Scott had an idea. He was green and on one heart. Martyn was red and got ten hearts when he killed someone. So Scott crunched the numbers and went to go find Martyn to ask the blonde to kill him. Was it a fool proof plan? No. Did he really care? Not necessarily. He made his way over to the mounders base where he knew Martyn was at because he could hear his voice. Scott didn't really.. Trust the mounders all that much, so he stayed on the other side of the gate. He held his shield passively and a flint and steel.
"Martyn?" Scott called, drawling the 'n' in Martyn's name, "Martyn?" He repeated.
Martyn responded from inside the base, "H-Hello?"
"Can I see you?" Scott drawled again.
Martyn opened the door, leaning on the frame of it, "No, hence why you were calling my name," He smirked, Scott rolled his eyes.
Martyn walked over to him and Scott backed up; getting away from the gate. He turned and could only hear Martyn's footsteps behind him, which he didn't particularly like. So he kept checking back.
"Yeah well, I wanted to- I want to talk with you. If you could follow me?" Scott responded as Martyn laughed at his very dumb joke. He stopped in a clearing further away from the mounders base, "You're red right?"
"Yeah I'm red," He said with a nod, Scott smiled.
"Okay, so..." Martyn stepped closer, "I want to keep a little bit of distance," Scott said with a nervous laugh, "So.." He paused, "You get hearts when you kill someone, is that correct?" Martyn gave him a look, as if he was trying to study Scott.
"I do, yeah!" He responded with what almost sounded like worry but was easily masked with intrigue. "I get some like- over time."
"And I am on very low hearts," Martyn nodded, "So! There's two ways I was thinking this could work for both of us," Martyn nodded again, another flash of worry in his eyes that Scott chose to ignore. "I could let you kill me, and then later down the line," Martyn let out a soft 'mhm' with another nod,"Y-you have an IOU. If I'm like hey, I need this person killed or- I need you to leave me be and kinda.. And give me some breathing room we can kind cash that in."
"Oh! So we're doing like an eye for an eye sort of thing?" Martyn questioned as he crossed his arms and shifted his weight to one foot, tilting his head to the side slightly with the same intrigued look.
"Yeah, like rather just me dying to fall damage or that, 'cause that could very easily happen. I'd rather get it out of the way-" Martyn cut him off.
"Sure."
He continued without acknowledging it, "And get my thirty hearts. And then that means then I don't have to kill myself, so," Scott shrugged.
Martyn uncrosses his arms and walks a little closer, "You're a business man!" Martyn put on a funny accent, "I like talking to business men, they don't mess around!"
"Exactly! This game is half actual good game strategy and half social skills, so.." Scott smiled when Martyn laughed.
He didn't back up this time, he moved forward closer to Martyn. This was happening and it looked like Martyn was afraid. Scott didn't step back.
Except Martyn did.
He took a step back.
Odd.
"Martyn?" Scott asked softly.
Martyn freezes, "Do- do you...? Remember?" The blonde asked out of nowhere.
The statement made Scott freeze too, "Remember... What?" Of course Scott knew what he was referring too, Martyn won last season; which meant he remembered the previous games.
"When I did this the first time?" Martyn questioned.
Scott shivered but tried to keep his expression from showing his discomfort, "Did... What? Martyn. What did you do?" Martyn tried to keep a brave face but his eyes were filled with fear.
"When I put you down from green to yellow?" Martyn said, eerily calm.
Scott stared at the blonde, mental flashes of water, blood, a sword, Jimmy, Martyn, a shooting pain in his chest, arms wrapped around his body. He dropped his gaze from Martyn's eyes to the grass. He heard Martyn suck in shaky breath.
"You do...?" The blonde said, he sounded afraid.
"Of course I do Martyn," Scott said, looking back up at him, "I'm a winner, winner's remember. I thought a Listener of all things would remember that," It came out more derogatory then he meant for it too.
This fact was reflected in Martyn's eyes. While his body and his expression remained calm, his eyes told Scott a completely different story. Fear, hurt, maybe anger. All things Scott could read from just Martyn's eyes, a skill he had gotten good at due to the blondes tendency to lie.
"Yeah? Well maybe this Listener doesn't fucking care anymore." Martyn responded without skipping a beat.
"Just kill me Martyn," Scott sighed, rolling his eyes.
"No." Martyn refused, shaking his head.
Scott sighed again, "Kill me Martyn," He said more sternly.
Martyn refused again, "No." He upped the anti.
"Why not?" He asked.
"Because I can't," The red name responded.
Scott had a very hard time believing that, "Okay- so- last week when Jimmy asked you to hit me for one of his stupid tasks you did it no questions asked! But the moment I ask you too you suddenly can't?!" Scott said in an accusatory tone, stepping closer to Martyn and watching as Martyn took a step back. "Bull. Shit."
"Jimmy is-..." Martyn trailed off then noticed Scott raise an unamused eyebrow at him, cross his arms, and immediately changed the aim of his sentence, "That was different, all I had to do was hit you- not even that hard may I add!" Scott rolled his eyes, "This is different!"
"You don't even have to hit me that hard! I'm on one heart! You could give me high five and I'd die!" Okay... That was an exaggeration, but it got the point across.
Sort of.
Martyn looked appalled, "Scott I can't," He repeated in a calmer tone.
"Why not! Five minutes ago you were fine with it!" Scott exclaimed stepping forward again until he was right in front of Martyn, "So what?! Literally what?! What is sooo different about right now?!"
Martyn's brow furrowed, "Because you remember!" He said.
"That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard!" Scott yelled.
"It wasn't dumb when I told you then!" Martyn yelled back.
Scott was confused, "Told me what?!"
"That I didn't want to kill you!" Martyn said.
"Well you did anyway!" Scott said, venom filling his words.
Martyn sucked in a breath and stared at Scott, tears filled his eyes but he didn't dare let any fall, "That wasn't me.." He said.
"Yeah? Well it sure looked like you!" Scott reasoned with a glare.
Martyn had tears in his eyes as he stared at Scott, "Do you remember what happened after I killed you in the lake?" Martyn questioned.
Scott's brain short circuited.
"Yeah..." He responded.
-_-_-_-_-
Scott respawned in the bunker under the water, he barely had time to process the ache in his chest as he sat up before he was immediately thrown back into the bed. He sputtered slightly and looked at the culprit. Martyn.
"I'm so sorry Scott!" He exclaimed, Scott felt confused; he had asked Martyn to kill him, why was he apologizing?
"What?" Scott responded eloquently.
"I- I- are you okay?" Martyn asked when he pulled back.
Scott nodded, "Why are you sorry?"
"I just-... I feel like I have to apologize," He explained.
"Why though?" Martyn looked stone faced, one look into his eyes told Scott that he was afraid.
Martyn didn't remember the other games, so it couldn't be some sort of trauma flashback but-... Actually. Martyn might remember the other games. He was a Listener after all and Jimmy remembered the games, Scott knew that for a fact. Maybe Martyn remembered Ren telling him to kill him too.
"I don't like hurting the people I love," Martyn said, the sentence jolted Scott out of his thoughts.
"That you....?" Scott repeated in a whisper to himself, "You love me?" He asked in a more normal tone.
Martyn's face went red and he got off Scott's lap, which to be fair, Scott didn't realize Martyn was on his lap.
"Uhh.." Martyn looked down at the floor. "Maybe a little?"
Scott laughed and put his hand on Martyn's, causing the blonde to look up at him, "I won't force you to kill me again, okay?" He said softly, Martyn smiled.
"Okay.." He nodded.
"I love you too," Scott said, "By the way."
-_-_-_-_-
"You said you wouldn't force me to kill you again, yet here we are," Martyn said, "Why do you want me to do it? Why not just kill yourself?" Martyn thought for a moment then rephrased, "Why not just get rid of the last heart by yourself?"
"Because, I wanted to make sure you wouldn't die Martyn," Scott said, Martyn looked stunned, "I don't know if you noticed, but all the reds from last session died. Lizzie, gone. Mumbo, gone. Jimmy, gone. I didn't want you to be on the list," Scott turned around, "Excuse me if I actually care about you."
"I care about you too, Scott. That's why I don't want to do it," Martyn said softly, "I told you I don't like hurting the people I love," Scott turned back to Martyn.
"You still love me?" He asked a little timidly.
"Yeah," Martyn said, "Yes I do. Of course I do!"
"I love you too Martyn," The green said.
"Okay, so... Now what...?" Martyn questioned.
Scott stepped forward and put a hand on the blondes face, "You still have to kill me Martyn," He said.
Martyn shook his head, "I told you I can't."
Scott gave him a pitying look and pulled him into for a kiss, Martyn froze, he seemed stunned. Didn't help when Scott reached down and grabbed his wrist, making Martyn plunge the sword he was holding into his stomach. Scott felt his last heart go and he passed out. When he woke he was back im his base. He sat on the edge of the bed for a moment. He had just forced Martyn to kill him, Scott couldn't believe he had just done that.
The next time Scott saw Martyn he was pulled into a bruising kiss. Scott liked the dynamic they had, it made things interesting.
Fin