A/N: Actually, MCC8 was not really that angsty (MCC11 is the most angsty one), it's just that our heroes, the hermits, got 9th again. MCC8 Yellow Yaks is a very nice and enjoyable POV. I'm just making it sad for plot lol. I'll be quoting a lot from the Yaks' POV so you can see how Ren carried the team by continuously boosting their morale :D
This chapter (and the next few) will mention shit people said about the hermits in real life. Just two instances: when Michael said the hermit team were easy kills in Battle Box, and when Burren called Rendog old in Ace Race. Everything else is false and highly exaggerated. I'm certain Michael and Burren meant it as jokes and did not mean any offense, but it did upset me and some other Hermitcraft fans. Maybe I'm just not used to their humour. Maybe I'm overreacting. This chapter gets negative (and the worst part is, certain parts of it are real), so you might wanna sit down if you dearly love the hermits.
-
In youth you'd lay
Awake at night and scheme
Of all the things that you would change
But it was just a dream...
-
The 8th Championship started with False trying to get everyone in line, despite Ren being the one with the catchphrase "ladies (and gentlemen and everybody), get in line!".
"Yas team!" False cheered, hyped.
"You mean, Yaks team," Pearl quipped.
"Earlier on it was just Cub and me," Ren said. "We were team AS, which is also an animal, but not the one we would like to be."
"Probably not Foxy's intention when she made our outfits," Cub remarked.
"Serious talk, team," Ren continued, "If you take a look at the leaderboard, I took a photo because this is the only time we're ever going to be third."
The Yaks all turned to look, and indeed, due to their team colour, the Yaks were sitting in third. All of them laughed at the self-deprecating joke. They quickly took selfies, then returned to talking about their strategy. As they had agreed last night, they were aiming for seventh.
There was a larger crowd than usual, which was due to the massive clout Dream and Techno had. The Yaks still felt a little bad for the other two members of Pink Parrots, because Michael and Burren genuinely weren't bad and would not "drag down" the team (not that they believed any player would drag down anyone). Stan Twitt was standing tall and proud on the stage, decked out in full pink gear. False thought she saw Stan look at them, and felt shivers down her spine. That moment quickly passed, and False didn't think much about it. Stan Twitt was always creepy and weird.
The Yaks didn't want Skyblockle, since as Ren put it, they "had no idea what the heck was going on" and it was a PvP oriented game. But after seeing what other people were voting for, they went for Parkour Warrior to get it out of the way.
Parkour was pain as usual, with Pearl and False managing to get up to 5-3, with Cub stuck at 4-1 and Ren at 3-3.
"NOO! I was so close!" came Ren's distraught voice from their communicators as False and Pearl struggled with 5-1. "Cub, you and I are stuck on the stupid glass panes!"
"Hi False," a panting Pearl greeted her when False finally got past 5-1. "Damn, this is hard, and I practiced it."
So False and Pearl were stuck on one level together, Cub and Ren stuck in the same one a few levels behind them. All of them groaned about the unfairness of Parkour and became a little disheartened.
"Man, I'm disappointed in myself," Cub mumbled. False winced.
"Cub, I feel your pain, dude." There was silence as Ren presumably focused on something. "You and me, Cub, we're letting down the girls today."
False furrowed her eyebrows. She turned around, but couldn't see the guys. "Where are you?"
"Don't ask, don't ask," was Ren's pain-filled reply.
False edged herself past 5-2, and exhaled, her arms trembling. Steady beeps came from her ear radio, telling her there were twenty seconds left.
"Well, I'm so glad we don't have to do this again!" Ren burst out, and False laughed. It wasn't even to mask the pain; it was just that they were so bad at parkour it was funny.
"Oh, I got past that one with ten seconds to spare!" Cub's joyous voice came from the radio.
"Nice one, Cub!" Ren cheered. "You beautiful, beautiful man."
False dragged herself up to a platform and sat down, ignoring the seconds ticking down. She knew she wouldn't make it past 5-3, so why waste her energy? Pearl was still desperately trying, her voice getting increasingly more and more frantic.
The game ended, and Pearl whined. "I was right there at the next checkpoint!" she exclaimed. "Noo!"
False hurried over to Pearl and hugged her despite both of them being sweaty. Pearl covered her face with her hands. "That went so bad!" she cried out in a tiny voice.
The girls met up with Ren and Cub, with Ren being thankful they didn't have to deal with parkour again. "So Pearl, how did all of that practice turn out for you there?" Ren asked.
Pearl lifted her head to glare at Ren. "It was fine," she answered in an intense way that everyone knew it wasn't fine at all.
False jokingly hit Ren. "Wow, rubbing it in."
"I hate the glass pane one," Pearl muttered. "It threw me off so much." She shrugged False's arm off so she could grab her water bottle.
There was a slight pause. "The thing is, it's completely different when the pressure's on," Ren commented.
"Yup," Cub nodded.
"Like, we did okay with Fruity, but now that we're actually in the Championship..." Ren subconsciously rubbed his arms. "Yeah."
"Ahhh, I feel so distraught!" Pearl rambled passionately, not over her performance in Parkour Warrior. "I practiced for so long, like literally every day, and I still got stuck... heck, I even asked the main campus teachers for help..."
Pearl looked legitimately disappointed, and the hermits shared concerned glances.
"At least we can focus on the events we enjoy now, since we got the worst one out of the way!" Ren said with a grin. Trust Ren to keep being optimistic despite the circumstances.
Pearl managed to smile, and exhaled, tension leaving her shoulders. "Yup, gotta forget about that stupid parkour."
The second game, Hole in the Wall, was a pretty standard game by the hermits' standards, except Pearl and Ren popped off in the final round.
"How are we still alive, Ren?" Pearl wheezed as False and Cub shouted wall directions from above.
"I have no idea!" Ren replied as he frantically dashed to a hole.
False gazed at her friends, impressed. "You guys are killing it!"
"Don't panic, everything's fine, everything's fine!" Ren chanted to himself as the wall speed increased. He and Pearl ducked and crawled through holes with not a second to spare. "Oh geez! Hold me mama!"
Ren was knocked off, and Pearl gasped. "How-how did I survive?!"
"Yes Pearl!" Cub cried from the sidelines as False helped Ren up.
"I'm panicking! I'm panicking!" Pearl screeched. There were only four players still alive. Pearl was among the top four players of that round. So long had the Yaks wanted to do good, but now that they were actually getting higher ranks, they just freaked out.
Pearl fell off soon, but the Yaks were ecstatic. "We're ninth, dude!" False cried out happily. (Funny how they were so happy with their "cursed" ninth place.)
Ren embraced a beaming Pearl. "Nicely done, dudes! We pulled it back in the end! I like we're so excited with ninth, by the way."
"We're not tenth!" False declared. "We basically won!"
"We're in line with the community placings though," Pearl reminded them, and their hearts sank a little.
Cub shrugged. "Well, we gotta celebrate the little achievements we have."
So with their spirits lifted, the Yellow Yaks walked to the Decision Dome to vote for the third game. They wanted Ace Race, but it seemed like the odds weren't in their favour. The Yaks watched with bated breath as the screen flickered. The rest of the teams all had their eyes on the screen, nervously murmuring among themselves.
Then bold letters appeared, spelling out "Battle Box". The PvP game that the Yaks were simply terrible at. Oh, well.
False's stomach twisted. Cub was sitting on the floor, still exhausted by Hole in the Wall and Parkour Warrior. Pearl just sighed and crossed her arms. They didn't say it, but they all thought they had lost the battle before it began. Ren saw the worried looks on his friends' faces, and decided to speak up.
"Falsie and I did pretty good in our first time, which was a few Championships ago, but I think we got this dudes!" Ren said brightly.
... It was always Ren who managed to make a bad situation look good without fail. He was the most vocal and supportive member on the team, and False honestly didn't know what they would do without him.
Stan Twitt was cackling and giggling, and False shot a look at Pink Parrots. As expected, they were pumping their fists in the air, happy that a PvP game was chosen. False turned away, trying to shake off the odd unpleasant feeling in her gut.
False could only hope Ren was right.
(Spoiler alert: he wasn't— but it was the thought that counted.)
-
Farewell, I've gone to take my throne above
But don't weep for me
'Cause this will be the labor of my love
-
Technoblade and his team were beyond excited for Battle Box. Their many fans squealed in joy, desperate to see the PvP masters, the legendary rivals Dream and Techno excel. The four roared, lusting for blood.
A strange atmosphere descended upon all of them, but it wasn't a... bad atmosphere. They were fucking confident like they had never been before. Their hands were itching for combat. They wanted to taste blood. They wanted to kill everybody in their way. And they didn't just want it, they would do it.
"BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!" Stan Twitt screamed for all its worth. Stan seemed to be closely following Pink Parrots (because they were the Winner's POV, duh.) With Stan Twitt's support, Technoblade felt absurd adrenaline and confidence gush into his veins, and he was sure his teammates felt the same. Nothing could go wrong. They were going to win and everyone knew it. Techno had never felt like that before. It was almost a little worrying, but screw it, this was their anime moment. When the rivals teamed up to defeat their bigger rival. Plot armour would save them all.
"Techno! Dream!"
A familiar voice from above. Fruitberries, their sensei, stared down at them, grinning and waving. Of course Fruit was spectating. "Good luck!" he called out.
Dream chuckled. "Thanks Fruit, but we won't need it." Michael and Burren hooted, while Techno merely smiled at Fruit.
"Ohh, we're going up against Team Hermitcraft," Burren casually stated as he and his team geared up for their first round of Battle Box.
"Oh, that's an easy dub," Micheal responded cheerfully, polishing his blade.
Everybody burst into boisterous, hysterical laughter. Everyone knew the hermits were downright shitty in PvP, so it should be a piece of cake to get them. It was so fucking easy, it was pathetic and almost sad. Almost.
Techno stared at them across the field. He recognized a girl with beige hair, cheerfully talking with her teammates. He had seen her practicing for parkour literally every day. He recognized two other hermits (whom he still didn't know the name of despite seeing them in every Championship), the brunet guy and the Female Hermit. There was also another guy who was probably a hermit. Someone called Cubfan. Techno snorted. He only knew about the hermits through Grian, and Grian was the only builder he actually knew.
It was nice that people stopped beating up the hermits. Techno still didn't know shit about them though. It was disappointing that the hermits were still getting bottom ten. Techno actually thought they might've improved, but nope. They were still bad at the Championship. Sad.
Techno looked up and saw Stan Twitt smirking. His eyes met with Stan's, and Techno blinked. There was something nagging at the back of his brain. Above them, Fruit looked slightly... worried for some reason.
"Huh, the hermits are somehow still trying to win the Championship."
"Let's be real, I'll be surprised if they get 8th."
"Not to sound mean, but they're not good. Actually, I would just say they're bad." A cackle. "They get points for trying though."
"I wonder how long they can survive."
"Geez, can they even stand up after their fight with us?"
More laughter. Techno suddenly felt ill. Why were his friends suddenly so... aggressive? Like they were drunk on hubris even though the game hadn't even started? This wasn't like them at all. And suddenly, the Blood God was scared. Techno snuck a look at Dream, who was smirking as he impatiently tapped his foot on the ground. Techno, for seemingly no reason, was fucking scared.
But that thought vanished as quickly as it came. Why should he be worried? The hermits were legitimately easy kills, nothing but cannon fodder.
In the corner of his eye, Techno saw Fruit cheer for the hermits, and that uneasiness intensified. But that was quickly overshadowed by Stan Twitt's feral screeching.
"PINK PARROTS UWU! RIVALSTWT UWU! YASS TEAM!"
Techno took a deep breath and readied his sword. "The hermits are my kills. Don't touch them."
(Techno didn't know why he felt compelled to say that. It just felt right.)
Dream guffawed. "Getting greedy, aren't you Techno? Wanna steal my first place?" he playfully taunted.
Techno frowned, and once again stared at the hermits. They were just standing there, chatting, minding their own business, blissfully oblivious to trash talking happening on the other side.
"Blood for the Blood God," Techno muttered ominously. "Don't get in my way." His teammates snickered, thinking he was joking. Techno would like to think he was, but his thoughts and feelings were getting jumbled up.
He was just joking, right? He had to be.
"You'll have to compete with us though. C'mon, everyone wants free kills."
"I bet the hermits will just fall even if we push them slightly."
Techno wanted to tell them they shouldn't be too harsh on the hermits. They should conserve their energy since the hermits were weak. It was Techno's way of doing things. But somehow, the words never left his mouth.
"Three..."
Techno sighed. He didn't know why he was so confused and torn. It was simple. Find the hermits, kill them, and win.
"Two..."
Kill the hermits. It was just that simple.
"One!"
The gates opened, and with battle cries, the Pink Parrots charged. Before Techno attacked, he glanced one final time at the spectator stands.
... Stan Twitt's smile was starting to look a little sinister.
-
Techno quickly picked up a "damage potion" (which was just a harmless water balloon) and saw one of the Yaks (the brunet guy) charge towards him. Techno could sense his other teammates were going for kills. He wondered how hard his teammates would hit the hermits. Hopefully not too hard. It was unfair to be so aggressive towards people who were way weaker than them.
(Techno had just suddenly realized the beige haired girl was not a hermit. He felt a little bad for grouping them together, even though 3-G was just slightly higher than 3-H in the hierarchy.)
Brunet guy tried to hit him, and Techno weighed the water balloon in his hands. It was too easy to defeat this guy. Techno heard swords clash and bullets meeting their targets. And then-
A female scream.
The brunet guy's eyes widened. "Falsie!" He instantly looked away from Techno and ran towards his friend. Techno raised his sword. With his target distracted, it really was too easy.
But at that moment, Techno hesitated.
Nobody else would know, because their reflexes weren't fast enough. It was so quick that no one would catch it.
But Techno knew.
The real question was: why?
Maybe the guy sounded genuinely worried for the False girl. Maybe Techno naively wanted to see the hermits do slightly better. Maybe he wanted to see them save each other.
But Techno wasn't going to let the hermits run free. Oh no, oh no, oh no. That wasn't the way of the Blood God.
Techno just generously gave them a chance. A little head start since Techno would catch them in the end.
Techno watched as the brunet guy ran. Suddenly, Burren popped up, his sword aiming for the brunet guy's unprotected neck. And Techno acted faster than one could blink.
Techno seized the brunet guy's collar with one hand, and used the other to toss the damage pot at his chestplate. The water balloon erupted, and the health bars on the brunet guy's suit went down. Techno let go, and the panting guy stumbled to his feet. Considering he didn't instantly collapse on the ground, Techno thought he didn't hurt the hermit too much. "Renthedog was killed using magic by Technoblade!" came the commentator's voice.
"Aww, you stole my kill!" Burren exclaimed, sounding hurt.
"It was my kill in the first place," Techno replied darkly, but Burren laughed it off, thinking it was some edgy roleplay.
Bullets peppered Techno's back. The beige haired girl was shooting them. "She's my kill," Burren announced. Techno spun to see the other guy, the Cubfan person, with a sword. Cub dealt Techno some damage, but alas, Cub just wasn't fast enough. Techno was having a happy time hitting Cub's chestplate, lowering his virtual health bit by bit, when suddenly Burren slammed him into the ground. Cub winced, and Techno watched as his virtual health drained to zero. "Cubfan135 was slain by King Burren!" the commentator's voice boomed. "Pink Parrots win! Well played!"
"What did I say about stealing my kills?" Techno complained. He didn't know why he was so annoyed.
"Sorry boss, but you can't have everything," Burren drawled. "I got two of them! Nice!"
Behind Burren was the beige haired girl, also lying on the ground, rubbing her arm. Techno scanned the area. The brunet guy was helping the blonde girl walk, while their two other teammates sat there, utterly exhausted. Techno stepped closer to the beige haired girl, but she flinched. Oh right, they were scared of him.
Cub pushed himself up, then hurried to the beige haired girl. "C'mon Pearl, let's go," he mumbled. The Pearl person let Cub help her up, and they stumbled away.
... If the hermits didn't want Technoblade near them, they might as well leave. To not scare them further. Or whatever. Techno didn't care.
"Let's go get some drinks," Techno announced. Dream looked up. "Already? One round and you're tired?"
Thankfully, the oblivious Michael backed him up. "Yeah, feeling kinda thirsty. We still have loads of time before the next round."
"To the vending machines we go!" Techno declared. He quickly walked away from the hermits, gesturing for his teammates to follow.
Techno instinctively looked at the spectator stands again. Stan looked utterly proud and delighted, and waved when their eyes met with Techno's. Techno smiled in return, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. When the Parrots exited the arena, they saw Fruit.
Fruit greeted the Parrots, and brushed past Techno. "Thanks, Techno. I know what you did," he whispered, then walked away like nothing had happened.
Techno froze. If there was one person quick enough to catch that, it was Fruit.
Techno spun, but Fruit was already nowhere to be seen.
-
I've learned to slam on the brake
Before I even turn the key
Before I make the mistake
Before I lead with the worst of me
-
False had wanted to stay behind with a gun during Battle Box. She simply felt more comfortable staying away from people. Ren and Cub would charge. They swiftly discussed tactics, but they didn't have much time before the gate was raised.
False stayed in her corner, raising her gun. Fruit and HBomb both said she was good, and they knew a lot about PvP, so False should trust them and herself, right? They had confidence in her. She would be optimistic like Ren.
Fruit's voice echoed in her mind. "Go for it, False. You can do it." False bit her lip, and aimed at Dream. He hit her before she could hit him, and she stumbled backwards, right arm aching.
Don't be scared, False! She scolded herself. She was the best PvPer in her team, and she felt a little guilty for not being the "tank". She just preferred being sneaky and not being on the front lines. To avoid Dream's bullets, she retreated, which was probably not the best decision because she was now trapped.
Dream charged with surprising speed, and fear crept into False's heart. He gleefully swung his sword at her, and False wanted to parry it. She was capable, wasn't she? Dream may be a Green God, and one of the school's best students, but False could at least defend herself for a bit, right?
False gritted her teeth. She was Hermitcraft's PvP Queen and the title didn't come easy. She would show it to everyone—
But when Dream cornered her, she faltered.
His sword crashed into her left shoulder, and she winced. She slammed against a wall and Dream continued to approach, his eyes filled with an unnatural amount of bloodlust. He lifted his sword again.
And suddenly False felt like she was back to where she was a few months ago, when Dream eliminated her in Survival Games and she had a horrible headache, and then the bullies attacked her and her friends and she fainted and Cub was forced to use a taser and so False could only stand there, her body frozen—
She couldn't help it. She screamed.
Dream attacked, and False ducked, but his sword stabbed into the wall behind her. A few strands of blonde hair fluttered to the ground, and False's heart pounded, blood rushing in her ears.
Maybe Dream would be merciful. Maybe he would just hit her chest plate and leave her alone when he got the points. But apparently that was not the case.
Dream knocked False to the ground, her left arm colliding painfully with the wood. She tried to stand up, but Dream relentlessly hit her legs, and she fell down again, scraping her knees. She scrambled for her airgun. Dammit, just kill me already!
False had no idea what happened next, only a mess of pain and dodging and a mosaic of grey and brown. The commentator said something... she thought she heard her name... everything was in a blur. Her forehead hit something and she crumpled to the ground, chest heaving. Her airgun slipped out of her grasp. Her left arm throbbed, and she knew it was terribly bruised.
She glanced up at Dream, who towered over her. Thankfully Dream had stopped attacking, the bloodlust slowly seeping away from his eyes. He stretched out an arm—
False instinctively backed away, her head hitting the wall so hard it rang. Wasn't Dream done? Why was he going to hurt her again?
So much for being good at PvP, False bitterly reminded herself. Now you're just running away like a coward.
"FALSIE!"
Ren dashed towards her, concern evident in his face. "Oh goodness. Can you stand?" He saw Dream, and snarled. "Get away from her," he ordered in an uncharacteristically hostile voice.
Dream blinked, his aggressiveness gone. "Sure," he casually said, and sauntered away.
False let Ren help her up, and they retreated to their side of the arena. Cub and Pearl followed, scratches and bruises littering their skin.
"That was brutal," Pearl muttered. "They're so good at PvP."
"Yeah, I got knocked to the ground," Cub sighed. "Ren, how about you?"
Ren worriedly glanced at his teammates. "I-actually I'm fine," he admitted. "Techno got me with a damage pot, which is the least painful way to die."
"Good for you," False groaned, her entire body still hurting. 'Dream got me again. He came straight for me, and I was like, 'okay'."
Yeah, you literally gave up. Shame on you, a furious voice hissed inside her head.
"Erm, no offence, but you look pretty battered up." Ren pointed out the obvious. "We should take you to First Aid." He stepped closer and brushed past False's bad arm, and she winced. Ren did not catch that, but Cub sure did, and he frowned.
"I'm alright. I'll be alright," False mumbled. The last thing she wanted was to make everyone worry for her. Dang it, she was supposed to protect her friends, not the other way round!
"You can't fool us, False," Cub said sternly. Before she could stop him, he rolled up her sleeve, revealing the mess of purple and yellow on her left arm, with trickles of blood seeping out. She flinched. "First Aid. Now."
"Guys!"
Another familiar voice entered the conversation. Fruit leapt into the arena, and stopped when he saw False's bruises. "Oh yikes. I'm sorry."
"For what?" Pearl asked.
Fruit waved a First Aid member over. "I... Dream's my friend. I don't know why he was even more aggressive than usual. I know I sound like an apologist, but he's usually not like this."
False grunted. "Yeah, he probably hates us or something."
Fruit frowned. "... I don't think he does. But anyways, I know Techno tried to play nice."
"He did?" Cub, Pearl, and False blurted out in unison, disbelieving. Fruit chewed on his lip.
"He hesitated when he was fighting Ren," Fruit explained. "Ren, you were distracted when False screamed. Techno could've gotten you, but I saw him stop. In fact, he didn't go for you until Burren attacked you, and Techno swooped in and stole the kill."
"With the damage pot aka. water balloon that doesn't actually hurt," Ren continued, eyes widening in realization. "Techno... gave me a chance to save Falsie?"
"Lucky that you got the pot." Cub rubbed his arms. "Techno was hitting me with his sword."
"Yeah, but he hit you in the same place— your chestplate. He wasn't trying to inflict actual damage."
"He still knocked me to the ground."
"Burren did," Fruit corrected. "Burren got you at the last second."
Pearl wrinkled her nose. "So, what you're getting at is that Techno... pities us? And mercy-killed Ren and tried to do the same to Cub? To avoid unnecessary pain?"
"Well, I think he's being nice, but I'm biased, soo..."
Ren frowned. "Pink Parrots has a weird atmosphere today. It's like they're thirsty... for blood," he hastily added the last two words upon realizing how weird it sounded.
"You thought so too? I thought I was going crazy..." Fruit hummed, and looked around. "Stan Twitt is creeping me out, by the way. Best to stay clear."
Fruit stayed with them as the Yellow Yaks nursed their wounds. False, Cub and Pearl looked unhappy, but Ren tried to cheer them up with cheesy jokes.
"There's still eight more rounds of Battle Box," Fruit reminded them. "I got to go now, but I'll be cheering for you. Good luck!"
... False glanced down at her bandaged arm, ice on it. It helped to soothe the pain, but only a little. Ren, being the least injured team member (both physically and psychologically), supplied them with water and snacks.
"We're just getting into our groove," False said out loud. "That was the worst possible team to go up against." Her friends nodded.
... That was just a warm up, right? They would surely win some rounds even with their injuries. False was good at PvP, wasn't she?
At least that was what everyone said.
And suddenly False didn't feel optimistic at all.
-
Give them no reason to stare
No slipping up if you slip away
So I got nothing to share
No, I got nothing to say
-
The Yaks tried different tactics— rushing to the middle, staying as a group, splitting, switching up weapons. Victory was so close, yet so far away. With each round, they tried to learn from their mistakes and improved their strategy, but it seemed like everyone was always one step ahead. They were already demoralized and injured from their first battle with Pink Parrots, so with every loss, their hearts sank a little.
"I'm gonna take the extra bullets this round, if you don't mind," False said as the Yaks peered at the equipment in front of them. "I ran out last time."
"Sure, sure." Pearl passed False the bullets.
False was still more comfortable with guns compared to swords. It allowed her to inflict damage without putting herself in danger (even though she ended up being quickly eliminated anyway). False thought about how Fruit suggested her to be bolder and more assertive, but still she automatically retreated into her comfort zone. She couldn't help it; she had long preferred shooting her opponents. And when the rest of her team was struggling, False barely had the mental energy and courage to try something new. Maybe she could, if she allowed herself to, she just didn't want to risk it.
"This isn't going well for us," Pearl stated when the Yaks lost their fifth round in a row. Cub dragged his battered body to their side of the arena, massaging his sweaty forehead. False silently passed Cub his water bottle.
"Why are we so bad at this?" Ren asked incredulously. "What's happening?"
False knew he didn't mean it, but it felt like those words were directed at her. She was supposed to be the PvP carry. She was supposed to step up and lead the team. But she was just hiding behind her friends with her trusty gun by her side.
"All the other teams are honestly really good," Pearl admitted. "And we're not PvPers."
False exhaled. "No. We're not," she confirmed.
"Yeah, that much is definitely clear," Ren laughed.
False stared at her gun, then at the sword hanging on her belt. She could use the sword, but it would take three hits from her opponents to kill her. There wasn't a lot of chance she could win a fight with a sword, so she would stick to using guns and bullets.
And so they went again, and False stuck to crouching behind trees and pillars. She tried to snipe people, only her aim was bad and she was slow, so her team lost. Again.
Coincidentally, Ren decided to say, "We really gotta nail our shots." Everybody murmured in agreement, and False quietly fetched her extra bullets, feeling the invisible pressure that was unintentionally imposed on her.
"At least we got our weak game out of the way, dudes." Ren's voice floated towards False's ears. It felt like he had said that for virtually every game so far.
"We've been saying that every time though." Pearl said exactly what everyone was thinking.
False gripped her gun, and tried to keep her tone cheerful and lighthearted. "That's just the case!" she exclaimed. "We're bad at it all!"
... Okay, maybe she sounded saltier than she wanted to.
They narrowly lost their seventh round, which was against the Lime Llamas— Pete, Katherine, Martyn and Jimmy. Ren had panickly exclaimed he didn't want to kill Katherine (he did anyway), Pearl got Pete somehow, False got Jimmy, but Martyn got Cub and Pearl. Which was a shame, because the Yaks were so close. At least they knew all four people on the other team, and their blows were noticeably softer.
"It's like this every time," Ren sighed. "We get better, but it's too late."
False's left arm started to throb again, and she clutched it. Jimmy frowned, worried. "Hey False, I didn't hurt you too badly, did it?"
"Nah, you're good, Dream gave this bruise to me."
"I see. He's scary."
"Wait, did I hurt you too?"
Jimmy chuckled. "Only my dignity," he joked.
The Yaks had a brief friendly conversation with the Llamas, and soon the next round of Battle Box began. This time, the Yaks managed to beat the Orange Ocelots. It took them eight rounds to finally win, but hey, at least they won! Even if it was one time.
"We beat last place though," Cub reminded his teammates. "Heck, we're supposed to beat this team."
"Yeah, that was an empty victory, guys." Ren perfectly put it into words as always. False bit her lip. Part of her wanted to protest, but she knew Ren was right.
They tried to replicate their strategy for the final round, but unfortunately, they were against Aqua Axolotls, which was H's team. Aqua was strong and confident, and the Yaks were easily wiped out once again.
... The Yaks stared at the leaderboard above them, which showed Yaks had earned 443 coins. They had a massive lead over Orange which earned 23 coins (sad). But the team above Yellow, the Cyan Creepers, earned a whopping 1320 coins, which was three times of what the Yaks had gotten. The Yellow Yaks didn't even want to see how many coins Pink Parrots had. Their shoulders sagged when they recalled their only win, their "empty victory" of beating the last place team.
"Eight out of nine rounds," Cub muttered. "That's how many we lost."
False wanted to flop on the ground, but she had self-restraint (and self-respect). Her exhausted body was screaming at her. She lifted her hand, but it was trembling. False's gun clattered to the ground.
Useless. You can't even be good at the things you should be good at, she thought to herself, heart clenching.
"Yo!" Ren waved his hand to get his teammates' attention. Like everyone else, he looked tired, brown hair plastered to his sweaty forehead, with even specks of dried blood on his face, but he continued to smile. False had no idea how he was able to do it. "We did okay."
"We were ninth. That's okay," False retorted while Pearl and Cub chortled to ease the pain. "That's our aim, right?"
... Ah, that was right. How ironic. Their original aim was seventh, but that goal was becoming painful to think about. Maybe they did belong in ninth. They probably did, and there was nothing they could do to change it.
Funny to think that less than an hour ago, they were so naive and optimistic that they thought they could actually get seventh. They had a goal for once, but they quickly gave it up because it was hopeless. Now they were back to clinging onto the fact that they "weren't last" just like they had always done. Back to the drawing board. It was as if all their practicing, training, strategizing, didn't matter at all.
... It didn't matter how much they tried.
False sighed and looked down, not daring to meet anyone's eyes. But then Ren slapped his thigh, abruptly breaking the silence. "All right! Good stuff!"
Cub, False, and Pearl shot him looks. Cub laughed, but it was a hollow laugh. Ren somehow did not sound sarcastic when he said "good stuff".
"I mean, look. We're doing just fine, Yaks," Ren insisted. He was either very optimistic or in major denial. "Now we just need to start carrying. We've got some strong games for us coming up! Rocket Spleef, I'm looking at you."
"False?" Pearl peeped, knowing False was good at Rocket Spleef.
False felt a dire need to protest. "I mean, they've changed it, so who knows anymore? I could be bad at it." She sounded pissed off and negative, but she didn't care anymore.
(Because False wasn't good. It had been proved she wasn't good, even though multiple people claimed she was. Dang it, people needed to stop putting so much faith in her! She wasn't good!)
"Alright. So." Ren was continuing his mad errand of "convincing everyone they were Just Fine". "We're comfortably sitting in ninth place. Just, umm, a mere thousand and seven hundred coins from eighth place." Ren's voice cracked a little, as even he realized how silly he sounded.
"Oh my gosh," Pearl whimpered, choking out laughter as she hid her face behind her hands.
"Just don't look at it," was False's only advice. (But False did look at it, and the jarring difference made her sulk.)
"I mean, it's exactly where everyone expected us to be," Pearl said. "So we're meeting expectations."
"Exactly!" Ren looked delighted that it wasn't just him trying to boost everyone's spirits.
"Yeah, ninth is exactly where we're meant to be," False sarcastically mumbled under her breath. Like we weren't aiming for seventh, she privately added.
"We're not disappointed right now," Ren stated it like it was a fact.
"Yeah, yeah."
False felt bad for being sarcastic when Ren was trying so hard, but she couldn't help it. She wrapped her Yaks jacket tighter around herself.
Without Ren, the Yaks fell into silence again as they walked towards the Decision Dome. Ren was chewing his lip nervously, probably trying to think of more encouragements. "And, umm..."
When Ren faltered, Cub picked it up. "You know, we got our strongest events coming up," Cub offered a little timidly, repeating Ren's words from earlier.
"Exactly, Cub, exactly." Ren looked relieved. "And y'know, we need to give these guys a bit of a head start."
False started to furiously fiddle with the decorative trapdoors in the lobby. She continued to stay quiet because she had nothing to contribute. She wasn't good at hyping people up.
"Like, we don't wanna come here and flex on everybody, y'know?" Ren was almost rambling now, and False was surprised he was still continuing. "We're giving them a head start. Let them feel good for a couple rounds."
"We'll let them have a bit of a handicap," Pearl agreed.
... False continued to flip the trapdoors aggressively. She knew it wouldn't help much, but dang, she was shakened and distressed. And she didn't want to make her teammates feel worse by venting, so she took it out on these poor trapdoors. She trained her eyes on the trapdoors and let the mindless action take over.
"Hey, Falsie? Saw you lagging behind."
It was Ren. Of course it was Ren. "Oh, hi," False said nonchalantly. "I was just..." she vaguely gestured around, but she couldn't find an excuse. (Not that she needed one anyway. Ren wouldn't mind.)
Ren still had that stupid smile plastered to his face. False literally had no idea why Ren could keep being so positive, yet it was the genuine sort of positive. Like Ren really thought the Yellow Yaks could do good. He really believed in them. He really believed in False—
False exhaled. Now she felt guilty for not supporting Ren like he had supported the rest of the Yaks. His jokes and encouraging words filled up the odd silence around the Yaks, and False didn't want to think how awkward they would be without Ren. "Sorry, I'm just... stressed out now. The situation does not look good."
"Yeah, I feel you." Ren took a step closer. "But we can bring this back! I know we can!"
False looked at Ren, his eyes hopeful and sincere. And strangely, she felt herself be infected by his optimism.
... Because if Ren was smiling for everyone, she would smile for him too. Because they were friends, and False couldn't rely on Ren to always cheer her up.
They quietly stayed by each other's side, nibbling on bananas. Several minutes passed. (False noticed Ren deliberately sat with her instead of Pearl and Cub. Was it because she looked the most upset after Battle Box?)
"It's time to vote for the fourth game," Ren noted. He stood up, brushed invisible dust off his pants, and stretched. "C'mon! Let's go!" He looked back at False with his signature grin, slightest hint of concern in his face.
False returned the smile, not wanting to worry Ren. "Yup, let's go!" She truly felt a little better after the short break, and hope seeped into her heart once more.
And False knew even if they got ninth when the Championship ended, at least they tried.
-
A/N: Before anyone gets the idea that Stan Twitt rigged MCC8, no they didn't, Pink Parrots won fair and square, Stan might just have boosted their confidence and ego a little...
Technoblade gets a slight redemption arc here, because at least Techno stated he was joking when he said hitting False was a miss (in MCC9 Dodgebolt). Dream (and George and Puffy) said both MCC10 Dodgebolt teams (Pete, False, Cub, Joel, Scott, Shubble, Quig, Lizzie) were slow and kept on missing, and they could pretend those were the two viewer teams (ouch). I get that throwing jokes is Michael and Burren's sense of humour but it still made me a little :/ that they didn't clarify it like Techno did.
Thanks for reading! <33