Chapter Text
Tubbo wakes up early on December 16 th . The sun is barely visible through the thick foliage of the jungle, and there’s still a slight chill in the air from the night-time temperatures. He finds himself almost giddy with excitement as he moves around Grian’s hobbit hole (or is it Tubbo’s hobbit hole now?), getting some breakfast and grabbing some seeds to feed the parrots.
The turf war ends today.
He’d helped Grian build his minigame- some sort of skydiving challenge that involved jumping out of a plane and gliding through different sized hoops to score points. Tubbo’s still hesitant to use an elytra, the sight of rockets filling him with dread. But he watches from the ground as Grian and two others test out the course. Tubbo can’t remember their names, but they’re both nice enough.
Grian seems to be just as excited as he is, as the winged man comes knocking on his door not long after he’s fed the parrots.
<Grian> IT’S GAME TIME :D
Tubbo grins, and then the two of them make their way over to the shopping district, to the mesa beside it where the games are being held.
There’s a scoreboard with redstone lamps which Tubbo heads over to immediately, nodding a greeting to the few hermits already gathered.
The games were spread out a little, with four having already been played. And it’s currently a draw. Tubbo hadn’t been there for the first games, but he’s here now, and he’s excited. So excited.
The first game is dodgeball, with Xisuma as the referee. He explains the rules, with everyone on half a heart, armed with splash damage potions, and Mumbo dutifully transcribing Xisuma’s explanation of the rules.
Grian and Doc get hit out by False immediately, and Tubbo keeps an eye on his comm. in an effort to learn everyone’s names.
[Docm77 was killed by falsesymmetry using magic]
[Grian was killed by falsesymmetry using magic]
It’s their team’s turn, Ren taking the splash potion.
[BdoubleO100 was killed by Renthedog using magic]
[falsesymmetry was killed by Renthedog using magic]
Tubbo’s thankful for his heightened agility, his hooves making it easier to balance and dodge. It’s a lot of fun, and he can tell by the grins that everyone else is enjoying themselves.
His agility can’t help him forever, though, as Mumbo gets a lucky hit, taking out Tubbo and Impulse.
[impulseSV was killed by MumboJumbo using magic]
[Tubbo_ was killed by MumboJumbo using magic]
The shock of respawning makes him shudder, leaving him a little bewildered when he wakes up. No cannon lives , he reminds himself. It’s all for fun.
He makes his way over to the stands, taking a seat beside Grian to watch as xB, Etho, and Ren continue.
[GoodTimesWithScar was killed by xBCrafted using magic]
[Renthedog was killed by cubfan135 using magic]
[cubfan135 was killed by Etho using magic]
[Etho was killed by MumboJumbo using magic]
[xBCrafted was killed by Keralis1 using magic]
And then the round is over, with HEP taking the lead.
The game continues in much the same way, friendly competition that makes Tubbo’s head spin.
The resistance wins the second round, with Etho as the last man standing. They win the third round too, winning the game overall, and Tubbo cheers with the rest of them when they get to light up another lamp on the board.
The second game is designed by Ren, a very cool concept that Tubbo would love to look more into that involves giving one team slow falling and blasting them into the sky while the other team tries to shoot them down. Unfortunately the shooting down method involves rocket launchers, so Tubbo decides to sit this one out.
Ren looks a little guilty about it, but Tubbo just smiles at him. He still watches the game, and it’s a lot of fun. While he’s still a little uneasy around rockets, they don’t send him into a blind panic anymore.
It’s progress.
The resistance win Ren’s game too, although it was very close.
The next game is by Etho, and it’s the one Tubbo’s most excited for.
Etho’s a bit of a living legend, in Tubbo’s eyes at least, so being on a server with him feels a little surreal. Being there while he built something and being able to offer ideas was even better, and now being able to play the game he helped with? It’s amazing.
The game involves tridents and collecting fish and handing in player heads from the opposite team. It’s a very cool concept and Tubbo can’t wait to play.
There’s only four per team, and Tubbo ends up with Grian, Ren, and xB, with Grian quickly dubbing himself head hunter (and Ren fishboy, which makes Tubbo laugh). The game is fast paced, with a lot of accidental killings of their own teammates.
It’s surprisingly hard to hit members of the other team. Or hit anyone, for that matter, but they manage well enough. There’s also some confusion about what heads count for points. It’s exhausting, and Tubbo’s aching from the constant respawn by the time Etho calls game over. Glancing at his teammates, they seem to be feeling much the same.
Still, they win by a landslide, with thirty-two cod and fifteen heads to the HEP’s fourteen cod and four heads.
Another light on the board gets lit up, and the Mycelium Resistance are one step closer to winning.
Tubbo sits out of the next game as it requires one member of the team giving the other instructions to navigate a maze, which is something he’d struggle with a fair bit given his current abilities. It would be unfair for their team to have to type while the other team can just shout at each other. (Also, he’s not sure how well he’d manage in an enclosed space. He’s still working on it).
Ren and Grian take the challenge, winning by another landslide. Everything’s going great.
The final game is a showdown, set up by Scar.
It’s another fast-paced, intense game, and another one involving fireworks shot in close quarters which Tubbo opts out of. Instead he sits with Scar at the midpoint, watching over the games.
He can’t help but be a little wary around Scar, after the whole enderporter-hijacking-debacle, but the Mayor had been so apologetic, and seems overall harmless. It helps that Tubbo had once seen him chasing his cat around the shopping district for over an hour after she stole his monocle. He has a cute cat.
The game is intense, and a little hard to follow with all the bright flashes of fireworks, but eventually the HEP win, and the games are over.
Everyone heads back over to the scoreboard, knocking shoulders and hugging and grinning at each other, even members of the opposite team. It’s obvious how low the stakes are, really. Tubbo feels calm , even as Grian tugs him into a side hug, ruffling his hair. He protests, of course he does, but it’s not sincere.
The camaraderie between the hermits is glowing, the joy infectious.
Grian stands by the board, all the hermits gathering ready for him to declare the clear winner. The resistance wins by a landslide, and Tubbo barely flinches as purple fireworks fill the sky. The sun is beginning to set and he’s surrounded by friends, so he tilts his head up, watching the bright colours.
A couple of personal wagers had been made, and Tubbo smiles as people collect their debts or establish rules. Grian meets his eyes, grinning, and Tubbo feels something akin to peace settle beneath his ribcage.
The hermits continue to mill about, although a few go home, and Tubbo finds himself bouncing between conversations, everyone more than happy to include him. It’s nice.
He’s talking to Etho about the game he designed, ironing out some bugs in an attempt to use it again sometime, when his comm. buzzes with a message from the main chat.
He’d thought he was done with world-shattering changes. He’s accepted that this is his home now. No more wars, not more fear, no more death.
He freezes up at the message, blood running cold.
Because he thought he was a fluke, things work differently on anarchy servers, and Tubbo being on Hermitcraft is proof of that. But if the code is the same, somehow, some way, then that means he died. He died.
[Tommyinnit joined the game]
And Tubbo dreads to think how.