Just so you know, I've never actually watched Evolution SMP even though it plays a major part later in the story. I probably should, but I got a little bit bored after ep 2 lol

Yes, I am aware that the Watchers only spoke in riddles during Evo.

I found that out a little too late... so you get normal voices instead. I decided that since Third Life isn't technically a real world, it's just kind of in everyone's heads, the Watchers can communicate normally with them.

Enjoy the chaos!

-Indigo

~~~

He will betray you.

"I thought you were done pestering me!"

The one called Buildoff will kill you in a heartbeat if you turn your back. He wishes for revenge.

"I thought the score was settled!"

It is not you he is angry at. It is us. But he doesn't know that yet.

"Huh, I wonder why."

He wronged us.

"How?"

You are here to retrieve your memories. He is here as punishment.

"But why? What exactly did Grian do?"

I didn't get an answer to any of my questions before I woke up.

Grian, Tango, and Joel had arrived at different times last night. They were all still asleep, but Impulse and Cleo were up. Cleo had always seemed tough and resilient to me, but now she was crying. At first I was confused as to why, but then the casualties of the day before hit me.

Bdubs and Scott were dead.

At least Scott and Jimmy could be together again, in whatever worlds they went to after they died. Hopefully they were back at X Life.

But Bdubs...

His loss hit me a lot harder. Partly because his best friends, Cleo, Impulse, and me, were still alive. Partly because I didn't know where he came from. And partly because he was the one who kept the Crastle people smiling and laughing, even though he didn't mean to.

I was close to tears now as well. But I joined Impulse in comforting Cleo anyway.

It occured to me that Cleo, Impulse, and Tango were the only yellows on our side left. They would be targets for the Red Army, just because they wouldn't die and stay dead. They had to be terrified, surrounded by red names.

I helped everyone get back on their feet once they woke up, one by one. But the going was too slow. I wanted to avenge Bdubs. Sure, he was killed by Etho and Etho was dead, but I was mad at Ren.

Ren had fallen for the Renporer's tricks. He had forced Martyn to kill him, made an army, and then made him choose between me or him.

I was going to attack Dogwarts and kill my former ally, even if it meant my own death, with or without the rest of the Crastle and refugees.

I didn't care that I would most likely die. I would be able to return to Gem in X Life. I would be able to get to know Jimmy, Scott, and Joel better, and build and mine to my heart's content without worrying about whether Scar or Ren or Etho were after me. I could give trees to people and they wouldn't say thank you by trying to blow up my allies' base.

I was homesick for a place I didn't even remember.

But there were good things about Third Life too - the friends I had made here, Martyn and Cleo and Impulse and Bdubs and Grian - I would probably never see them again. They weren't from X Life.

But this was necessary. This had to end. Now.

So that night, I slipped out the back door and left for Dogwarts.

"What are you doing?"

I whirled around to see a red-sweatered guy behind me. Grian crossed his arms and tapped his foot as if dealing with a rebellious toddler, which offended me a little. I didn't think he was awake.

"Just getting some fresh air."

"As you walk toward Dogwarts? I don't really think so. You're trying to kill Ren, aren't you?"

"Yeah..." I admitted. "It's his fault Bdubs is dead."

"When you came to my ugly hobbit hole and told me not to die because being red was bad, at first I didn't believe you because you seemed fine. Now I realize you did change, because I see the same changes in myself. But then you got better. You took control again. But now you're losing it. Don't listen to the voices, because they never are actually helping you."

"I have to avenge Bdubs."

"Just because your name is red doesn't mean your thoughts have to be too! I want to go up there as much as you do. They killed Scar. But we have to wait for the others."

I pursed my lips and stabbed a zombie that had crept up behind me. "Fine. I won't do it."

I didn't need any light to see his relieved expression. "Okay then."

I followed him inside and went back to bed.

-----

It turned out I didn't need to go attack Dogwarts on my own, because the rest of the group wanted to the next morning, including Grian.

The remnants of the Red Army were in the Nether doing who knows what. Grian took it as an opportunity to build a sky base over Dogwarts. He said that they could use it to drop potions, arrows, and anvils on their heads.

We all thought that was a good idea (minus the anvils), so we all helped. I could see all the way to the desert from the top.

Grian and Tango stayed up on top while Cleo, Impulse, Joel, and I went back to the Crastle to sabotage the Nether portal. However, the Red army wasn't stupid, and they set up a different portal so they didn't go through the trapped one.

When they came back into Dogwarts, surprised at the giant floating cobblestone sky base, we all came out of the basement and attacked. Arrows rained down around us from the sky base.

Eventually Grian and Tango jumped from the sky base with potions of slow falling. Grian yelled, "I'M MARY POPPINS, Y'AAAAAALL!!" I didn't know what that was about, but it was nice to see Grian's funny side again.

They touched down into total chaos. The Red Army was not surprised at our attack. They had taken one look at the sky base and thought, ambush.

Skiz killed Impulse, who has tried to surprise-attack him from behind. Cleo cried out, but Grian had already slashed him and yelled, "THAT WAS FOR SCAR!"

Impulse Esvee was slain by Skizzle Man
Skizzle Man was slain by Grian Buildoff

Grian picked something up from his remains - a Netherite sword. One out of two.

Bigb and Cleo were locked in fierce combat where neither could get the better of the other. Then Tango jumped in and killed Bigb. They high-fived.

Bigb Statz was slain by Tango Tek

The Red King himself went for Joel, which turned out to be a bad idea... for Joel. Although he had a lot of dogs to help him, Ren was ultimately the better fighter, so he won. It probably helped that he was part wolf himself. The dogs, confused at their master's demise, wandered around, searching for him and whimpering.

Joel Smallbeans was slain by Ren Dog

Martyn had gone for Tango after he killed Bigb. In the fight between yellow and yellow, Martyn won, but then Cleo turned around with her crossbow and with a well-placed shot, turned him red.

Tango Tek was slain by Martyn Thicket
Martyn Littlewood was shot by Cleo Zombie

Ren jumped in and avenged Martyn, turning Cleo red as well. Martyn came back up out of the Dogwarts basement to rejoin his king on the battlefield.

Cleo Zombie was slain by Ren Dog

It was down to Grian and me on our side, and Ren and Martyn on the enemy.

I told Grian not to kill them just yet.

"Ren, I know you're in there."

"Yer a traitor, Bluemoon! Ye should have taken the shield!"

Great. He was still using that stupid accent.

"You're possessed, Ren. Fight him."

Ren staggered towards us, his axe still in hand. Martyn watched with horror, trying to decide which side to take - the one he was sworn to, or the one that he had been with from the beginning.

Grian gasped suddenly and staggered backwards, horrified and jubilant at the same time. He glanced at Martyn, seemed to panic, looked at Ren, and then me. "I remember everything..." he breathed.

Then he launched into a monologue that made no sense whatsoever to me. "Ren, remember the Mycelium resistance? When you were head of R & D? They stood for Ren and Dog, not research and development. Remember the Principle? Sending Scar a message? Remember when we covered the shopping district in sheep and mooshrooms? And when we bought the diamond throne with mycelium?"

"Ye will die!" Ren answered, charging us. I jumped forward and knocked the king to the ground, putting a sword at his throat while I waited for Grian to finish.

I can't say I wasn't extremely confused. Mycelium Resistance? Shopping district? Diamond throne?

Grian kept talking. "Remember Sahara, when you were the only one who came to the grand opening? Remember how ConCorp tried to undercut you on wood prices, but you bought out their entire stock? Remember Area 77, when we were hippies and tried to steal back my time machine? And the Hermitville Buildoff, when you tried to win by flying an RV to build height?"

He was on a roll now.

"Ren, do you remember when False and I pranked you with a roller coaster? We blamed it on Iskall and got his accent totally wrong to the point that I said, 'Oh ya, hi, itsh me, Ishkall, your Svedish fend.' And when Tango and I broke into the stock exchange and replaced all your diamonds with our own heads, pretending to be Mumbo and False? Your reaction was priceless! Remember Team STAR and the G Team?"

"I still haven't forgiven you for that..." Ren mumbled. I loosened my hold on my sword in surprise.

It was working. Ren remembered something... some sort of break-in to a stock exchange that Grian and Tango had done. Not the best thing to remember, but it was a start.

"You have to remember Doc and Iskall. Remember Kingdomcraft? I was never there, but Iskall told me about it. You and him were like best friends, and later in the Sixth World you and Doc built the stock exchange together, and you were always in awe of his redstone ability. He made the coolest redstone vault door. Your elevator even had music. He was so proud of that bush in your office that I ruined. And remember your diamond hot tub?"

"Doc... Doc... Doc Em? Iskall Eightyfive? I- I remember..."

Martyn stared in astonishment.

"Ren... listen to me. You are Ren Dog. Just because you won MCC once doesn't mean you get to be king. Ren Dog. Not the Red King. Ren, come back. Resist. Resist."

"Grian? What happened?" he gasped.

"I... I killed you," Grian answered guiltily. "Then you went in a rage and got mad at the world. You formed an army out of people you barely knew and turned on your former allies. And it was my fault. I'm sorry, Ren."

"No... not again... he's taking control... Renbob isn't here to save me now, no one is... it's... over..." Ren breathed heavily, his breath coming in short gasps.

"No, Ren, you're fine, you're fine, don't panic, fight him!" Martyn encouraged. Then he whispered to me, "Who's Renbob?"

"Martyn... Blue... I'm sorry..."

"Ren, you're going to be fine. Resist it, resist them, you don't need power to be happy," I said.

"Kill me," Ren pleaded.

"NO!" We all said at the same time.

"Please... otherwise it'll take control..."

"But..." Martyn said. "Not again..."

Ren squeezed his eyes shut. "Do it." he pushed the other Netherite sword towards Martyn.

Martyn picked it up, and with tears in his eyes, ended the Red King's rule.

Ren Dog was slain by Martyn Littlewood

It was symbolic in a way. Martyn had started it with the axe. Then he had ended it, also under his king's order. The Red King was gone, but so was Ren.

Something in between anger, sadness, and pride flickered in Martyn's blue eyes.

Pride?

I pushed it away. It didn't matter anymore.

The Red Winter War was over.

~~~

Hooray! The King is dead, long live the democracy!

I hope that made you wonder whether Ren is really the bad guy here... heheheh...

Feel free to comment, in fact PLEASE comment, I'd appreciate it because this is my first story on Wattpad and I have no idea what I'm doing! 👍

-Indigo