(Warning: talk of death, kinda self injury, dead people, kinda cults, grief, beheading, death penalty, ghosts, that type of thing)
  
     Scott couldn't help the seething rage he felt.

     It all started on the most pleasant morning he had ever experienced. The blue jays were chirping from their perches in the trees, the salmon swam peacefully in the crystal blue pond, wind rustled the wild flowers gently. The sun felt like a warm hug, coloring the cyan haired man's face in a peachy glow. Looking through the leaves of the large oak, he could see the shapes of white puffy clouds dotted the sky. Humming came from below, making its way up to Scott. He watched as the blond man came up the hill, a blanket and basket in hand for a picnic later. The smile on his husband's face grew when he caught sight of Scott laying their peacefully.

     That should be an indication that everything was about to go wrong.

     The two flower husbands only got married a few days before, matching rings besides the gems glittered on their ring fingers. The giddiness of living the best life with someone you love to death was feeling Scott with glee. He could forget about the war threatening to take away their beloved home at a moment's notice. He could forget everything if he could just lay on this blanket with Jimmy, holding each other's gaze with hands intertwined together.

     But that wasn't the case as horns blared and interrupted their tranquility.

     The birds flew away in fear, the salmon hid under lily pads, the flowers seemed to wilt when Scott saw the people he wanted to forget about.

     "Ah, if it isn't the people who had made the wrong decision." Ren had a smile on his face but it was dipping into being a sneer. He continued, "If you would like to be pathetic during the war, living some naive fantasy, you would follow my directions to their full extent." His pearly white canines flashed in the sun, making him look more and more like a wild dog hybrid than ever.

     "No way, we had said we wanted our honeymoon to be unbothered, just leave us alone," Jimmy tried to act brave but Scott could hear the underlying fear that made his voice slightly higher than what it was in actuality.

     "You can just come back to this if you follow me."

     Scott looked at the basket, still full of their lunch and the red and white checkered blanket that rest underneath them. He looked at the sky and how blue it was (afterwards, he recognized the sky was as blue as Jimmy's eyes.)

     "We can come back to this later, we still have a full day," he tried to reassure his husband who looked conflicted and scared. "We will be back to enjoy our lunch and I bet the sky wouldn't have changed as much by then."

     "Fine," Jimmy muttered begrudgingly, "but we will resume our picnic and our honeymoon unbothered, right?"

     "Yes, we will leave you alone after this." Ren's words sounded truthful, at least enough for Scott to believe.

     With that, the two got up and left the woven basket and cotton blankets on the emerald green grass.

---

     Scott could feel the nervous energy in the aura around Jimmy.

     "We shouldn't do this, this is dangerous and I bet it is going to end poorly," the blond whispered to his husband with uncertainty. "We should have just moved to get away from this or something." Scott just squeezed his hand and smiled.

     "It will be alright, we are both protected and they can't hurt us too bad. They are probably going to try and get us to be apart of their weird cult again and then we will be off to finish what we started." They really didn't have anything to fear, their armor was pulled on tight and they had their own swords strapped at their hips. They weren't completely prepared to make a journey when the Dogwarts arrived but they still had everything in reach in case of a violent mob (or friend that decided to turn their back, Scott thinks with anger running through his veins.)

     "Yeah, I trust you." Jimmy squeezed his hand back.

     He shouldn't have.

     They arrived at the walled off area. The stone material was intimidating but Ren and Martyn waltzed in with no hesitation. Scott led the two of them through the door, keeping his hand in Jimmy's. He could feel the ring his husband had with their fingers interlocked. It was comforting.

     "Alright, if Scott can just stand here, we can get started." The cyan haired man looked at the podium that stood in the middle of the grassy area. The quartz mixed with netherrack blended together in a weird, yet elegant, way. He was about to let go and walk up when he heard a sharp intake from his husband, who pulled him back.

     "Jimmy, it will be alright." Scott comforted, trying to get out of his grasp.

     "Scott, that's an alter." Jimmy's expression turned dark just staring at it. "I won't let you go up there to be slaughtered without me helping you."

     The shorter of the two turned when Ren started cackling.

     "Very perspective, young red." His voice was deeper and made Scott's stomach churn. "But you don't have a choice."

     It happened quickly.

     Before Scott could pull out his sword, someone already tackled him to the ground, making sure he doesn't move while they bound his wrists with chains. He looked up and saw frosty white hair and a jagged scar across one of the piercing eyes. His skin felt like it was being cut up from the rough edges and the tightness. Hearing a yelp, he could see Jimmy trying to fight Martyn and Skizz to move towards him.

     Etho violently pulled him up from where he was laying on the ground, pushing him to the alter where his bounds were then connected to a metal pole. He tried to pull with all his might but he got tugged back, hitting his back against it. He winced in pain, knowing there would be a bruise forming there.

     Jimmy, on the other hand, was still giving trouble to his captors. He had the infamous red strength that allowed them to be deadly hunters; faster, stronger, and braver. Martyn was knocked to the ground, trying to get up but the red continued to push him down. It looked like an unfair fight, 2 v 1 especially when one was a red life but Skizz was having just as much trouble as the green. It was like watching a wild animal trying to get out of a trap. Snarling and hissing everytime something came to put him down further.

     Finally, they poured a weakness potion over his blond hair, soaking it in the magic. Scott could only watch in horror as his husband collaped to his knees, out of breath and panicked.

     "Wow, you found yourself a strong red," Ren observed with a growing grin.

     "We are in it together, we found each other and that's it," Scott tried to make his voice strong but it was hard to when everything had gone wrong so quickly.

     Ren let out a snort, covering his mouth with his hand. "Really, Scott? It is obvious you are the mastermind in this situation. He is just a lost mutt, searching for something that was never there in the first place." The red's face was now in Scott's. His breath smelled of a rotted odor.

     "He is not a dog!" Scott spat in his face with a scream.

     The red king wiped his face off with the back of his hand, face now downturned in a disapproving frown. He looked disappointed in a way. He went over to Jimmy, grabbing his strawberry blond locks in his hand and pulling his face up.

     "Aww, look at him, Scott. He is just a precious golden retriever, trying to please his master." The red flicked his pocket knife open, bringing it to Jimmy's neck. Scott could see some blood drip down. His husband whimpered. "A loyal breed at that. I would know, I am a dog hybrid after all."

     "Stop!" Scott shouted, pulling on his chains again. The red king turned, oblivious smile on his face.

     "What's wrong, Scott?"

     "Just get whatever it is over with that you want done with me. I will bargain whatever it is if you let Jimmy go." Ren let go of Jimmy and pulled the knife away, the flower husband falling to the ground, gasping and holding his bloodied neck.

     "Deal, then." Thunder boomed somewhere in the background.

     "Scott!" Jimmy yelled from on the floor. "Don't do this! You made a deal with the devil!" Scott couldn't find himself caring. If it saved Jimmy, it was worth it.

     "Up, boys." Ren motioned his lackeys into bringing the strawberry blond foreward, healing him and putting a sword in his hands. "Stand before Scott, golden retriever." Jimmy looked uneasy but the cyan haired man just nodded his head. He stood up taller, standing where he was instructed. "Kill him." Ren ordered one more time.

     "W-what?" Jimmy stuttered out. The sword was pointed at the ground limply, while he looked back at Ren.

     "Kill him."

     Jimmy looked back but all Scott was giving him was the okay. "No! I won't kill him!" Jimmy said, slashing the sword against the quartz. Sometime between the chaos, the netherrack was lit on fire. Scott could see how it was an alter and not just some podium like he originally thought.

     "If you want to both make it out, then do it."

     Jimmy looked so hurt and confused, trying to make sense of everything that was happening. Scott could see the metaphor that he was a dog now that it was said.

     "Honey, it's okay." Scott gave him a sad smile. If he could, he would place a hand on his cheek but his words was the best he has got. "We will go back to our picnic after."

     "No! Scott, you can't just 'honey' me when you are going to lose your first life!" He was close to tears, the green life could hear it. "You don't know the pain of revival in this world! It's so painful and it felt like I was being torn apart! It still feels like I'm dying, I can't put you through that!" A streak ran down his face, falling off of his chin as he spoke.

     Scott saw no other choice; Dogwarts was approaching, seeing the situation wasn't going the right way.

     With a deep breath, Scott slammed himself into the pole, over and over again. He remembered that red lives are like sharks in the intent that they become violent with the scent of blood. The cyan haired man choked on tears as he tried to break skin to make Jimmy just kill him. It would save them both.

     Jimmy ran foreward, about to get Scott to stop when the green life felt a trickle of blood pour from the wound on his side. The red's face changed; eyes becoming a darker scarlet color and face becoming an ashy grey. Scott was ready for the sword to impale him. He closed his eyes and waited.

     But it never came.

     The chains were sliced off and opening his eyes, the others were on the ground. Jimmy had the sword pointed towards them.

     "How dare you let Scott get hurt!" His arm was around the green, tightly pulling him close. "Darling, are you okay?" His eyes turned amber when he turned to talk to him.

     "Yeah, I'm- LOOK OUT!" Scott watched as the strawberry blond was impaled by Ren. He was breathing heavily with rage.

     "Scott?" Jimmy looked down at the wound and then up. His eyes rolled to the back of his head as he tried to stay conscious.

     "Jimmy!" He yelled in horror, holding them up with his own will power. He gently brought them to the ground, the red was holding on tight to the back of his bloodstained shirt. "Stay awake, honey. Please, you will be okay!" He pleaded while tears poured down his face in waterfalls.

     "Darling, I think- I think it's time I go." His face looked peaceful, like he already accepted it.

     "Noo!" Scott shouted, pulling his husband close. "I can't!"

     "I think you can, p-please. I love you, darling... we both- we both knew this would happen at some point... you were always- always going to live longer."

     "Don't say that, don't say that..." Scott body was shaking with grief.

     "It's o-over... I'll save you a spot at our picnic." Scott was about to scream again when Jimmy's body went limp against him. The hand clenching the back of his shirt became loose and fell down onto the bloodstained grass. Jimmy's whole body became grey except for the scarlet red blood and the golden ring on his finger.

     Scott stood up, sniffing and wiping his face with the back of his hand. Blood smeared his cheek and his gaze became thirsty for it.

     "You will all pay." He grabbed the sword that Jimmy had dropped during his final moments and the one at his hip he couldn't grab earlier. Dual wielding, he ran and started acting his revenge.

     Ren was the first to go, being brutally beheaded when the sword went straight through his body.

     "Long live the king!" Scott yelled with mad glee. The other men made a run for it.

     He chased them down with new speed, striking Etho and Skizz down. One to go.

     He found the green life, tripping over branches in the forests near Dogwarts. He was weaving through trees, trying to get away.

     The cyan haired man dashed, tackling him to the ground and holding a sword at his neck. "What do you have to say for yourself." He spat out, pushing on the blade more.

     "Scott, p-please!" He cried, trying to push the other green off. "You know the- the rules!" For a brief second, he could remember Grian telling them to never kill as a green life.

     "I don't care about the rules."

     With a swift cut, Martyn was beheaded like his ruler he followed just like a dog.

---

     Scott was found the next day, at the bloodied picnic spread laughing maniacally. He called for Jimmy who he claimed was at the bottom of the hill, going to grab something from inside the house.

     He was brought to court.

     Grian stood tall and proud, standing at the front with a somber look on his face. He looked conflicted and concerned. The flower widow was brought to sit at his seat, chained up and told to listen to the admin's every words.

     "Scott Smajor," he called, silencing people in the room, "you have committed a war crime."

     "Pfft, as if!" He barked out with a sneer. Grian looked unamused.

     "You broke the rules that greens should never kill any person, regardless of their status."

     "But! The green has a right to kill if threatened!" Scott yelled back.

     "We have countless witness statements saying that you in fact, were not threatened by them in particular. They have said that you were going to be killed by Jimmy, a red life at that. If anything, you had the right to kill him."

     "No! Jimmy would be on my side! Where is Jimmy!"

     Grian visibly sighed, sitting on the edge of the table Scott was situated at. He put his hand on his shoulder. "Scott, he was killed by Ren yesterday."

     "I'll kill Ren! I'll kill him myself!" He snarled, pulling on his restraints.

     "You did kill him. That's the whole reason we are in court today. You broke the rules, killing a red life who didn't threaten you but instead threatened and killed Jimmy. You then went against the rest of his group and hunted them until they each lost a life. You hunted them when they were already running from you." Grian pulled his hand back and stood up again.

     Scott slumped against his seat, he stopped fighting and gave in.

     "You are now going to lose the same number of lives as you have taken already. You made everything out of balance and nothing is going to be the same. I sentence you to death; you took four innocent lives and we will be giving you the same treatment. You will be officially dead by the third one. Should anyone else break this rule, they will be treated with the same punishment and if they are here to witness this one, it will be dealt worse."

     Scott was ushered out of the room, to a chamber of sorts. He didn't know how long he sat there before Grian entered again with a few red lifes.

     "These are our executioners. You will be punished by beheading." If the cyan haired man looked close, he could see that the green had been crying, eyes puffy and cheeks had dried tears.

     And when he had his head on a block, ready to die, he could see a faint shimmering form next to Grian of his late husband, crying and shaking his head with disappointment. The next minute, was gone in a second.

Words: 2870
Written: Sunday, August 15th, 2021, 2:19 am
Edited:
Originally Posted: Sunday, August 15th, 2021, 2:22 am