of all goes downhill from there.

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Title: He Has a Soul Made of Stars Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/35533927/chapters/88583056 Fandom: Dream SMP Author: NobleDragon Relationships: Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Ranboo & Toby Smith | Tubbo & Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & Philza, Wilbur Soot & Fundy Characters: Wilbur Soot, TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF)Philza, Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Toby Smith | Tubbo, Fundy Length: 16,875 words Genre: Domestic/Slice-of-life, Family, Found Family, Hurt/Comfort, Space AU Type: Fic Summary: And the heart of a galaxy. There is something in the vents of his ship, stealing their food and walking around at odd times of the day. Phil was going to catch that animal and cook it up for dinner if he has a say about it. Wait...it isn't an animal, but a sentient? And it's probably scared and hurt with no one to take care of them? Well...that changes things. Or: I'm going to make Phil want to found family something he hasn't even seen yet.

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Title: free falling love addict Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/52783816 Fandom: 3rd Life | Last Life SMP Series Author: moonieangel Relationships: Grian & Scar, Grian/Scar Characters: Scar, Grian Length: 2847 words Genre: AU, Space AU, Relationship Study Type: Fic Summary: Grian's curls each knuckle, pressing it down, watching silently as the metal plates whir, clicking into place, as each finger tucks down in short, jittering ticks. “Yeah,” he says after a moment. “It's wonky.” “Well,” Scar says, “I could've told you that.” Grian grins at him, and there's a thrum of excitement in it, a sort of childlike enthusiasm to play with a machine. Scar had seen it precede the bursting of bombs. // Or, a fic where Scar is a cyborg whose arm is damaged and Grian is the mechanic who owes him. Or maybe the other way around.

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Title: Lifeline AU Link: https://archiveofourown.org/series/3156309 Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP Author: SlashMagpie Relationships: Impulse & Tango, Impulse & Pearl, Bdubs & Etho, False & Stress, Impulse & Skizz, Pearl & Tango Characters: Impulse, Tango, Pearl, Etho, Bdubs, False, Cleo, Skizz, Ren Length: 299,349 words Genre: Action/Adventure, AU, Fantasy AU, Horror, Modern AU, Time Travel, Space AU Type: Fic Summary: A science fantasy AU about a species of body-snatching aliens attempting to take over the Earth and the ragtag bunch of misfits trying to stop them. Based on the Lifeline series of mobile games.

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Title: if - then - else Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/45779260/chapters/115204942 Fandom: 3rd Life SMP Author: Anonymous Relationships: Etho & Tango, Bdubs & Tango, Bdubs & Etho & Tango, Jimmy Solidarity & Martyn Littlewood, Jimmy Solidarity & Tango, Martyn Littlewood & Scott Smajor, Martyn Littlewood & Tango, GeminiTay & Pearl, Jimmy Solidarity/Scott Major, Bdubs/Etho Characters: TangoTek, Bdubs, Etho, Martyn Littlewood, Jimmy Solidarity, Scott Smajor, GeminiTay, Mumbo Length: 69103 words Genre: Action/Adventure, AU, Romance, Slow Burn, Space AU, Sci-Fi AU Type: Fic Summary: Tango wakes up in a hospital with no memories and a moderately concerned pair of crewmates. Along with a few of the others in the same ward as him, he attempts to recover his memories, navigate a few significant obstacles, and figure out just how he got here. OR a space opera au that started as something very self indulgent and slowly developed a plot bigger than the walls of the hospital it began in. now with space chases and strange new planets!

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Title: Among us AU Rating: E-rated Link: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2478559 Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP Author: Tunfisken Relationships: Etho/Grian, Tango/Grian Characters: Grian, Etho, Tango, background appearances by other Hermits Length: 19,899 words Genre: AU, Smut, Space AU Type: Fic Summary: Air was rushing through the ventilation ducts, and there was a faint hum of machinery from the dormant medbay scanner. Ever so often, the lights overhead would flicker. His stomach was cramping, and Grian curled in on himself on the bed, trying to ignore the hunger that clawed at him. The imposter didn't want to die.

[atherix]

I... uh... High Infidelity by Taylor Swift but dl scarain :3

-🍂

Wow god I have. Never listened to that song before. It hits me in a weird place (I do not like cheating at all with very few fictional exceptions in which case everyone is awful and the protag is simply lowering themselves to their partner's level lmao, my petty vindictive side overpowers my "I hate cheating/cheating stories" side hjtgghjk).

The song is very. Very fitting for DL!Desert Duo I think. Because DL!Grian explicitly cheated on DL!Scar, it was even played out like an affair with them meeting in secret and giving each other gifts and everything (and Scar catching them, and he very openly said "Grian is cheating on me!" so uh yeah they legit played it out like an affair), but it was after Scar was very dismissive of Grian so.... yeah.

Hey, completely unrelated, but has anyone noticed Scar's had a very clear progression throughout the Life series? Like, in 3rd Life he was completely dependent on Grian and was never alone, never wanted to be alone, and Grian was loyal until the very end but ultimately was not only there for every single one of Scar's death but actively caused 2 of them, the only two where he was killed by another person. Then Last Life came and he was immediately taken advantage of and abandoned, time after time left alone with all of his alliances being temporary. All alone up on his mountain... and then in Double Life, he's resistant to living with his soulmate- Grian, who in Last Life took advantage of him, explicitly told him that what happened in 3rd Life no longer mattered, and left. In Double Life he's more self sufficient, saves himself rather than relying on Grian, and even after they base together he is... more often than not just trying to be alone with the Jellies. Like. I mean. Does this not feel meaningful to anyone? Mans went from falling to his death and relying on other people to saving himself with a water bucket. Mans learned to survive on his own- and when he finally knows how to survive on his own, he's forced together by fate with the person who killed him, took advantage of and abandoned him? And then Grian breaks what little trust he has and cheats on him, and rather than just take it Scar reacts by standing in snow or against cactuses and hurting both of them. I mean. Does anyone else ever THINK about this. It has LITERALLY been rotting my brain since Double Life.

Gods.

[third-hermit]

MCYT fanfics

( more specifically empires, hermitcraft and life series )

Learn to love - pastel_sprout

By royal decree, it is declared and agreed upon by both Kings and Queen of Oceana and the Royal Council of Rivendell, that their youngest sons shall be wed under the eyes of Aeor and The sea after both their 18th name day. In this union, both princes bring together two empires in a permanent bond. Oceana is to lend support to Rivendell with food and construction. Rivendell is to lend its magic abilities to Oceana to help keep the sea sane. -or- due to the crisis on both ends of the continent, Rivendell and Oceana set up a marriage between their princes. It does not start well.

Learn To Love - Pastel_Sprout - Empires SMP [Archive of Our Own]

The ocean at your door - series - by Shinygaycomputer

you looked so good in green - scott has to solve martyn’s murder, while trying to heal from and forget why he believes he caused it.

i love a good place to hide in plain sight - bdubs solves martyn’s murder, and cleo and etho try to solve their relationship

i try to worry for soul but i forget to - jimmy’s perspective of you looked so good in green

i’ll figure out a way to get us out of here - lizzie loves her little brother a whole lot.

i’ll find a new place to be from - scar knows his partner loves his secrets, but he didn’t know grian would kill to keep them

you could hear the ocean in a seashell - martyn meets mumbo, who freaks out about literally everything that happens next

the ocean at your door - shinygaycomputer (medieval_bread) - 3rd Life | Last Life SMP Series, Empires SMP [Archive of Our Own]

Of giving and receiving love - series - by CrazyFoxLady

flower husbands / rancher duo empires fic

part 1

Scott, prince of Rivendell, trys to court the Codfather. The blonde, on the other hand, is oblivious. He doesn't get it, to Scott's endless frustration. Then the emperor of the swamp meets the Grimland's newest alchemist, a guy that suddenly showed up and quickly worked his way up to the position of count fWhip's trusted adviser. Suddenly the Codfather has many excuses to visit the former enemy's empire.

Part 2

Jimmy and Tango sort out how they will be moving forward. But it seems like even the Codfather was not aware of all the customs. So he get's overwhelmed quickly after his sister lays down what their people expect of him now.

At Rivendell, the prince goes through a crisis. He trys not to drown in those deafening feelings that threaten to pull him under. Will he find the strengh to move on?

Of giving and reciving love - CrazyFoxLady - Empires SMP, Hermitcraft SMP [Archive of Our Own]

Where the ocean meets the sky - series - iceraptoress

Flower husbands / empires s1 fic

Part 1

Seven-year old Prince Scott of Rivendell is looking forward to attending House Blossom's Decade Flower Festival, where he hopes to meet Merfolk for the first time. He is disappointed that no other Elves seem to share that excitement, and his older brother Xornoth tries to discourage his interest. When he does finally meet the Merfolk, he discovers that they are not what he was told to expect.

Part 2

The young Prince of the Ocean Empire had a difficult and traumatic start to life, and survived only to be resented by his people and neglected by his mother. Determined to prove himself, Jimmy struggles to fit into a world where he doesn't seem to entirely belong.

Part 3

As they grow and the years pass, Prince Scott of Rivendell and Prince Jimmy of the Ocean Empire lead very different lives. Well loved, Scott begins the life of study and exploration he has always wanted, while Jimmy continues to struggle for acceptance.

( I haven’t finished it yet but it’s so fucking good im dying)( i will post fanart )

I will add more

please tell me your favorites and come with suggestions!

[redwinterroses]

Good morning.

What if Martyn (in-character) was lying when he said that the Last Lifers had the memories of 3rd Life but not the attached emotions. What if they just weren't supposed to. What if they were all told "Yeah, you won't feel any of the same bonds, that's a feature not a bug" and then they log into the game and--

Wait what's going on why do they all remember 3rd Life with just as much intensity as they did before -- maybe more because they're back in this world? Something is very, very wrong--

So they all hide it. Suppress it. Because none of them realize it's happening to the others too. And that's why we get Scott unable to resist giving Jimmy a poppy. And no one quite trusting Impulse. And Scar and Grian constantly gravitating back toward each other.

And Ren.

Ren, who knows he's not supposed to be remembering this stuff, who thinks something might be wrong with him. Is this the boogey curse? He doesn't know what that feels like. Maybe this is boogey curse. But he doesn't want to kill anyone... he wants to regather his allies. Skizz, and Etho, and... Martyn. Oh this is very bad he is definitely not supposed to be feeling like Dogwarts is returning. He needs to isolate himself. Build a farm. Get food. Build a grumpy tower. Be alone. Don't shuffle toward Martyn every time the group is together. Resist the urge to protect and expect protection. That's not how this works. Something is wrong with him. He needs to get away from everyone, in case this is part of the boogey curse.

Meanwhile Martyn is furious. He also remembers Dogwarts and everything that went with it and he can't afford to be messed up this time. He didn't know the stakes in Third Life. Now he does. Now he does. He can't afford to want to protect Ren, to team with Etho, to trust Skizz. He's got to get away from all of them. He can't afford those weaknesses, not if he's going to win. So he teams with the Southlands -- some of his bitterest enemies from last time, and if it looks like he has to stab them all in the back, well. Nothing wrong with feeling a little satisfaction about that.

But then Ren sets his tower on fire.

He doesn't know why he does it. He sees Martyn on the horizon and something snaps. He doesn't want to be here, he doesn't want to be alone, he doesn't want to be separated from his allies, the men he would still fight and die for. He hates this tower, hates every stone of it, every plank that isn't Dogwarts, that wasn't built with friends, that doesn't protect anything because what is there to protect? So in a moment of breaking frustration, he flicks the lighter and it all starts going up in flames.

He regrets it the minute the smoke starts to choke him, of course -- he hasn't thought this through. He needs to get out. This is -- this is how Etho died, isn't it? Though even Etho wasn't alone. He's got to get out, he needs to--

And then Martyn is there, shouting at him and putting the fire out and Ren is coughing and there are tears in his eyes -- from the smoke, only the smoke -- and his paws are singed and why does he feel so glad because Martyn is shouting at him and oh. There's something in Martyn's voice. An anger that he hadn't expected. And the Red King looks at his Hand through bleary eyes and Martyn meets his gaze and they realize at the same time:

They're not alone. They remember. Either something is wrong with both of them, or they were lied to. Martyn, bitterly, thinks he knows the answer.

They'll have to be careful. You never know who's listening. Who's... watching. So they can't say anything outright. But. There are no rules about new alliances, right? As long as they never outright mention Dogwarts. As long as it's a secret that hides between words, they can circumvent the rules. What are rules to lying gods? The Watchers deserve to be tricked. Let them do what they will.

So the shadows rise. And if the handclasp Martyn offers Ren is the old Dogwarts greeting, who's to say? Maybe this time will be different. Or if it's not, at least they're not alone.

[queendomcosplay]

After careful consideration, I’ve figured out the Mamma Mia songs that correlate to each couple and why:

Impulse and Bdubs: Lay all your love on me. It’s the most over the top, let me love you, I adore you song. Impulse and Bdubs would 100% choose the cheesest love song that’s as loud and affectionate as they are.

Tango and Jimmy: Andante, Andante. It’s a song about sweet, tender love. It’s about being there for each other, and being a source of comfort and strength for your partner. It says “I may not be perfect, and things may be terrible, but if I have you, things are ok”.

Joel and Etho: Voulez-Vous. This song has the most feral energy, istg. It’s all about anticipation, being in that moment where all hell breaks loose, which is the type of chaos Joel and Etho love. Also, Masters of the Sea is a line and you think I’m not giving the boat boys the song with the line about ships?

Grian and Scar: Fernando. I was between this and Money Money, but Fernando works so well. It’s coming together in a war zone, and reuniting years later to reminisce about the past. These two went from being a unit in 3rd life, and have found themselves together again, tied together by fate. It just fits so well.

Pearl and Scott: Mamma Mia. Listen, it works so well for both sides. There’s the determination to not be with someone, mixed with the desire to win them back. It has a desperation to it that just…works for Pearl, and a determination that works for Scott.

Martyn and Cleo: SOS. Listen, this man is chasing Cleo around, trying to rekindle things. He’s building hearts, and bridges, and trying desperately to understand, while Cleo is pissed she even has to spell things out. I want you to listen to watch this scene from the movie, and imagine it as Martyn and Cleo and tell me it’s not perfect.

Cleo and Scott: Why did it have to be me. These two have left their soulmates, and found comfort in each other. They don’t like that their soulmates ditched them the first episode, so they came together and made a home for themselves together and that’s what this song is. It’s coming together after love and just being together.

BigB and Ren: Winner Takes it all. This is Ren’s big dramatic moment. He imagined forever with BigB, only for BigB to go meet his secret admirer. He’s a drama queen, and would absolutely sing a power ballad about how he’s sad and betrayed and I guess I’ve lost you. Also like, I can picture them recreating this scene so vividly.

BigB and Grian: Take a Chance on me. Listen, Grian is trying to win BigB over, to give him a chance to prove he’d be a better soulmate than Ren. That’s what this song is. It’s a fun, lighthearted song that says “Hey, let’s give this a shot, because I like you, and you like me”.

Martyn, Pearl, Ren: Angel Eyes. Listen, I just want them to recreate this scene, with them all talking about their relationships and sobbing. Like, full lonely hearts club vibes. It’s so good, and I just need it now. For context: Martyn is Tanya, Pearl is Rosie, and Ren is Sophie

Edit 1: Including the scenes I’ve mentioned just so you can visualize this with me

Edit 2: Kisses of Fire is another one that would work for Joel and Etho, but only the film version, not the soundtrack version. Purely because I can imagine Joel as the singer here

[vesperionnox]

[ Day 185 ]

Sun and the Earth

[efoxkitty]

Introspection for the ideologies/concepts for 3rd life. Including the final fight (last 5 people remaining)

Okay, but how interesting it is, that one of the biggest conflicts through the entire series was the theme of

Loyalty vs Betrayal

And we can see that through the entire series? Like you have chatacters who were and stayed loyal and (from their perspective) got punished for never changing a side. But on the other hand, you have those who betrayed and died from it.

Like look at the first 3 people out. They ALL died fighting for their friends and never betrayed anyone. They were loyal and that led them to their early deaths. So does that mean betrayal is more beneficiary? Let me break it down with the help of the final 5:

Impulse: The guy who betrayed all his enemies for the Crastle, for his "secret girlfriend", dies to Bdubs, someone he trusted, over a clock. From outside perspective, this is the truth, but realisticly? Bdubs had doubts, he never trusted Impulse after he returned and the rest of the Crastle was the same.

Impulse was supposed to prove his loyalty by hurting the red alliance, but unfortunately for him, thanks to the red desert, the Crastle trap was exposed. And now thanks to the desert, Impulse lost his life for being a traitor FOR the people he loved. In his last moment he worries for the safety of his friend (Bdubs) and gets killed by them. Funny, how Skizz died the same way :) Impulse was punished for his betrayal.

Big B: He was neutral for the most part, but you can't deny he was loyal to his friends. It was not his fault Grian and Martyn were on opposing sides. But when the war called for it, he stayed with the king. He kept the "No killing pass" and pleaded for it's usage. BigB was only unlucky, that Bdubs made the final deal first.

But realisticly, B was rewarded. I mean, Scar and Grian actually kept their word and let Bdubs do the deed. They even let him return the pass and had a small bonding moment. BigB's death was unlucky, but I wouldn't consider it being punished. Thus - Big B was rewarded for his loyalty.

Bdubs: Bdubs is a hard one to analyze, because the question here is, was he punished for being loyal and protective of his family, or punished for betraying it? I mean, by not trusting Impulse, he was protecting Cleo and Tango. But by siding with Scar and Grian, he betrayed himself and his quest for justice.

How funny, that Bdubs and Impulses last moment was them being pals, before the horryfing reveal. How interesting, that Scar and Bdubs hung out as coffin bros, Scar encouraged Bdubs to take on Grian, before plunging a sword into his back.

Bdubs was rewarded for being loyal, but couldn't protect his family. And then he kills the last potential ally, so he could die 3rd, thabks to another family. So you decide, was he rewarded or punished?

Scar: Oh boy do I have many thoughts about Scar. The guy went around the whole server scaming everyone for friendship points, which actually were kept track of, so Scar never lied about them. The kill pass is half hit and half miss, as it was purely circumstantial. More of the events in my analysis for Grian, but let's look at one key moment:

Scar tempts Bdubs to betray Impulse, because Impulse is a known betrayer. He will not kill BigB, because he is true to his word and won't break his promise, which is why he convinces Bdubs to kill BigB, indirectly betraying BigB in the proces. And then he realizes Grian, his loyal follower, is yellow. And it hits him, Grian could be dangerous, Grian will betray him. So he throws the pass and hopes for the best.

And then as soon as the pass gets picked up, he attacks Grian, who sounds confused and hurt. Scar betrays their bond first. And then he teams with Bdubs. Talks about killing Grian, bonds with him in the coffin, estabilishing trust between each other. So when Grian asks to meet them, they go. Scar tells Bdubs they will take Grian down, but as soon as he is on the mountain, he messages Grian he has a plan. And when Grian strikes, angry about the betrayal?

He does the only logical thing to prove his loyalty - plunges a sword into Bdubs's back. Betraying someone who he used as a means to an end. And yet... And yet Scar tells Grian that now they are the last two alive, Grian can take Scar's last life. Because it's just repaying a favour, the loyalty Grian displayed. But unfortunately for Scar, even after divine intervention, the universe decided he will be punished for all the betrayals.

Grian: Grian who told everyone he will leave Scar as soon as he dies VS the Grian who made sure Scar is safe, secure and has a chance to keep living. Grian had spoken about betrayal and yet, he always stayed loyal. Sure, he would not care if Scar was alone and surrounded by danger, but he supported him no matter what.

And the final fight. It's the last 3, Grian picks up the paper and gets killed by Scar. He possibly knew it could happen, but the fact he only sees that message? The fact that Bdubs is still alive and with Scar? That hurts. The first thing Grian does when he sees Scar is ramming him and yelling "Traitor!" Because yeah, to Grian Scar is a traitor. And then Scar choses Grian over Bdubs and Grian is conflicted.

He tells Scar to meet him at Pizza's and reflects. Did the betrayal even happened? Was this just Scar's plan? Was he wrong to assume Scar would ever betray him? And then Scar kneels down and tells Grian he can kill him. Of course, he gets stopped by the voices of those fallen, so they agree on a one last fist-fight, but the meaning? The actions? They reflect in their last moments.

They are standing in a cactus ring, in their territory, in their home, surrounded by their walls. And after a few punches, Grian knows he has the advantage. That he will win. So he starts apologizing, because even after all his words, he never wanted to betray Scar, NEVER took the chance. But the worst part will be the knowledge, that Grian is the cause for all of this.

He killed Scar and got indebted. He made sure Scar stays alive as much as he could. He protected Scar during the last moments and now, now he will be the one to take his final life. And Scar is okay with that, Scar is willing to repay the loyalty. So Grian might have gotten rewarded for staying loyal, but at what cost?

So what have I learned through all this?

That loyalty had won in the end. It might have seemed cruel and unfair at times, but in the end. It prevailed and I think there's something beautiful about that.

[prismadog]

I wrote another thing. Not great, again, but not bad. It's also gotten a bit long so I'm gonna have to do this in parts otherwise you'll end up reading a fic that's like several "do you love the color of the sky" posts combined.

So, there's at least going to be two parts to this, maybe three if part 2 gets too long, but hopefully it won't.

I should probably also say that this is another Dragon Mom Grian au fic, idk where in the timeline it takes place exactly, but who cares. I was gonna do another Babysitting the Tegg fic but decided to do this one instead. then I'll work on part 2 and maybe something for a new au idea I had where Hermitcraft Grian and 3rd Life Grian swap places.

Making a Nest - Part 1

There’s something wrong with Grian.

All of Boatem could see it. 

He’s quiet, reserved. He’s distracted, absent from any present conversation. He wanders around his cave or he stays cooped up in his house. He doesn’t really go out, not even to prank people.

The only time he ever really seems relatively close to his usual self is when he’s coming to his friends’ rescues or stalking a visitor to the village. But even then, it just isn’t the same.

Grian just isn’t himself.

It is…worrying…to say the least.

So.

So four out of five of the Boatem Crew hold a meeting, a secret meeting, one that doesn’t include their favorite gremlin.

They meet up in Pearl’s mountain basement - Pearl, Scar, Mumbo, and Impulse. Pearl had set up a little area away from the entrance ahead of time, and brought out drinks and snacks - milk and cookies - when the others arrived.

“So…” she starts, not really sure what to say, “Uh, we all know why we’re here, right?”

“Because Grian isn’t Grian?” Mumbo asks.

She nods. “He’s been quiet, more quiet than I’ve ever seen him.”

“I noticed that he’s not making as much progress on his base,” Impulse says. “I thought it was burnout at first but when I talked to him, he just seemed…distant.”

“I don’t think he’s been sleeping much. I’ve seen him from the Swaggon just wanderin around and carrying the egg,” Scar says through a mouthful of cookie. “Even in the middle of the night.”

“He has been carrying it around a lot, and talking to it sometimes,” Mumbo agrees. “I expected that after tag ended, but uh, he’s not as chipper as he was. He’s just, well like Pearl said, quiet.”

“Do we know why he’s like this?” Impulse asks.

They all look at each other, just as clueless as the next.

“Well, it’s not burnout,” Impulse says. “That much I know from when I talked to him.”

“I tried talking to him the other day when he was stocking the train but he didn’t really say much,” Pearl says. “I wanted to do a prank with him but he said he “wasn’t up for it”. That’s weird in of itself so I asked if he was feeling alright and he just shrugged.”

“I thought that too! He almost flew into one of my houses a few days ago.” Mumbo munches on a cookie. “I asked him if he was all right and he just brushed me off.”

Scar hums, taking another cookie for himself. “It’s gotta have something to do with the egg.” He mutters ‘oh shoot’ when drops the cookie in his glass of milk. “Maybe if we all go over and ask, he’ll tell us what’s wrong?” He fishes the drowned cookie out of his glass and shoves the whole thing in his mouth before it falls apart.

“Is that the right thing to do? What if he shuts down on us?”

“If talking to him one on one didn’t work, then we need to go together,” Scar tells Impulse. “Unless we want to ask someone else to talk to him?”

“That’s an idea, I’m sure Xisuma wouldn’t mind talking to him,” Mumbo says, “but maybe we try fixing this ourselves first?”

“Should we go over now?”

Pearl sets down her glass of milk and stands. “Let’s do it and do it now before we chicken out.”

The other three members stand as well and head out of Pearl’s base, discussing quietly on how to approach Grian once they find him.

They still don’t really have a plan when they come across him in his cave, after several minutes of searching.

Grian is sitting near the cave wall on top of one of his buildings - the Magical Menagerie. He has his arms folded on top of the dragon egg in his lap and his eyes closed. His wings, now a dark grey with spots of violet, drape over the tiles of the roof.

“Hey, Grian,” Pearl calls out, landing several feet away. “You awake?”

His dark eyes blink open to look at her. “Yeah,” he replies quietly.

“Mind if we join you?” He only gives her a shrug in response - as good an answer as any, she supposes. She turns towards the alley below, “Hey, guys, up here!”

Seconds later, Impulse joins her on the roof, then Scar who barely misses the glass ceiling, and then Mumbo who stumbles to a landing and almost falls back off. He would have too if Pearl and Impulse didn’t grab his arms.

“So what’s up?” Grian asks, still sitting in his spot. He sounds, and looks, tired.

The rest of the crew looks at each other for a long moment, then Scar steps forward. 

“Well, Grian, glad you asked. We’ve been having a meeting - I know, I know, we didn’t invite you, but there’s a very good reason for that - it was about you. You see, my fine feathered friend, we’ve been worried about you.”

“O…kay?” 

“You’ve been a bit off, Grian,” Impulse says. “For a while now I’d say.”

“You also seem tired, mate. And we’re just, uh, really worried.”

Grian’s wings shift a bit behind him, the feathers fluffing up the smallest amount. “I’m fine, guys,” he says though his voice is low and almost scratchy, as if he’s been sick or hasn’t been talking much. “Maybe a bit tired but I’m fine.”

Pearl takes a step forward, her moth wings unfolding partially behind her, “You’re not fine!” she says, her voice louder than normal but not shouting. “You’re not fine one little bit. You’re not talking to us, you brush us off when we try to ask you what’s wrong, Scar’s seen you up at all hours of the night, Mumbo says you almost flew into his houses, and you don’t want to do any pranks with me.

“We’re really worried, Grian, and we just want to know what’s wrong,” her voice quiets as she says this.

“Please just tell us what’s wrong,” Mumbo says.

“Whatever’s bothering you, we can help,” Impulse says, “We’ll do everything in our power to help you fix whatever’s wrong.”

“Just talk to us, Grian. Please?” Scar asks.

The hermit looks away, at the roof maybe, and his arms encircle the egg, hugging it close to his chest. “I…I don’t know,” he mumbles. “Nothing’s really wrong…exactly…everything’s going well - the train’s making sales, I finished the night sky, I made the buildings, and I’m even starting to fill them.” 

The dark wings shiver behind him and cover his shoulders, almost like a cape. “Everything’s progressing wonderfully,” his voice is still quiet, “Everything’s going great.”

“But?” Impulse asks gently.

He hugs the egg tighter, his wings shift to cover his sides. He doesn’t look at them, at his friends, for a long long moment. “It should’ve hatched by now,” his voice is barely a whisper, barely a breath of air.

The cave is silent again, aside from the mobs that fill the Menagerie of course. 

“Uh, mate, you do know it’s just a, uh, an item right?”

“Mumbo, you can’t say that,” Pearl says. They all know how Grian’s been with the egg, all motherly and protective of it since he got it. They all know that it’s not exactly a normal reaction from their friend, but they can’t just say that or that the dragon egg is just another item of their world, even though it is.

“It’s not,” Grian says over the top of Pearl’s voice. “It’s not just an item,” he says this with absolute certainty, dark eyes almost glaring at the redstoner. “It’s not just an item, it’s not just a trophy, it’s not just a decoration, it’s not just an achievement to be made.�� His wings flare slightly, the feathers puffing up. “It is an egg, Mumbo, and it’s supposed to hatch. Eggs are supposed to hatch - the dragon egg is no different.”

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Mumbo chuckles nervously. “R-right, my bad. You’re right.”

Grian stares him down for an uncomfortably long minute, then huffs and turns to look away from everyone. “Of course I am,” he mutters.

“Uh, have you tried making a nest?” Impulse asks. “Birds usually make nests, right?”

At that comment, the hermit practically deflates, and his voice is quiet again, “I tried but I’m no good. They all turn out terrible. I tried making them like birds do but they fell apart. I tried using blankets and pillows but that fell apart too.” He sighs, “no matter what I try, it ends up falling apart and feeling cold and boring and lonely anyway.”

“Maybe we could help?” Scar asks.

“There’s no point,” he mutters, “it’s impossible.” He pulls his wings closer, wrapping them around his body and almost completely blocking the other Boatem crew members from view.

“Well, that sounds like a challenge if I’ve ever heard one,” Pearl says. “If we can break bedrock, then we can build a nest that won’t fall apart or look boring.”

There’s a scoff from behind the dark wings. “Good luck,” Grian mutters with a hint of bitterness in his tone.

“C’mon, boys, we’ve got work to do.” She leaps off the roof and soars away, straight out of the cave.

“We’ll see ya later, G!” Scar follows after Pearl.

Impulse gives him a quiet, “We can figure this out,” and at the same time, Mumbo tells him, “You’ll be chuffed to bits when we do,” and they both drop off the roof and fly after Pearl and Scar.

Grian just sighs heavily once they’re gone. He doesn’t believe them.

*

[space-anon-writes]

Bonus "Weekly" Fic Recs - Hermitcraft Edition

a pesky bird in the hand by Odaigahara

Grian is a borrower dead set on making Mumbo believe there's a demon haunting him. Mumbo, in turn, would like to have a meeting with this demon.

Honestly the most in character thing i've ever witnessed, i'm wheezing

Chapter 1/1 - 2k words - complete

under the mottled sky by JumpingInMuddyPuddles

After escaping the Watchers, Grian crash lands outside Mumbo's base. Mumbo tries to help him while keeping his existence a secret. Grian then pulls a httyd and everyone claps.

Chapter 6/6 - 15k words - complete

Healing Is a Four Letter Word by Hypno_Cat

Watcher!Grian decides to hide himself on the Hermitcraft server, and is forced to socially interact. He is... getting better, slowly, and finding a chance to heal.

God this was so good.

Chapter 6/6 - 20k words - complete

Poppies/Lilacs by shulkerboo

3rd life AU, in which there is a natural fear of red lifes, but Grian pushes past it to remain with Scar, not that he has much of a choice in the matter.

Chapter 1/1 - 1.4k words - complete

[thetomorrowshow]

a drape dragged across the moon

DEADCEMBER DAY 17 - Dark Night

got a couple more of these in me besties!! this one focuses on the red army :)

fandom: 3rd Life SMP

cw: death, blood

~

Martyn runs his finger down the axe, tracing the words carved into the handle. Red Winter is Coming, it reads, and he can’t help but shiver.

Ren is gone.

It’s not the first time he’s had to remind himself. Ren’s legitimately dead, died in the desert from a lucky arrow shot by Scar just after the explosion. Martyn had fallen to his knees, screamed, grieved for just a moment. Then he’d staggered to his feet and attacked.

He didn’t kill anyone. Skizz got Jimmy, Impulse got Grian, but he got no one. In fact, he was killed—chasing down Scar, swearing revenge, he was ambushed by Smajor and Grian, and the three of them together took him down.

Now he is Yellow, and it is midnight at Blackheart Altar.

He needs a Green here, a Green to swing the axe, and that is why BigB stands in the wheat field, watching nervously. The rest of the Red Army is near—a shadow perched on the wall, eyes poking out of the secret passage—but to Martyn, only three exist. BigB, himself, and the Red King.

He’s not crying. He hasn’t cried at all, not even when Ren died. He’s just been silent, apart from that dreadful scream just after his king had fallen.

The Red King whispers in his ear, hasn’t stopped since he cradled Ren’s head in his lap as his king took his last, gasping breaths. He can hear other sounds; it doesn’t obstruct his hearing at all, just makes the hairs on his arms raise and his face twitch as he tries to shake the voice away. He supposes he’ll just have to get used to it.

It’s dark tonight, the new moon plunging the world into inky blackness. Even the stars are somehow obscured. The candles on the altar flicker, as if the darkness is so dense it will put them out too. He needs those, though. He needs to be able to see for this ritual.

The Red Army is lost without its king. Martyn has been chosen, from the beginning, to replace Ren in case of emergency. And to replace Ren, he must be Red.

He looks up from the axe. It’s the original—it had fallen into enemy hands for a time, but Impulse had risked his life to go in undercover and steal it back. He feels a burst of sudden anger as he thinks of those filthy hippies with their hands on such a sacred object. They need to be taught a lesson.

Ren’s crown is already atop his head. It’s a little large, and far heavier than he expected, but he assumes the Red King will make up for that. Everything is set to go.

The only part of this ritual that brings him doubt is BigB. By swinging the axe through Martyn’s neck, he will be sealing himself as the next Red King should Martyn fall. He doesn’t know if BigB has it in him. More importantly, he doesn’t know if he wants to consign BigB to that fate. But BigB had volunteered himself to the act, offered his own hands to the furthering of Dogwarts. If that didn’t take guts, nothing did.

Martyn takes a deep breath, then holds the axe out in front of him. BigB hurries forward. The night goes deathly still, more so than it already had been—those members of the Red Army watching must have frozen.

BigB’s eyes meet his, green seeing yellow, and he raises his eyebrows in an uncertain question. Martyn licks his lips anxiously, then transfers the weight of the axe to his Hand.

“It’s easy,” he murmurs, close enough to his companion that there’s no way anyone observing would hear his words. BigB huffs. “All you have to do is swing the axe up and then down. On my neck.”

That gets a smile from the man, who whispers haltingly, “Do I need to say anything? Do anything else?”

“No. You might feel a little funny when it happens, but that’s just the Red King passing through your hands. Honestly, you’re lucky I’m here to explain this to you. I was clueless when I did it.”

BigB nods. His hands grip the axe a bit tighter, and he swings it experimentally. Martyn hops back, his heart squeezing in panic, a dry chuckle spilling from his lips.

“Whoa, not quite yet, yeah?”

BigB lets the axe fall, the tip of it just touching the altar. Martyn shudders as a thrum runs through the ground and up his legs. It inexplicably reminds him of another part of the ritual.

“After I respawn,” he explains quietly, “I’m going to come back here and offer myself up to you. It’s technically your choice to kill me and take the crown, or to put the axe down and help me to my feet. You’re gonna want to do the second one, okay?”

Again, BigB nods. He looks nervous, his nose twitching and breathing fast, and Martyn doesn’t blame him. Blackheart Altar at midnight is terrifying.

“You ready?”

BigB takes a deep breath. “I think I am,” he says, offering a shaky grin. Martyn claps him on the back, then moves to the center of the altar and drops to his knees. He can do this. He has to. It’s what the Red Army needs, what the spirit of the Red King pushes him to do. His will be done.

The night is still dark. The only light within the walls comes from the flickering candles around the altar. He stares into the cracks of the structure, dried blood long washed away by the rain. Soon his blood will seep into those cracks, seal the magic that will release the Red King. He can’t say he’s excited, but he does feel some sense of grim satisfaction. They think the Red King has perished? Think again, fools.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure? Like, I can wait—”

“Do it, Hand.”

“But—”

“Now!”

Searing pain through his neck, then blackness darker than the night.

When Martyn sits up, the heavy weight still rests on his head. Something trickles into his eye—blood, dripping from the crown he now bears. He stands on shaky newborn legs, catching a flash of red in the mirror across the room. His eyes. He stares into his own eyes, gleaming, framed by blood.

Oh, how he wants to kill.

In his pocket are sunglasses. Skizz had removed them from Ren’s body when they carried him back to Dogwarts, laying his body in the tomb prepared specially for cases such as this. Martyn slides them on, grins wolfishly at his reflection.

When he speaks, he speaks with the brogue of the Red King.

“The Red King has risen!”