Chapter Text
On the first day of the games, a group of three entered the Nether. There was little reason to enter this new dimension, especially in these particularly dangerous circumstances, but Martyn was determined to be the first, Pearl was ready for a little chaos, and Skizz was easily peer pressured. So, instead of searching for their soulmates or gearing up, they created a portal and risked their lives. It seemed so insignificant at first, but one small stone dropped into a calm body of water can still cause ripples.
On the other side, three mirrored souls felt the impact of this trip. Burns blossomed on their arms and their legs ached as if they’d fallen off steep cliffs. When Cleo recounted her frustrations to Gem and found they shared similar pains, the two decided that they had to do something.
"If only you and I could have been paired up," Gem lamented, sitting on the stump of an oak tree that Cleo had cut down. She felt another sting on her left arm and winced, grabbing at it. "We'd be excellent soulmates."
"I agree," Cleo nodded, putting a comforting hand on Gem's shoulder. "We should forget those fools in the Nether and team up with each other. Who needs them?"
"Yeah," Gem said, smiling. "We can just be chosen soulmates. Together despite all odds."
“Chosen soulmates,” Cleo agreed. “We may not be connected in soul, but we’re connected in spirit.”
The two linked pinkies, sealing a promise to one another. And at that same time, not so far away, another person felt the same pains. He had no one to complain to but himself, but inside, Scott seethed at his unknown soulmate for being so reckless.
On the other side of the map, a young woman emerged from the mines. She was covered in dirt and coal dust, and when she finally reached the surface, she collapsed onto the grass, enjoying the feeling of sun on her face after so much time in darkness.
“Lizzie?” asked a voice from nearby.
An old friend stepped out of the woods and into the clearing, carrying a dull-looking iron axe. Lizzie quickly pulled herself to her feet when she heard him approaching, clearly surprised by the sudden appearance, but at the sight of him, she smiled.
“It’s good to finally see another person,” she admitted. “I’ve been lost in the mines all day… have you found your soulmate yet, Mumbo?”
He shook his head. “No luck yet. I’m pretty sure that Grian and Scar are together, though Scar is somehow completely oblivious… and Joel and Etho are paired too, in case you were wondering.”
“Huh,” Lizzie shrugged, not seeming bothered by this news about her husband. “Well, I’m sure they’ll be fine. Would you mind if I checked to see if we’re soulbound?”
“Go ahead,” Mumbo nodded.
Most of the people that Mumbo had ran into had used this as an excuse to hit him – he’d been pushed, pinched, poked, and prodded more times than he’d have liked. But Lizzie didn’t do this. Instead, she pulled out her sword and made a shallow slice on the back of her hand. Mumbo lifted his own hand, just to check, and watched in awe as a similar cut formed, allowing a solitary drop of blood to slide off and fall onto the grass.
“Oh,” Mumbo said.
They were both a bit shell-shocked for a moment, looking at their hands. It almost seemed unreal, impossible, even though they’d already understood the rules of these games. But it was one thing to hear about it, and another entirely to experience it firsthand. The connecting of two souls was downright stunning in that way.
“So, you and me, huh?” Lizzie muttered, finally breaking the silence. “A bit funny, if you think about it.”
They’d been a team before, once. They’d started out working together very well, and by the end, well… they didn’t like to talk about the end. But none of that mattered now.
“Guess so.” With the initial shock beginning to fade, Mumbo quickly stepped forward and wiped the blood off Lizzie’s hand with his sleeve, catching it seconds before a drop fell onto her skirt. “We should start looking for somewhere to make a base, I suppose.”
And off they went, in search of an ideal location to build the foundation of a safe haven, a place they could call their own.
It was a while later when the interdimensional travelers returned to the overworld, miraculously alive but not without the burns and bruises to prove that they'd made the journey. When they emerged from the portal, someone was there, waiting.
"Are you done now?" Scott asked, his voice flat and emotionless. He'd been standing outside the portal for a while now, waiting for whoever was his soulmate to return.
"Hey, Scott!" Martyn didn't seem to catch the man's sour expression. "We made it back in one piece! And we've got a bunch of spoils... say, have you found your soulmate yet?"
"It's not exactly rocket science, is it?" scoffed Scott. "I've been sitting here getting burned the entire time you three went on your little adventure. Did you even think about what your soulmate was going through when you threw yourselves into danger?"
"We didn't mean to-" Skizz began.
Scott laughed. "Oh, sure, you didn't mean any harm. Save me the excuses, okay? I just want to find my soulmate and be done with this."
"Scott, you're being a bit dramatic," Martyn sighed. "But sure. Let me give you a pinch, and we'll see who feels it."
Begrudgingly, Scott allowed Martyn to pinch him on the forearm, and Pearl hissed as she felt the matching pain. Immediately, all eyes were on her, and she had no choice but to look back at the frustrated man glaring at her.
She was hesitant to even look him in the eye, but she could feel their connection the instant she did, like an electric jolt at the very base of her soul. There was some strange combination of emotions washing through her: confusion, concern, and maybe even relief. Pearl and Scott had history, after all. Maybe, despite this initial hiccup, they could work this out.
"Oh, so this is where you've all ran off to."
Gem and Cleo emerged from the woods nearby. Both had a few sprigs of flowers braided into strands of their hair, clearly done while trying to pass the time. Neither looked particularly impressed with the ragtag group that had amassed near the portal.
"Gem! Cleo!" Skizz tried to break the tension, putting on a nervous smile. "Good to see you two."
"How was your Nether trip?" Cleo couldn't have sounded less interested if she'd tried. "Done making your soulmates' lives miserable yet?"
"So you're-" Martyn said.
"You felt-" Skizz exclaimed.
"Oh, of course-" Pearl sighed.
"Listen, it doesn't matter," Gem interrupted loudly, silencing the three of them. "Cleo and I have decided that we'll be working together, regardless of our soulmate bonds. So you all can just... run off on your own, okay? We don't need you."
"Wait, what?" Martyn looked downright shocked. "You can't seriously mean that."
"Oh, we're very serious," Cleo stated. "Gem and I will be just fine by ourselves. We'll be leaving, now."
"Wait!" Skizz looked back and forth at the two of them, crestfallen. "You don't even want to figure out who you're soulbound to?"
"Not particularly, to be honest," Gem shrugged.
That wasn't very satisfactory to Martyn, who stepped next to Skizz and kicked him in the shin, causing him to stumble a bit before regaining his balance. Gem hissed in pain and grabbed Cleo's arm at the same time, catching herself just before she tripped.
"Well, that answers your question," Scott said dryly, turning away from the group. "Come on, Pearl. I'm tired of this."
The two disappeared into the woods, Pearl halfheartedly trailing behind her soulmate.
"Cleo, wait," Martyn sighed, stepping past Skizz (who didn't seem annoyed by the kick, but perhaps that was because he was looking directly at Gem with a look of wistfulness on his face). "Listen, I'm sorry I went into the Nether, I know it was a bit impulsive, but I didn't mean to hurt you. Can we just talk about this?"
"What do we have to talk about?" Cleo asked. "You messed up, Martyn. It isn't just about the pain and frustration - it's also that you abandoned me. Maybe if you'd looked for me sooner, made a connection, we could have talked this out. But I've already figured out how to do this on my own, and I don't need you. We'll be leaving now."
And with that, Cleo left alongside Gem. Neither of them looked back.
Martyn looked completely shattered. He stood in silence, staring at the back of Cleo's head until she disappeared from view.
"They just... abandoned us," Skizz muttered.
He turned to Martyn, but it was immediately clear that talking about it was the last thing Martyn wanted to do. He took off into the woods, leaving Skizz by himself.
All alone.
This was supposed to be a game of partnership and trust. They were supposed to walk hand and hand together, act as each other's shields, and care for each other above all else. And somehow, with one frivolous decision, Skizz had lost all that.
He just started walking. Travelling without any particular goal, he passed the beginnings of a modern bungalow, continuing by the rough outlines of a cobblestone box, past the foundation of a ranch being built. Eventually, he found the one person he didn't know he was looking for, settled near the ravine not far from the wooden outline of a ship. There, a familiar figure stood in front of a half-built cottage with red trimmings.
"Skizz! Hey!" Mumbo said when he approached, looking surprised but pleased to see him. "How've you been? Any luck finding your soulmate?"
It was hard to bring himself to reply. "Well, about that... it didn't exactly go so well..."
"Ah." Mumbo looked over at the side of the house, where Lizzie had been digging through their chests. She'd looked up when she'd heard a voice, and now she and Mumbo exchanged a knowing look.
"You can stay with us, if you'd like," Lizzie offered. "At least, until you can figure things out."
"You really mean that?"
"Of course, buddy," Mumbo agreed, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Anytime."
And that was how they settled. Cleo and Gem, together by choice and not chance, quickly formed a tight bond, and it was hard to ever find one of them without the other close by. Lizzie and Mumbo, an equally close pairing, were gracious enough to take Skizz in, as they both knew too well how achingly lonely it could be to lose someone. Martyn settled alone, unsatisfied with the idea of living with anyone but his own soulmate, and brooded in a hanging house near the ravine. And Pearl and Scott, though lacking much in terms of loyalty or commitment, did end up remaining as a team. However, the weak ties that brought them together quickly festered, and they were known to the rest of the server as spiteful, bitter, and less than sane.
But that all changed when each of the four parties received a note pinned to their door, inviting them to a rather mysterious dinner party.