User:Mouselline

Hello! I'm Mouselline, tho I prefer to go by Mouse. I write stories over the SMP, but I also often post theories, analysis's and other random stuff. I have been watching the DSMP since Tommy got exiled and I have been a part of this Fandom since mid-December 2020. You can find pretty much anything I've ever posted on my profile so if you ever want to look back on that stuff it's easily accessible.

Techno is a Demi-God:
So Techno has the whole saying, Techno never dies. Well I think it’s actually true. He can’t die. My first thought was, he’s immortal. He loves Greek gods because he is one. It’s how he manages to like 4v1 people. Possibly Aries. Then I realized, but he did die once, or at least almost did. A god wouldn’t need a totem of undying. If he got it to trick them it wouldn’t have gone off. But Techno is still probably the strongest guy on the server. Plus the phrase he has and his knowledge of gods? I think he’s actually a Demi-god. He’s not immortal, but his father was a god, Aries. Whenever it’s needed his father lends him his strength to help him survive. So in reality, Techno can die, it’s just extremely difficult for him too. And that’s where the phrase Techno never dies comes from. The only problem I can find with this is that Techno says his parents were killed by orphans. I think his mother and step dad were killed. He never gets to see his father because he’s at Olympus so he wasn’t a father figure towards him really. Theory updated in 'Gods of the Dream SMP.'

Foolish is an Exiled God:
So DreamXD and possibly Drista are like the gods of the server. Dream actually canonized it on Ranboo’s stream last night. So on Foolish’s page it says he’s a god, which I found odd saying that he’s nothing like DreamXD or Drista and he lives in the human world. I think that Foolish brought Jack back to life, not because he was in The area, but because he used his godly powers to resurrect him, About 10 day before Foolish joined the SMP. I think the other gods shunned and exiled him for abusing his powers to bring back someone who’s out to murder someone or just to resurrect someone at all. Most of his powers (mainly his creative mode) were stripped away from him, though he still kept the ability to summon lighting and resurrect people. The reason he didn’t resurrect Tommy and was so reluctant to use his lighting powers was because he wants to be welcomed back in with the gods. This also might be why Dream compared himself to a god when he learned he could resurrect people, when he can’t resurrect himself, meaning he’s not immortal like a god. They’d heard stories of Foolish, a god who can resurrect people. People don’t know that this god is Foolish though. Theory updated in 'Gods of the Dream SMP.'

The Owner of the Skeleton Horse:
This theory is for if in Quackity’s stream, the two people on horses are Dream and possibly Wilbur. Basically, if wouldn't make sense for Quackity to be with them. So that means the person on the skeleton horse is someone else. Luckily, there are few people on the server who own a skeleton horse. Foolish had a couple but they died. Fundy had one but Tommy stole it after the election and it’s location is unknown right now. Puffy has one. Obviously Quackity. And Ranboo has one. I don’t see Puffy helping them out so that means it must’ve been Ranboo. And if the other horse rider isn’t Wilbur then it could possibly be Techno. He has multiple horses and he might be willing to help Dream escape.

Afterlife/Ghost Theory:
So what got me going on this theory was when I typed something about how Ghostbur is one of three of people with memory loss, and we only know the reason as to why one person has it, Karl, and it’s because of the Inbetween. In the Inbetween, there are other Karls’s running around. It was said that they were Karl’s that have lost themselves, but I think that they were Karl’s that lost their lives (and then proceeded to lose themselves, but I’ll get to that in a sec). At the end of multiple Tales from the SMP, Karl gets killed and then the stream ends, or it flashes to the Inbetween, depending on the stream. Either way, he dies a lot. There were more Karl’s then there were deaths because Karl will die multiple more times after his past travels, and those count in the Inbetween. The Inbetween doesn’t have time. Right, so the Inbetween has a bunch of dead Karl’s running around. To make the next part easier to understand, let’s say that two gods are in charge of the Inbetween and Other Side, one each. There are Gods of the SMP we know so it’s likely that there might be a couple running the places. There’s plenty of feuding Gods stories in mythology so it makes sense, though there is no actual proof. Anyways, I don’t think that the Inbetween is a middle ground for time traveling. I think that it’s like a pit stop between the Overworld and the Other Side. It’s only a pit stop because of the Afterlife, which I’ll get to. The Other Side is mostly made up of Nether blocks and it’s significantly creepier than the Inbetween. Not the unsettling creepy like the Inbetween, it’s legit just a creepy place. I don’t know who knows this, but before the Nether Update (1.16) whenever you opened F3 in the Nether, the biome was labeled ‘hell.’ And the Other Side is full of Nether blocks. So I think that the Other Side is the Afterlife. Well what about that dark tunnel that Tommy saw? Remember when I said the Inbetween was a pit stop? Well that long dark tunnel leads to the Other Side. If you head through it long enough and are determined, you will reach the Afterlife. Wilbur, Schlatt, Tommy, and Mexican Dream never reached it because they were busy sleeping and playing Solitare. They didn’t seem to care all that much, or ever know, to get to the other side. Why was Karl in the Other Side? And how did he get there? So the reason that Karl visits the Inbetween and Other Side after each travel is because he’s dying repeatedly. Even if he didn’t dying at the end of the Tales from the SMP, I think he dies every time he time travels. But, Karl doesn’t choose when he time travels. He can’t control it. Let’s say that there’s another god that controls time traveling, or even one of the Afterlife gods. The Afterlife gods always bring Karl back to life because the Time Traveling one is constantly killing him. It’s like the gods made a deal. Karl went to the Other Side because the Inbetween started draining his power. They were keeping the deal of bringing him back to life, but the Inbetween wasn’t letting him come back normally each time. So the Other Side took the Inbetween’s job as the gateway for time travelers. Right, so now we know what we The Other Side is and what the Afterlife is, but what exactly is the Inbetween other than a ‘pit stop.’ This is where ghosts come in. Whenever spirits travel through the Inbetween, a part of them splits off. These are their ghosts. The rest of these spirits that continue don’t remember this because the Inbetween messes with their memories to make sure that they don’t go back and they continue on to the Other Side. Sometimes, however, they do go back. When they pass through the Inbetween again, their ghost becomes apart of them once again. That’s why Tommy’s ghost disappeared, as said by Glatt. The Inbetween usually pulls these spirits back to the tunnel, therefore bringing the ghosts back. That’s why Wilbur and Schlatt couldn’t stay in the overworld for long after the Disc Confrontation and during Wilbur’s Resurrection. The Inbetween erases their memories of it once again and sends three back on their way. There is only one way to fully come back. The resurrection book, and if my Foolish Theory is true then it might only be because it was made by another god. Anyways, so ghosts are in the Inbetween and spirits move on through the Afterlife to the Other Side. What happens to the ghosts from there? Basically, the exact same thing as Karl. The Inbetween urges them to explore and slowly they lose themselves, but, the Inbetween allows them to visit the Overworld if they listen. If they don’t stray from the path. As I said before, the Inbetween is stripping the power of people who pass through, like Karl. Well think about the three ghosts, Ghostbur, Glatt, and Mexican Dream. Ghostbur is the one who’s lost themselves the most, clearly, and it’s difficult to tell with Glatt and Mexican Dream. Glatt had the grayish hue of the Inbetween stripping them of their color and power, but Mexican Dream, as ive mentioned before, is in the constant state of grief. Either way, they’ve both not listened or allowed the Inbetween to strip their power nearly as much as Ghostbur has. And that makes a lot of sense. These guys were the same as their spirit counter parts when they first came. Out of the three, who do you think would explore the castle the most? Wilbur. And as he became Ghostbur he’d be willing to even more. That’s why he is allowed to visit the Overworld so much and why he’s lost himself the most. Now let’s look back at Glatt and Mexican Dream. Neither have visited the over world very often and both are very stubborn people. Mexican Dream hasn’t even lost himself enough to get a ghost name. We’ve only seen Mexican Dream in the Overworld once and Glatt in it twice, meaning they rarely listen to the Inbetween, so they rarely get to visit. So since Glatt’s been more then he probably listens more often. Schlatt’s a smart character, though he may not look it. When Glatt visits the Overworld, he seems to want to stay as long as possible. Enough to open a gym and start renting out Air B&Bs. I think Glatt knows what the Inbetween is doing to him so he wants out, which is why he tries to stay away for long periods of time (though the Inbetween always pulls him back eventually) and why he wants to be resurrected, despite Schlatt not wanting to. Ghostbur wants to be resurrected also, while Wilbur doesnt. It’s because these ghosts want to escape the Inbetween’s grasp on them.

Dreamon:
So there’s been a couple Ranboo theories going around the fandom lately and I’ve got one of my own. So half of Ranboo is enderman. That’s why he can’t stand in the rain and dislikes eye contact. Well this theory is about what the other half is. I think the other half could be dreamon. That’s the part of him that causes him to forget things and makes him confused and panicked a lot of the time. That’s also how he heard Dream in his head. We’ve seen what Dream is capable of doing. He tricks and backstabs people. He basically brain washed Tommy and he tricked Tubbo into giving him the disc. That’s what Ranboo is going through right now except he’s doing it to himself. He’s trying to fight back against it, that’s how he’s still part enderman and the Dreamon hasn’t fully taken over quite yet. There’s my theory.

Egg Possession:
So a couple weeks ago I came up with this theory that the other half of Ranboo is a Dreamon, which I still believe, but I have another theory as to what it is. I don’t have quite as much evidence for this one. It’s based completely off of the looks rather than what it does to him (to be fair we don’t know what a Dreamon looks like because Ponk and Dream where masks). I believe that it’s possible that Ranboo is being influenced by the crimson egg. His half I’m talking about is white with a red eye, which happens to be the colors that appear when the crimson egg is in affect. Now Ranboo was like that when he came to the Dream SMP so it’s possible that there are more eggs out there and Ranboo had to run away from one before it took over his whole body, but when he came near a different egg it started taking affect to him again, but due to his memory and the fact that’s he’s an enderman it’s struggling to fully take over. The main reason I believe the Dreamon one more than this one is because if Ranboo is working with Dream, Dream didn’t like the egg, so unless he doesn’t know or he was putting up an act than it doesn’t make much sense for them to be working together.

Debunked

The Inbetween:
This is my third theory over the other half of Ranboo. It’s been awhile. The first one was that he was part dreamon. 2nd was that egg was taking over him. I no longer believe either of those theories since dreamons don’t seem to be part of the plot and if he were red and white because of the egg then that means he’d have to be red and blue on his other half. So here’s my new theory.., which has probably been said but I’ve never seen it. So I’m pretty sure Ranboos a time traveler. I mean, with the memory loss and the fact that Fundy legit called him a time traveler, it makes sense (don’t worry I know this is a popular theory). We also know Karl is a time traveler and when he’s in the in between his skin turns white, which just so happens to be one half of Ranboos skin. Basically what I’m saying is that Ranboos actually full enderman, just before he stopped time traveling his skin started turning white in the overworld along with in the in between.

Ghast:
This is definitely not my theory. Everyone has guessed this at some point and it’s what his actual skin is supposed to be, just we aren’t sure lore wise what it is. Yep, part ghast. I never really thought this theory was true since he didn’t have any ghast quality’s and he doesn’t look like a ghast at all other than one half of his skin. His body shape is the shape of an enderman (ish). Well, I actually did find a ghast like thing about Ranboo. In his newest stream, he was repeating lines from the Disc Confrontation, even at places when he wasn’t even there. Well, idk if you’ve seen Game Theories Piglin video but he talks about how the reason Piglins know if other piglins are hit is because they eat netherwart (mushrooms can communicate with each other), just like how he says enderman can teleport because they eat chorus fruit. This is all a theory of course, but it makes sense. Well, piglins aren’t the only thing in the Nether. It’s possible that ghasts eat that netherwart also. Ranboo hasn’t eaten any netherwart himself, that we know of, but he might have gained the ability from his ghast ancestors. It’s possible that Ranboo knew what happened because in his enderwalk state, as he believes he was in during the confrontation, he heard Dream, Tommy, and Tubbo through one of theirs mind. This might not make much sense, but I figured I should share it just since this is the only actual proof I believe, other than his skin, that he is indeed part ghast.

Fish Side:
Canonically, Fundy is supposed to be younger than Tommy and Tubbo. He was born in L’Manburg. Even if a lot of years passed during the wars then he should still be younger than Tommy and Tubbo, yet he is in his 20s. I think that his fish side causes him to age quicker.

Philza's Species:
Phil likely isn’t a human since he has wings, only one life, and doesn’t seem to age. It’s possible that his species ages out of childhood quickly and that’s why Fundy aged so quickly to his 20s.

Sapnap is a Demon:
I’ve had this theory in my head for a bit, but never bothered to post it. Basically it’s that Sapnap is a demon. First of all, Bad is canonically his father who is a demon, though I suppose it may be adopted, but I cannot confirm that. Also, a common… head canon? Idk how it started if I’m gonna be honest. Anyways, it’s that he was ‘born in fire.’ Well, this could mean he was literally born in fire. Idk how that works. Was he born from fire? Cause that would just further prove my demon theory. What I think it means tho is that he was born in Hell, making him a demon, just like his father.

My Theories on DSMP Character's Limbos:
I've come up with a few so I thought I'd share them.

Dream - A mirror maze. I did not come up with this one. I got it off a Reddit post. But unlike that Reddit post, I'm going to explain why. Dream's main thing is that he wants power. Well, in a mirror maze, everywhere he will look he will see himself, now broken and dead, probably slowly going crazy. Also, with it being a maze, he will have no control. He doesn't know where he is or where the exit is. Each turn he just finds himself, each time more broken then the last.

Schlatt - A boat in the middle of the ocean. I came up with this one for One Big Happy Family where it briefly mentioned Schlatt complaining about the sound of the ocean and the rocking of a boat. Basically the really reason I came up with this is because Schlatt can't canonically swim and I thought it'd be funny, but now I've come up with decent reasons for it. Like Dreams, Schlatt has now power here. He can't control the ocean. He's also isolated. No life. I know technically most of the Limbos are like that, but an endless ocean is a very good representation about it. Also, can't you just picture Schlatt complaining about this Limbo? I feel like it works well with his character.

Quackity - An empty, white room. I came up with this one for One Big Happy Family also. I think this could be it because Quackity's worked so hard to get all this glamourous stuff. He's worked up from nothing. Now he has it all. He's the kind of person who wants to rule the world for the title, not for the power. And then he dies, and he loses it all. Not even a nail on the wall to his name. It also represents his want to fit in. He's in this empty, white room. He's the only thing in there. He's the only thing that brings it color.

Philza - A cave. Yeah it's a pretty simple one. Again, for One Big Happy Family. So I originally thought of this cause it's like, well, he has wings. He can't use his wings underground, which I'd say is a pretty valid reason. An actual reason though is that Phil hates to be trapped. He wants to be free to do whatever he wants and go wherever he wants, which makes sense. He's this guy whos lived for who knows how long and has these wings that used to be able to take him wherever he wanted to go. This Limbo would represent his inability to go anywhere. He's just trapped underground. Also he, you know, killed his son in a cave.

Ranboo - A room with water slowly dripping down. WOOO an original one not from One Big Happy Family! So basically he's in this room, or a cave, or something compacted. In the middle of the room, on the ceiling, theres this crack, slowly dripping down water, and every once in a while it cracks more. This is for Ranboo's lack of control. He's constantly paranoid about this water that's slowly dripping down. He can avoid it, but as it drips more, it's harder. Like his enderwalk. It's slowly becoming harder and harder for him to control it. Even if he avoids the water, there's always the slight burning sensation in his feet as they walk across the thin layer of water on the ground, always reminding him that he can't truly get away from the water, of the enderwalk.

Sam - An obsidian box covered in blood. This ones simple. The obsidian box represents the prison, the blood represents his failure. He never could truly stop people from getting hurt. He was too focused on the prison to pay much attention to the terrible things around him. To the blood covering the walls and floor. And now he's trapped in the prison, trapped in the obsidian box. The prison is his life now. The blood is just another part of his life now.

I came up with those last two on the spot. I hope you enjoyed! I'd like to hear your guys theories on Limbos:) I could probably come up with some more, but I don't feel like it. Wow third post of the day. I think this is a record for me.

Dream is Building an Army:
So the other day I was scrolling through my Youtube suggestions, as one does. I often get many clip channel suggestions just because I enjoy watching them since I don’t often watch streams, and I ended up watching one where Eryn broke into the prison and built a shrine for Dream inside it. And that’s where this theory comes from! Right, so, throughout the DSMP, new members are often added, the newest ones being Boomer, Eryn, and Tina. Before them, Michael joined, before him it was Charlie, then Hannah and Foolish, then Ranboo, then Vikk and Lazar, then Puffy, then Connor, then Philza. Everyone before that was there for the Manbug vs Pogtopia War (I know Philza technically was, but he showed up at the very end). Let's go back to that clip video. During that clip video I noticed a common theme between new members, one that didn’t start till after the Manburg vs Pogtopia War, and that’s that they all want to help Dream, or at least most of them do. With some of the earlier “new” members, Dream directly manipulated them to get what he wanted. He used Techno to blow up L’Manburg, using Philza in the process. He manipulated Puffy into giving him obsidian. He commanded Ranboo while he was in his enderwalk so he’d do whatever he told him. He directly manipulated these people into giving him what he wants, but every other circumstance happened after Dream went to prison. Let's look at the first instance of somebody wanting to see/help Dream while he was in prison. When Charlie first joined the server, he claimed that he wanted to meet Dream, though Tommy shut this down and said that he shouldn’t (If I remember correctly). It didn’t lead to anything other than that he wanted to meet him. It was nothing. I think it was a fluke. Well, more of that it was the first time that Dream’s doing whatever he’s doing and he just wasn’t fully sure on how it worked. The next time something like this happens would be with Michael. Unlike Charlie, he tried to break Dream out of prison. He was fully prepared to do this and was ready for the consequences. He would have done it too, except Sam stopped him, threatening to kill him. What’s interesting about Michael is that he heard Dream. He was speaking to him, or at least thought he was. The voice Michael heard wasn’t acting like Dream. He was calling him his hero and was pleading for help. It wasn’t the Dream we know. We will get back to that later. The next time this happened was with Foolish. He too tried to break Dream out of prison and only stopped because Quackity made him. He was claiming that Dream would help them, though he didn’t seem to have a reason as to why breaking him out would. Not only that, but he didn’t plug up the hole completely. Next was Tina. She, like Charlie, didn’t try anything, but Sapnap quickly told her that Dream had to stay in prison. Last we’ve got Eryn. He successfully broke into the prison. It seemed like he was simply messing around until he almost blew up the prison. Yeah, he held up tnt and something told him to do it. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is the first, and only, instance of somebody refusing this urge to help Dream on their own. After this urge to blow up the prison, allowing Dream to escape, he quickly put the tnt back into his ender chest and left the prison. So we’ve got two questions now. Why is Dream doing this and more importantly, how is he doing this? Let's start with why. It’s quite simple really. The first person to help Dream would be Puffy when she gave him obsidian. This happened on December 9th I believe. On December 6th, only three days before, George, Sapnap, and Punz, all of whom are Dream’s allies, declared independence for El Rapids. This wasn’t very long after the Manburg vs Pogtopia War where Schlatt lost all his allies, causing him to lose the war. So why is Dream going after new members rather than trying to win back people like Sapnap and George? Well Schlatt originally ruled most people on the server, and those he didn’t he was still allies with. It was when everyone realized how terrible a person he is that they gradually began to help Pogtopia. At this point in time, very few people trust Dream. Anyone who’s a part of L’Manburg doesn’t trust him. El Rapids was just created, who are allies with L’Manburg and multiple people are citizens of both. He has Technoblade, but his anarchist views are bound to conflict with Dream’s. Who doesn’t know Dream well enough to know what he has done? Who can help him? Puffy, one of the newest members of the server. Phil ended up being a bonus with Techno and he made use of Ranboo’s enderwalk after learning about it. So he begins bringing people to the server. He already has Vikk and Lazar, two anarchists who he may have hoped were a bit more similar to Techno rather than just wanting to live out their days in peace. He brought Foolish, a demigod, and Hannah, someone who surely has some abilities from the flowers she absorbs. Charlie, an immortal slime who knows literally everything, even if he doesn’t understand it. Michael because… idk ig he’s easily manipulated. I haven’t seen his lore yet. Eryn, somebody who just wants to kill. Boomer, who has somehow taken over both Hannah’s and Sam’s bodies, one of whom is the warden of the prison he is held in, and Tina, who I don’t know much about. He’s bringing in an army of people who will help him. But how? He doesn’t have access to the outside world. He can’t visit anybody. And all of these circumstances seem to just be people having urges to help him for no particular reason. I have three theories. First is simply Ranboo. Ranboo, or rather his enderwalk side, is somehow manipulating these people to assist Dream. I don’t find this likely though since he wasn’t there for most of these and as far as we know, the enderwalk state doesn’t give him telekinesis (that’s the word, right? Wait, or is it telepathy… You know what I mean). Second theory is the one thing all theorists go back to, dreamons. The dreamon in Dream is manipulating people to get him out of prison. It would explain why Michael heard Dream’s voice, though Sam didn’t acknowledge it at all. What doesn’t make sense with this theory though is why Eryn was able to resist it on his own if he was being possessed, though we don’t know Eryn’s lore yet. Last theory, and of course my favorite theory, is DreamXD. I have this theory that DreamXD made Dream that way he could control the Overworld without having to interact since people use gods and try to get stuff out of them, as seen with how people treat DreamXD and Drista. With Dream being in prison, he can’t control the Overworld at all. Multiple ‘Dreams’ are seen throughout history, which is why many people in Tales of the SMP look exactly like Dream and DreamXD. Because DreamXD makes them all look like himself! DreamXD is simply telling new members to help Dream, but since he doesn’t possess them, other people can simply snap them back into reality. Eryn even managed to snap himself back into reality. Perhaps it’s because he already listened to the voice and broke into the prison to build the shrine, or maybe he just has strong willpower. Maybe it’s even future lore we haven’t seen yet. Who knows! The reason Dream was acting so weird to Michael was because it wasn’t Dream. It was DreamXD telling him to do that. He improved his methods later to where people don’t realize that it’s not their idea. Charlie told people that Dream brought him to the SMP, but nobody else did. That’s because DreamXD improved his methods over time. But DreamXD eventually realized that his methods aren’t working that well. Anytime he gets close, somebody stops that person from getting Dream out. So he gets in touch with Foolish, somebody who constantly wants shulkers and other illegal items. He’s using Foolish to get people to join the ‘DreamXD Club.’ Aka getting people to do whatever DreamXD says, including breaking Dream out of prison. And that’s the theory. I hope you enjoyed it. State your opinions in the comments. This took me like an hour and a half to write, and this is the second time I wrote it. Fun times. Glad I finally got this done. Anyways, thx for reading!

Callahan's Voice:
Callahan tricked DreamXD into giving him godly powers despite him being a mortal and as an act of revenge/payment he took away Callahan’s voice.

Nightmares Pt. 1:
Tommy:

Tommy leaned back against the bench and closed his eyes. Melohi played softly in the background. Tubbo laughed as a bee landed on his finger. The music stopped. Tommy opened his eyes and got up to replace the disc. The disc wasn’t in there. He turned around and Tubbo was gone. “Tubbo!” He called out. A hand rested on his shoulder. He switched around and saw Dream, arm raised up with a potato in hand ready to beat Tommy. His hand came down. Tommy woke up.

Tubbo:

Tubbo heard a large ‘boom.’ It was coming from Snowchester. Tubbo got their surprisingly quick to find a large crater, all the way down to bedrock. He couldn’t see anyone but he heard them. Techno and Dream’s laughs, Ranboo’s mix of crying and wailing in pain, Foolish yelling about his hard work, Jack panicking about the nukes. He didn’t hear Tommy though. He turned around to see Ghostbur and Ghostinnit standing behind him. “No, you can’t be dead. You always come back,” he stuttered, taking a step backwards. “This is your fault, Tubbo,” Wilbur stated, “You can’t be trusted as a leader.” “You’ve proven yourself a terrible leader time and time again.” Tubbo jerked around. Jack had spoken, and Ranboo and Foolish were standing next to him as well. “You killed them, Tubbo,” Ranboo accused. “You're worse than Schlatt,” Tommy stated. Tubbo woke up.

Techno:

Kill him. I don’t want to. He betrayed you, just like everyone else. No, he’d never betray me. Techno stood over Philza, with the Orphan Obliterator in hand. He never cared for you. That’s not true. Tommy, Tubbo, and Ghostbur stood watching. They weren’t helping. ''They're all traitors. Kill them. Give us blood.'' No, I can’t kill him. Blood for the Blood God. As if it were a trigger, Techno slashed his sword towards Philza. Techno woke up.

Let’s calm down a bit for a sec

HBomb:

HBomb covered up the chest. The next episode of LCast was ready. He just had to wait for George and Sapnap. They came soon after. They stared at HBomb in silence and then looked at each other. “Let’s get started,” HBomb said cheerfully. They all got in their boats and started fishing. George and Sapnap seemed awkward the whole time with stuttering and constantly staring at HBomb. After the time was up, HBomb went to dig up the chest and as he looked down to dig it up, he realized he had no pants! HBomb woke up.

Ranboo:

Ranboo looked up and braced himself as the anvil fell towards him. He opened his eyes to find himself in the panic room. “''It’s your fault. You helped Dream.”'' He heard Dream’s voice whisper in his ear. “No…” Ranboo whisperer, grabbing his head and falling to the floor, “I didn’t do anything.” A wave of heat came over him. He opened his eyes to find a different room of obsidian. Dream was standing there. “Thanks for helping me escape, Ranboo,” Dream stated. “I didn’t…” Ranboo closed his eyes again and a burning sensation started throughout his whole body. He opened his eyes. He was under water. He tried to swim up, but the water was covered in a layer of ice. Through the ice, Dream stood there with a netherrite sword to Tubbo’s throat. Ranboo banged on the ice trying to break free but he couldn’t. His body felt like it was being torn apart. He started to pass out. Ranboo woke up.

Jack Manifold:

Jack sat at the front desk of his hotel, tapping the table and waiting for customers. He looked up when the door opened. Tommy was right in front of him holding a potato. “You're not allowed here Tommy,” Jack said impatiently. Tommy hit Jack with the potato. Jack woke at the place of the duel with a bow in hand. Tommy was pointing a bow straight at him. “Doesn’t feel to good does it?” Tommy stated. He let go of his arrow and Jack watched as it implied his stomach. Jack awoke again, but this time in the Final Control Room. “Please, I won’t kill you. Just leave me alone,” Jack begged. Tommy ignored him and brought his sword down straight at Jack’s chest. Jack woke up.

Awesamdude:

“Sam!” Sam heard Tommy’s screams echo through the walls of the prison. “Sam let me out!” “I’m coming Tommy!” Sam yelled back. He ran through the endless maze that was the prison, with seemingly no way to Tommy. “Sam!” Tommy screamed louder. “Where are you?!” Sam called out. Sam kept running through the prison till he found himself in the main cell. He looked across the gap towards the levers to see Dream with Tommy’s body next to him. “Tommy!” Sam yelled. Dream pulled a lever and the lava started lowering, till Sam could see nothing but the contents of his own cell. Sam woke up.

Let’s do a couple more less dark ones

Callahan:

Callahan enters the call, “Hello?” Everyone went silent. Then everyone burst out laughing. A message appeared on screen: You’ve Been Banned. Callahan woke up.

One more

Alyssa:

ItsAlyssa joined the game. Alyssa woke up.

Philza:

“Kill me Philza, kill me,” Wilbur begged. “You’re my son!” Philza yelled back. Wilbur continued to beg till Phil gave in. Through teary eyes Phil plunged his sword through Wilbur’s chest. He continued to cry over his body. After a minute or two he got up to help fight the withers. “You killed me,” an echoy voice whispered behind him. Philza turned around. Wilbur was sitting up, eyes glowing white and the sword still in his chest. “Ghostbur?” Phil questioned. “You slayed the minotaur, Phil, you're a hero.” Phil shook his head. “You didn’t just kill me, Phil, you made sure I could never come back, never be happy. You had to kill Friend. You had to destroy L’Manburg. Everything I loved.” “You don’t understand Will,” Phil sighed. “No I don’t and I never will. Because your the hero Philza, and I will always be the bad guy.” Philza woke up.

Skeppy:

Skeppy sat on his couch with Bad beside him. They were laughing and talking. “C’mon Skeppy, I wanna show you something,” Bad beckoned. Skeppy got up and followed Bad out the door. They walked all the way to the Eggpire meeting room. “Bad I don’t feel comfortable being here,” Skeppy said nervously and started walking back to the house. “Skeppy,” Bad tone darkened as he grabbed Skeppy’s shoulder. Skeppy turned back around and the red parts of Bad’s skin were now white. Bad broke a block in the center of the room to reveal a hole that led down to the egg. “I don’t wanna be here,” Skeppy repeated. “The Egg wants you to be here,” Bad replied. Bad pulled Skeppy over to the hole. “I don’t wanna go through this again,” Skeppy said as he shook his head. “Skeppy,” Bad whispered, “I’ve always loved the Egg more than you. But that can change.” Skeppy looked down that the hole, and took a step forward. Skeppy woke up.

Karl Jacobs:

Karl woke up in the library. He filled out his book quickly. What did he do now? “Karl!” Someone called from upstairs. Karl knew he should come upstairs but his dream self didn’t seem to. “Karl!” The voice yelled again. The trapdoor opened and a face peeked through. Sapnap. “Who are you?” Karl asked. “Karl, quit messing around. Come on, George is waiting for us.” Karl took a step backwards. “Who’s Karl? Who’s George?” Karl couldn’t remember anything. Nothing except his most recent journey. “Karl, are you alright?” Sapnap asked. He took a few steps forward and rested his hands on Karl’s shoulders. Karl backed away once again and vigorously shook his head. He ran past Sapnap and up the ladder. There was a much room tree. He was in a room made of wood and mushroom blocks. Kinoko Kingdom. “Where am I?” Karl called out. He ran out of the building and saw George and Foolish talking. “Karl!” George called. Karl ignored him and kept running. He stopped next to a tree and felt a hand rest on his shoulder once again. He turned around to see Sapnap again. “Karl wake up,” he said, “Wake up Karl.” Karl woke up.

Nightmares Pt. 2:
Fundy (For this one your going to have to forget that Fundy can see the future):

Fundy laughed as Tommy made a joke in the Camarvan, along with Tubbo and Wilbur. They were all making potions. Fundy finished his strength ones and Wilbur ruffled his hair and smiled down at him. Fundy smiled back. He turned back to his work and started on his potions of swiftness. The lights flickered. Fundy turns towards his dad. Wilbur was on his knees in a brown trenchcoat, gripping a sword that had been stabbed into his chest. “Dad!” Fundy yelled and bent down. He could’ve sworn he saw the shadow of a wing out of the corner of his eye. Fundy leaned into Wilbur's shoulder as tears streamed down his face. His blue blood got all over Fundy’s hands and sleeves. A shadow came over the two. Fundy looked up to see Schlatt standing over them, beckoning him with open arms. Fundy quickly got up and ran into them, but he disappeared before he could get there. Wilbur had disappeared also. Fundy curled up in a ball and cried in the now broken down van. Fundy woke up.

Ponk:

Ponk’s entire body was filled with agonizing, burning pain. He gripped onto the metal bars and gritted his teeth. The lava slowly lowered back down into the drain in the floor. This was his life down. Lava would come and then go away. Then it would come again, and go away once more. He also made sure to keep his right arm out of reach. His one good limb. He heard footsteps coming down the hall. He called out in pain as the lava reached above his bionic legs. “How do you like it here?” Sam asked once he got in front of the cell, “You wanted to get in here, right?” “I suppose I did,” Ponk responded slightly sarcastically once the lava started going back down into the drain. “Why don’t you just kill me already? Stop torturing me with this lava.” “We didn’t kill Dream. Why should we kill you?” Sam shrugged. “Dream has the revive book,” Ponk responded. Sam’s tone darkened, “And you still have an arm.” Ponk looked at his arm and his breathing quickened. He backed up towards the wall, away from Sam. The lava started pouring in again. Ponk let out an agonizing screech as it poured over his body. He opened his eyes and saw Sam raising a sword up over Ponks right arm. Ponk woke up.

Those two were longer so let’s go with a shorter, calmer one.

Purpled:

Purpled ran across his makeshift wool bridge back to his base. Just one player left. Pink team. He upgraded his protection and started heading on over to their island. But just as he was getting off the island, the text appeared. Your bed has been destroyed. Purpled turned around. Technoblade was standing over what once was his bed. Purpled accidently took a step backwards in shock and fell off the map. Purpled woke up.

Badboyhalo:

Bad walked down the stairs with Ant right behind him. As soon as they got down the stairs he started hearing a cry for help that soon got muffled. Bad and Ant looked at each other and started to quickly traverse their way through the red vines that swarmed the entire basement. They reached the Egg quickly as they had crossed the room many times before. The Egg had wrapped its vines around Skeppy, tying him to the ground and making him unable to speak. There was also TnT surrounding the egg with a lever ready to be pulled. Skeppy struggled against the vines until he had broken the one covering his mouth. “Pull the lever Bad!” Skeppy yelled. The Egg quickly spoke in its foreign language, “Kill him Bad. Push your sword through his chest.” “Do what the Egg says, Bad,” Ant urged from behind. “Bad, please. It’s just an-“ The Egg had covered Skeppy’s mouth again. “Kill him,” the Egg whispered in Bad’s ear. Skeppy got his mouth free again, “Me or the Egg, Bad?” Bad woke up.

Eret:

Eret walked through his castle. Looked around at the towering walls, the colorful interior, and the endless beacons. Eret quietly walked to his throne room. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes to find himself in the Final Control Room. Dream was standing there, leaning against a wall. “I just wanted to say thank you,” he stated as he looked up towards Eret. Eret looked down and shook his head. “But you were part of that army too.” Eret looked up to find Dream pushing his sword through Eret’s chest. Eret’s head shot up and he gripped his mattress. It was just a nightmare. He turned in his bed to get a drink of water only to find that he was in a black stone room with four dead bodies laying on the floor. Eret woke up.

Sapnap:

“Do you mind helping me bring some prisoners to the prison?” Sam asked Sapnap. They stood alone outside the prison. “You were very helpful with Dream.” “I suppose so,” Sapnap responded. “They’re waiting in the lobby.” Sapnap nodded his head and the two went through the portal. Karl, Quackity, George, and Bad all stood there with their hands cuffed. Sapnap froze. “C’mon Sapnap. You did so great with Dream,” Sam urged. Sapnap took a step towards the four prisoners. “You’ll visit me, right Sapnap?” Karl asked. Sapnap nodded. “Take care of El Rapids for me,” Quackity begged. “Of course,” Sapnap whispered. He took a few more steps forwards. “What’s going to happen to Kinoko?” George mumbled. “Nothing. It’ll be ready for when you get out,” Sapnap replied in a solemnly. “Make sure Skeppy and Ant know where I am,” Bad requested. Sapnap nodded. “You're doing great, Sapnap,” Sam complimented. Sapnap urged the prisoners through the prison, to the smaller cells. He locked them all into their small, individual cells, and none of them said a thing. “They’ll be in here for a long time,” Sam said from behind. Sapnap woke up.

Time for a break

Lazarbeam:

Lazar sat on his porch, Vikk at his side. Just relaxing in the peace and quiet and listening to nature. Tommy walked in front of the house and stopped. “Get off my lawn!” Lazar yelled. Tommy didn’t seem to hear him. “Hey! Get off my lawn!” Lazar said louder. Tubbo came up to Tommy and the two sat down. “Get off my lawn!” Lazar yelled again. The two got out a picnic basket and started eating. It was no use. They wouldn’t move. Lazar woke up.

One more calm one for this part

Vikkstar:

Vikk and Lazar walked down the prime path, asking for channel memberships and subs. Vikk heard a distant “Pogchamp.” “Do you hear that?” Vikk whispered to Lazar. “Run,” Lazar said as he took off down the path. Vikk followed. “I’m getting too old for this,” Vikk mumbled. “Viiikkkstarrrr!” They heard the voice call out. “Get to the Church of YouTube! He won’t follow us there,” Lazar said. They made a sharp turn towards the church. “We’re almost there!” Vikk yelled. They stopped a couple feet from the church. Standing right at the entrance was Tommy. Vikk woke up.

Hannah:

Hannah layed on the ground in the middle of the Prime Path. “Sam,” she croaked. She couldn’t yell. “Hannah!” Sam yelled in the distance. She tried to call back but couldn’t. She felt someone gently touch her arm. “Sam?” She whispered. She turned her head. “Hello Hannah,” Ant greeted. Bad stood behind him. “Sam!” She tried to call out again but ended up having a coughing fit. Ant helped her up. “The Egg can help you,” he said. The two helped her along the path to the basement that held the Egg until they were standing right in front of it. “Hannah!” Sam called from the opposite side of the basement. Ant and Bad ran off. “Hannah,” Sam gasped when he reached her, “C’mon, let’s get you home.” Sam bent down and picked Hannah up. He carried her all the way back home and set her in her bed. “Here, take some roses. It will help.” Sam’s outstretched arm held a wither rose. Hannah woke up.

Foolish:

Foolish placed the last spruce log. The mansion was finished. “Tubbo! Ranboo!” Foolish called from the doorway to the mansion, “It’s done!” Tubbo and Ranboo ran over. “It’s nice,” Tubbo complimented, “But how do we know that it’s not a trap?” Foolish took a step back, “What?” “You're a danger to this country, Foolish. How do we know that you didn’t make this to hurt me, or Ranboo, or Micheal?” “I wouldn’t-“ Foolish started. “You need to be locked up, Foolish,” Ranboo stated. Tubbo and Ranboo lunged for Foolish. Foolish quickly dodged. “Stop!” He yelled. “We can’t let you hurt anyone, Foolish,” Tubbo yelled. Tubbo shot him with his bow, but Foolish quickly pulled his shield up. “I would never hurt anyone!” Foolish cried. “We’re not so sure about that,” said Ranboo. Ranboo leaped forward and slashed his sword at Foolish. It grazed his shoulder. “Stop it!” Foolish yelled. Lighting fell down on the two. Foolish closed his eyes from the bright light. When he opened them, the house was ablaze. Tubbo and Ranboo’s bodies lay on the floor. Sam stood over them, a look of terror on his face. “You said you wouldn’t hurt anyone,” Sam whispered. “I didn’t mean-“ Foolish stuttered but stopped himself. “You said you weren’t a bad guy.” Foolish woke up.

Nightmares Pt. 3:
Antfrost (Pre-Red Banquet):

Ant smiled at L’Canyon as the red vines creeped up the walls and the glass cracked every once in a while from the pressure of the growing vines pushing up against it. And then all the sudden the world seemed to just stop. The vines stopped growing. Something was wrong. The Egg. What had happened? Ant grabbed his trident and flew off towards the spider spawner that held the entrance to the Egg. He rushed down the stairs and into the room only to find a large crater. Bad, Ponk, Punz, and Skeppy were leaning over the hole, peering into it. Bad turned around as Ant walked up to them. “Ant,” he greeted, “The plan is finally complete. The Egg is gone.” “This wasn’t the plan,” Ant stated with a mixture of anger and confusion. “What do you mean?” Bad asked, “Why else would we start the Eggpire, other than to fool the Egg and be released from it’s grasp on our minds.” “We were supposed to help the Egg! We were supposed to let the Egg give us what we wanted!” Ant yelled, taking a step towards Bad. The other three turned around, their red eyes seemingly staring into his soul. “You’re all traitors,” Ant spat. “This was the plan all along,” Punz stated in a confused tone, “If anyone’s a traitor it’s you.” Ant shook his head, “you all betrayed the Egg.” He turned around the walked across the smooth, hard floor. He stopped as he heard a familiar voice, “Stop. Kill the traitors. Give me nourishment and I will return. I will give you all that you desire.” Ant nodded, “Alright.” He slowly pulled out his netherrite sword and turned around to face the four traitors. Antfrost woke up.

Quackity:

Quackity leaped over a fallen tree. He was gasping for breath, but he kept going. There was no stopping now. Not if he wanted to live. Blood ran down his face, making his vision red. “Human’s have really good endurance. They would hunt prey that’s faster than them, but the prey would sprint and waste up all their endurance. And the humans, they’d just keep up. Just very slowly and steadily, they’d just follow.” Quackity grabbed a tree and stopped to take a breath. He heard footsteps running up from behind him. He let out one more breath and continued running. An arrow hit a tree next to him. Quackity quickly turned around, “Wait, wait, stop.” Techno stood in front of him. “I’m not afraid of you,” Quackity calmly stated, shaking his head. “You should be.” An explosion sounded behind him. Quackity turned around to see Las Nevadas surrounded by withers. Skulls were shooting in all directions and explosions were demolishing the buildings. Quackity gulped. “I’m going to kill you right now-” Techno chuckled. “You saw how that turned out last time.” Quackity’s hand rested on his bleeding eye. “I’m not afraid of you,” he repeated. “We both know that’s not true,” Techno said with a smile. Quackity woke up.

Let’s get onto our first calmer one for the day

Slimecicle:

“Charrrrlieeee!” Wilbur yelled in his autotuned voice. “Whaatttt?” Charlie called back in his own autotuned voice. “The queeeennn is deaaddd,” Wilbur announced. “Noooooo,” Charlie cried. “There is allsssooo a blaaccckkk hooollee commmminnnng fooor ussssss,” Wilbur stated. Charlie felt himself getting pulled backwards. “Nooooo heelllppp meeee,” Charlie called out. “To the queeeennnnn,” Wilbur yelled as the two got sucked into the black hole. Slimecicle woke up.

Back to your normally scheduled programming

Nihachu (Remember that she doesn’t know that Wilbur has been resurrected):

Niki stared at her ablaze bakery. TNT lies all over the building while Niki holds a flint and steel, preparing herself to light it. All of the sudden she hears coughing coming from inside the building. “Wilbur,” she whispered. She ran inside the burning building and followed the noise of the coughing. He was alive! She was right all along, he’d never died. He’d just gone off somewhere after the explosion. “Will!” She called out. “Niki!” His voice echoed through the halls. She kept trying to follow the voice, but it seemed to fill the whole building. “Wilbur!” She cried. No reply. Niki collapsed onto her knees with tears running down her face. “Will…” she coughed out. Nihachu woke up.

Puffy:

Puffy faced her three children. They were all sitting in front of the Egg tied up. “Help us Papa,” Foolish begged. Puffy was unable to move. Michelle made a frightened squeak. Dream said nothing. Bad, Ant, and Ponk seemingly came out of nowhere, swords in hand. “No,” Puffy started crying, “Dont hurt them. Take me instead.” “Don’t worry, you’re next,” Ant chuckled. Michelle was slaughtered first. Her high-pitch cry was unbearable. Dream was next and Puffy could feel his anger radiating off of him before he collapsed in a heap with his sister. Foolish looked at Puffy one last time with his innocent green eyes, pleading for help, but Puffy couldn’t do anything. “Stop it. Please,” Puffy yelled. She could hardly see from all the tears. But she could see the blood splatter on the ground. Puffy woke up.

On that note…

Connor:

Connor walked into his small make-shift house. Ninja was standing against the wall. “What are you doing here?” Ninja asked. “This is my house,” Connor replied. “Who’s name does it say out front?” Connor took a few steps back to look. Ninja’s House. “My name used to be there,” Connor argued. “Well it’s not,” Ninja responded. “This is all I’ve got,” Connor begged. Ninja rolled his eyes, “Go move in with Tommy.” And he was shoved out the door. Connor woke up.

George:

George woke up.

And with the last calm ones out of the way, let’s get on to our last two nightmares of this series.

Punz:

“Where’s my money?” Punz asked impatiently. “What money?” Dream questioned. “32 diamond blocks. I’ve done your work. Give me my money.” Dream rolled his eyes, “Isn’t sparing your life enough?” Punz laughed, “Not how these things work.” Dream pulled out his netherrite axe, “I’m not so sure about that.” Punz backed up, “Dream, we had a deal.” “I’ve changed my mind. Now, I’ve got another task for you, unless you wanna die right here,” Dream threatened. They stared into each other’s eyes for what seemed like forever. “What do you want me to do?” Punz finally grumbled. “Kill Techno,” Dream commanded. “I’ll die!” Punz yelled in protest. “And you’ll die here if you don’t.” Punz  sighed, “Even if I do succeed, Philza won’t stop hunting me down till I’m dead.” “Then kill him too. I don’t care.” The two made unblinking eye contact again. “Punz, I don’t think you quite understand your situation here.” Dream took a step forward and raised his sword, “Either you kill Techno, or this sword goes through your chest.” Punz slowly pushed the sword down. “I’ll do it,” he mumbled. Dream’s new little puppet. Punz woke up.

Dream:

“He called me a pawn, well this is checkmate.” Oh, if only it had gone this perfectly. I need to kill him now before Punz get’s here. No time for anymore goodbyes. Dream stepped forward and swung his axe at Tubbo, but he… missed? Tubbo turned around, but it was now Quackity. “Put your stuff in the hole, Dream,” Quackity demanded. Tommy had disappeared. “I’m not going to put my stuff in your stupid hole,” Dream spat back. Something yanked Dream to the floor. His hands were now in chains that caused him to not be able to get up. Quackity blew up all his stuff in the hole. Break out of the chains. You can do it, you’ve done it before. But this was a different dream. This dream was giving him limits on what he could do. Quackity’s axe grazed across Dream’s cheek. “Put your stuff in the hole, Dream,” Quackity commanded again. “You already blew it up!” Dream yelled. Dream closed his eyes as Quackity swung his axe at him again. When he opened his eyes, Quackity’s eyes had changed. One was red and one was green. They were staring directly at him, unblinkingly. “⌿⎍⏁ ⊬⍜⎍⍀ ⌇⏁⎍⎎⎎ ⟟⋏ ⏁⊑⟒ ⊑⍜⌰⟒.” Dream woke up.

Part 1 - The Battle of The Badlands Aftermath:
Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Gore

Dream sat with his knees holding Tommy down. He quickly turned and shot Sam as he rushed in to aid Tommy. Right through the heart, killing him almost immediately. His body lay still. Must’ve been his last canon life. He deserved it for betraying me and locking me up. He saw Philza swoop in and kill Hannah. Now that wasn’t a final death. Her body disappeared as soon as she died. He turned back towards Tommy, who was struggling against Dream’s weight, panic filling his eyes. The best part was he wasn’t even planning on coming here. Dream lifted his sword up, “Goodbye Theseus.” Tommy closed his eyes and braced himself as the sword plunged into his body. At least it would be quick, Tommy thought. At least I wasn’t being beaten to death. He awoke in a place he knew well. A dark place he knew so well.

“Tommy!” Tubbo screamed as he saw the sword enter his body. He ran towards the body, ignoring that Dream was still there. “Tubbo, no.” He turned around to find Niki gripping his arm. Niki wasn’t here before. He looked around to see the people and allies of Las Nevadas fleeing, and it was HBomb and Eret leading them out. It seemed the few people who didn’t fight in this battle were helping the ones who lost get away. Niki tried to pull Tubbo away from Tommy and Dream. She wasn’t going to let him die either. “No, no, no,” Tubbo mumbled as he pulled back. “Tubbo, we have to go,” she urged. C’mon Tubbo. Please. He shook his head. “H!” She yelled. HBomb looked over at the two, and then looked where they were looking. “Tommy, no,” he whispered. He ran as fast as he could towards Tubbo and Niki and heaved Tubbo over his shoulder. Tubbo kicked him and struggled to get down, but he wouldn’t let go. HBomb and Niki ran with the rest of the fleeing crowd, with Eret now in the lead, taking them to a safe haven, at least for now. He couldn’t believe he got himself into this mess. He was supposed to be king. Maybe he could convince Dream to let him back into his country. Just first he had to make sure no one else died.

Philza watched from the skies as the people fled. Tubbo was being carried by HBomb. He could see Hannah sneaking around the edge of the Badlands. She must’ve come back from her respawn point. Foolish and Fundy ran just behind Eret, and Purpled was running in a different direction entirely. Away from anywhere near the SMP. He wasn’t going to stay here. Anyone who bothered hiding around here would surely be found, Purpled thought. He’d already lost two canon lives today, one by Techno and one by Schlatt. He wasn’t going to lose his third anytime soon. He’d find some jobs far from this place.

Bad, Ant, Skeppy, and Puffy met up behind the mansion. “I guess we chose the right side,” Bad chuckled with relief, “Did anyone lose a life?” “I did. By Sam,” Puffy whispered. Minimal losses, and at least we were all still alive. That left me, Ant, and Skeppy with two lives, thought Bad, and Puffy with one. He didn’t know about Hannah, but it didn’t matter. She fought for the wrong side anyways. “What happened to Karl, George, and Sapnap?” Bad questioned. “They fled as soon as the battle started,” Skeppy shrugged. Skeppy hadn’t wanted to fight, but he’d follow Bad and the Badlands in whatever they did, and when Bad saved Dream from that blow, the Badlands fought, meaning Skeppy fought. At least most of the Badlands. Though the old Kinoko’s hadn’t been a part of the Badlands very long.

Schlatt watched as Punz’s head rolled away and Dream sheathed his sword. Schlatt looked up at the burning sun. He hadn’t had much time to process him being alive before Wilbur came to him and said he had to fight for Dream. Apparently he owed him his life or some crap like that. Schlatt watched Wilbur walk up to Dream and start talking to him.

“Were there any casualties on our side?” Wilbur asked with a large smile. Oh, he missed the feeling of winning battles, and this time he didn’t have to explode something afterwards. “No final ones from what I can tell, but I don’t know what happened at Las Nevadas.” “What about the other side?” Wilbur pondered. “Sam, Punz, and Tommy, and from the looks of it Quackity and that slime guy we found since only Purpled and Fundy came over here.” Wilbur’s tone darkened, “Tommy?” He’d never wanted the kid to die. Sure, he joined Dream and Techno, but Tommy and Tubbo weren’t going to fight in the war. Why was he here?

“Yeah, he and Tubbo got themselves wrapped up in this when they came to see what was going on. I only wish I’d gotten Tubbo also. Almost did, but HBomb came just before I was going to shoot him and carried him off.” Dream gestured to where Tommy lay. Wilbur walked slowly over there. Sam lay only a couple meters away. He knelt down next to Tommy’s bleeding body. He heard a whooshing sound above him and looked up. Philza was flying back towards Las Nevadas. He stared back at the child's body and went back to go talk with Schlatt.

Part 2 - The Battle of Las Nevadas Aftermath:
Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Gore

Techno stabbed Purpled in the back to stop the bow fight he and Ranboo had been having. Ranboo nodded at him in gratitude. “Jack!” Michael yelled. Jack and Michael were fighting the slime guy, who he now knew was Charlie. Quackity was sneaking up on Jack as he focused on the fight. Techno ran to stop him. Seeing him, Quackity quickly killed Jack. Techno pulled out his rocket launcher and shot a firework straight at Quackity. Michael gave the final blow needed to kill Charlie. The group of three breathed heavily. “Where are Fundy and Purpled?” Techno made out between breaths. “They never came back after losing one of their lives,” Ranboo rasped. “Good.” Ranboo turned to look at Jack’s limp body. He had lost a life twice during the battle. He never stopped fighting. Techno saw Ranboo staring at Jack, “We’ll bury him, along with Quackity and Charlie. They were on the other side, but they deserve to have a noble funeral. They all fought hard.” Ranboo smiled softly. Good. None of these people deserved to die, Ranboo thought. “Purpled took one of my lives,” Michael said solemnly, “Did you guys-” “No. Just Jack,” Techno interrupted. Technoblade never dies, Michael thought.

Fundy and Purpled ran side by side to The Badlands. Quackity was dead, but maybe Sam wasn’t, Fundy thought. They reached The Badlands to find the battle still going on, and it was a lot bigger than the one at Las Nevadas was. Purpled immediately got into a fight with Schlatt. Schlatt? Fundy stared in horror as his previous comrad and enemy slashed at Purpled with a netherite sword. He broke out of his daze as Bad attacked him. Purpled kept an eye on Fundy as he fought with Schlatt. He’d almost gotten killed by Bad, but Purpled tripped him with an arrow, alerting Fundy of his presence. Bad knocked the sword out of Fundy’s hand, so Purpled quickly tossed him an axe. He wasn’t quick enough though, as Schlatt took the chance to kill Purpled. “Dang it,” Purpled grumbled as he respawned at his spawn point. He ran back to the battle.

Techno stared at the sky. He could’ve sworn he saw him. Ranboo nudged Techno and pointed in the distance. “Philza,” Techno sighed with relief. Philza landed gracefully in front of the two, as if he’d never hadn’t been able to fly. Ranboo respectfully went to go sit with Michael. Techno immediately embraced Philza. “He actually brought you back,” he whispered. “I’ve hardly had time to process it,” Philza admitted. Techno released Philza from his grasp, “You know I killed two people when I learned you were dead.” “Really? I expected more.” The two chuckled, but the laughter soon stopped as Philza’s gaze met the three bodies. “How many died at The Badlands?” Techno asked quietly. “None on our side. Sam, Punz, and Tommy.” “I never thought that kid would ever really die,” Techno responded after a moment of silence. “Me neither.” Techno looked back at Philza, “You know I did this because of the favor, right?” “I started to guess that while I was dead.” “I would’ve told you, but when you asked, Wilbur was there.” Philza nodded in understanding. Ranboo and Michael walked up to them, “Do you guys want to bury them now?”

Part 3 - Pandora's Escape:
Two Months Before the Battles

Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Manipulation

“Any day now,” Techno mumbled. “You’re insane, Techno,” Dream sighed, “We aren’t getting out of here. No one is coming to rescue us, even if they could. When will you realize that?” “They’re coming,” Techno insisted. He had left Phil instructions in case this happened. Any day now the Syndicate would come and bust them out of here. Dream shook his head and leaned back against the wall. They’d been in here for a week and these so called ‘friends’ Techno keeps mentioning haven’t come yet. Nothing different had even happened. The potatoes still came, Quackity still did his daily check-ins, just he tortured both of them now, and Sam still did his patrols. Techno started whistling some sort of jazz song. “Can you please shut-” Sirens cut him off. “I told you they were coming,” Techno smirked and stood up. “What’s going on?” Dream demanded. “Just stay away from the walls.” Dream quickly ran to the center of the small cell. “I’d cover your ears if I were you,” Techno suggested as he did it and Dream quickly copied him. What was going on? All of a sudden a loud explosion went off. Larger than the stacks of tnt Wilbur had placed, larger than the stacks of tnt he had placed. And then all the walls, ceiling, and most of the floor was gone. Lava started coming down, but then it all turned into cobblestone. Techno unplugged his ears and started saying something to Dream, but he couldn’t hear him over the ringing in his ears. “Just wait a second. They’ll break us out of here soon,” Techno tried to yell, but quickly gave up as soon as he realized Dream couldn’t hear him. After a few minutes a hole in the ceiling was broken and Philza was smiling down at them. “Phil!” Techno called out joyfully, “Could you throw us down some blocks?” Philza laughed and threw down some cobble. The two prisoners climbed out of the hole Philza had made in a cobble stone cube. Ranboo was there shuffling his feet also. “Ranboo?” Dream questioned. What was he doing here? “Don’t bother answering,” Techno said, “He can’t hear right now.” Ranboo nodded. “Niki’s going to meet us at our house,” Philza explained. Techno nodded and the group ran to the arctic before Sam could return from his respawn point.

The group of four saw Niki waiting on the porch waiting for them. “I hid Carl and Steve,” she announced as soon as she was within ear shot. Her burns from the explosion still felt hot even though she was in the freezing temperatures of the arctic. She had been the one to volunteer to blow up the nuke. Ranboo had tried to have him do it, but he had already taken the risk of stealing it. It was her turn to help, even if it had taken one of her lives. “Hid?” Techno questioned. “Techno, we can’t stay here. They’ll hunt us down, and this time they’ll kill you and me,” Philza explained. “We can take them!” Techno argued. “I don’t want to spend the rest of my life just wondering when and who is going to be trying to kill us next.” Techno looked back at his home. “For you, Phil, the world,” he remembered himself saying. If Phil didn’t want to stay, they wouldn’t stay. “Well then, Dream, it’s time we parted ways. It’s been fun being your roommate. Niki, Ranboo, does anyone know that your involved?” Techno asked. They both shook their heads. “Then go home. I don’t want your blood on my hands.” They both hesitated, but soon left. Techno ran inside to go pack some stuff, but Dream followed him in. “I need to talk to you.” Techno sighed. He knew what this would be about. And it seemed he had gotten his hearing back. “I want to turn in the favor,” Dream announced. “What do you need?” Techno grumbled. “Help me take down the governments. All of them. Kinoko, Snowchester, The Badlands, and Las Nevadas. Even Boomerville needs to go. Make it all one big happy family again.” “I wouldn’t use the word ‘happy.’ But your wish is my command,” Techno said with an exaggerated bow. “Good. I suggest you stick with me then. It will make this a lot easier. Philza may come if he wishes.” Techno nodded grimly, “C’mon then. I’d like to grab some supplies before Sam comes to kill us.”

Part 4 - A Double Hunt:
Two Months Before the Battles

Trigger Warning: Death, Violence

Tubbo collapsed to the floor of his mansion. Tommy gripped onto the nearest piece of furniture, “What the heck was that?” As soon as the shaking was done the three ran out of the mansion and got in boats to end towards the main area. They didn’t even have to reach land before they saw it. “What the-” Tommy exclaimed. “This can’t be good,” mumbled Tubbo. There was a giant crater in the ocean, with only a few of the inner walls of the prison still standing, and a giant cobblestone block. “Where’s the lava?” Tommy questioned as they rowed closer to the crater. “Someone poured water over it,” Tubbo answered. “So Dream’s-” “Alive, yes, probably. Also probably gone with whoever helped him escape.” “And Sam-” “Unless he was in the cell also, there was no way he could’ve survived.” “How many lives did he have?” “Three from what I remember.” The two pulled out tridents and shot up to the top of the cobblestone box. “What could’ve done this?” Tommy asked, peering over the edge. “I’ve got an idea,” Tubbo said grimly, “You know my nukes?” “Tubbo, don’t tell me-” “I may have lost one. It was Jack’s fault also though!” “Well it’s gone now.” “Someone killed themselves to set it off.” “What?” Tommy yelled. “Jack and I had the keycards. I didn’t use mine and it needs two, meaning someone pressed the button on the bomb and killed themselves with it.” “They must’ve really wanted Dream out. Who would’ve done this?” “Techno was willing to give up his life for a horse. I’m sure he would if it’s for that favor. I heard Michael has tried to break in also.” “And Wilbur,” Tommy added grimly. “Wilbur wasn’t alive when the nuke was stolen,” Tubbo reassured. “And Michael didn’t live around here, then,” Tommy added, “Meaning we are in some deep crap right now.”

“Tommy, come look at this,” Tubbo beckoned, “This block is a step lower than all the others.” Tommy got out his pickaxe and dug at it till he was able to peer in. It was the cell, though most of it was blown up and replaced with cobblestone. “What did you guys do?” Sam voices appeared next to Tommy. He took a few steps in shock. “Nothing, Sam, I swear!” “Oh give it a break Tommy everywhere you go bad stuff always seems to happen.” “He’s telling the truth Sam, we heard the explosion from Snowchester and came over here to see what happened,” Tubbo explained, “Dream was gone when we got here.” Sam looked down the hole. “Did you guys see anything when you got here?” Sam questioned. They both shook their heads. “Well, tell me if you do.” He then flew off with his trident.

“So are we just not going to mention the whole nuke thing?” Tommy asked. “I don’t want this on my hands,” Tubbo responded defensively, “You know that Sam will kill me and Jack if he finds out.” “Tubbo.” Tommy looked at him with the most serious look Tubbo had ever seen him give. “We need to find Dream. I can’t even imagine what kind of stuff is going to happen if we don’t. Tubbo, I don’t want him to kill you.” Tubbo nodded. He didn’t want to die either. He didn’t tell Tommy this, but with the prison destroyed he’d probably kill Tommy also.

Sam got to Las Nevadas as quickly as he could. He found Quackity and Charlie at the top of the needle. “We’ve got a problem,” he called out as soon as he got up the bubble elevator. Quackity immediately got up from his chair, “What is it?” “The prison has been destroyed. Dream and Techno are gone and from what I can tell, unharmed.” “How?” Quackity yelled. “What’s a prison?” Charlie asked cheerfully. “Not now Charlie.” “Okay!” “I don’t know how, but there was a large explosion and whoever let them out put water over the prison to stop the lava from burning them.” “Well who could it have been?” “It most definitely had to have been Philza. The only other person I know that would want them out is Michael and his attempts before this have been… pitiful to say the least. Plus doesn’t Philza have access to a ton of withers?” “Yes he does. Does anyone else know about this?” “Only Tommy and Tubbo. Though I’m sure The Badlands have noticed the giant hole on their land. It destroyed part of the back of Skeppy and Bad’s mansion.” Quackity nodded, “And no one knows Techno was in there. Charlie, I’ve got a special job for you.” Charlie's head piped up. “Do you know the large black building in the water behind the quartz mansion? It’s now a big hole. Go there and see if you can figure out who made it a big hole. Be sneaky about it though.” “Alright!” Charlie ran off down the needle. “We need to get to Techno’s house, now.”

Part 5 - The Take Over:
Trigger Warning: Manipulation, Violence

Dream stood on Eret’s castle, staring down at the gathering crowd. Techno stood on his left and Wilbur on his right. He watched as the four Badlanders made their appearance and stood at the back of the crowd. Ranboo, Michael, and Schlatt stood at the front, while the Kinoko’s stood towards the left, close to Bad. He smirked as Eret snuck to the shade of the tree that Philza sat in. The traitor. He didn’t expect him to make an appearance. Dream waited a few more minutes to make sure everyone had shown up. No one who fought on the other side had come, though he heard that Purpled fled from the area as soon as he lost the battle. He didn’t know where anyone else had gone, though. Dream cleared his throat into the microphone. Everyone stopped talking and turned towards him. “So,” he started, “It seems as though most people here tonight don’t have their homes anymore.” The Kinoko’s looked down in grief, Michael and Schlatt smiled at their victory, and the Badlanders looked confused, other than Bad who was intrigued by the start of the speech. “Snowchester was disbanded, Boomerville abandoned, Las Nevadas lost, Kinoko destroyed, and The Badlands caught in the crossfire of it all. It seems as though the only country still truly intact is the Dream SMP.” “The Badlands are as strong as ever!” Ant called out. Ant couldn’t believe the audacity of this guy. Sure, their land had taken some damage and no one knew where Hannah was, but it was a step up from when the Egg ruled over them, and he wasn’t going to allow some guy to take over their country and use them as their puppets just like it did.

Dream grumbled, why’d they have to be so difficult? Can’t they see that I’m not going to let any country be running other than mine? “I’ll talk with you four afterwards,” he sighed. “Do we go with him?” Skeppy whispered to the group. Bad nodded, “We should hear him out.” “It could be a trap,” Ant warned. Puffy and Skeppy nodded. “If it comes to a fight then make sure Puffy gets out. I can take as many hits as needed,” Bad explained. “I’ll be fine,” Puffy reassured. “Wouldn’t it be best if Puffy stayed behind? Or if only Bad went?” Skeppy suggested. “I’ll be fine,” Puffy repeated, “And if Bad went by himself that would give them the chance to kidnap or torture him. It’s best if we go as a group.” Everyone agreed.

“So now that we are all a part of the same country, run by me of course. It is the Dream SMP, not the Eret SMP,” Dream glared at Eret who decided this was his time to leave. He turned around and started sneaking away, but Dream called him back. “Don’t leave. You’re still a part of this country, even if you didn’t fight for me. You don’t leave your comrades behind. If anything, you need to stay to make up for your actions.” Eret shakingly turned around and leaned against the tree he was at. Philza looked down at him and sighed with pity. He looked back up at Dream. Techno had gone pale next to him. We had to get out of here, Philza thought. There was no way Techno was going to let himself be ruled by Dream.

“As I was saying, now that we are all in this together, and I’m the ruler, I say we need to spruce this place up a bit, starting with the castle. I’m thinking blackstone. Eret, Karl, that can be your first assignment to make up for not helping. Michael, make sure they get their work done.” George and Sapnap looked at each other. They both thought the same thing, what about us? They then looked at Karl and realized he was shaking so they quickly went to hold him steady.

“Wilbur and I will give out food and housing after I speak with the Badlanders. Techno and Philza, I will need to see you too.” “Food and housing?” Ranboo questioned. “A lot of people here don’t have homes or food sources after the war. As your new ruler, I will be fixing that.” Techno made eye contact with Philza. This is what he had feared since the beginning. The government corrupts, though Dream had been corrupted already.

Dream watched as the crowd separated. Michael immediately started ordering Eret and Karl around. He took note of George and Sapnap heading to the Nether portal with the group. Wilbur left to go take note of the damage done to Las Nevadas and The Badlands and to scout out Snowchester, taking Schlatt with him. They must have talked a lot in the Afterlife, Dream thought. Ranboo stuck around. He must need to talk. Philza flew over to the castle. “You two go wait downstairs with Ranboo,” Dream ordered. The two anarchists looked at each other and nodded. The four Badlander’s made their way up the stairs.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do to The Badlands, but it won’t work,” Ant challenged as soon as they came face to face with Dream. “Oh I think it will work, because if you don’t disband your country, I will destroy it and then slowly wipe out every single one of you till you are all completely dead, starting with Puffy.” Maybe it was a bit harsh to go after my own mother, Dream thought, but it would get their attention. “And what’s stopping us from killing you right now?” Puffy demanded. “Techno, Philza, and Ranboo downstairs.” “Could you let us talk this over?” Bad asked patiently. Dream nodded and watched the huddle on the other side of the balcony. Something caught Dream’s eye in the distance and he quickly pulled out his bow and shot three arrows in the direction of it.

“What are our options here?” Skeppy whispered to the group. “We could make a run for it,” Puffy suggested, “Use our tridents.” “Mine broke in battle,” Ant responded, “Besides, we would still lose The Badlands.” “And we should consider the fact that he might actually send people to hunt us down till we are dead. Even if we run from the SMP,” Bad piped in. Everyone stood in silence for a moment. Puffy broke it, “So we have to give up The Badlands?” “We will take it back. When we are stronger, and have more men. Based on how Dream is running this place, I can imagine people wanting to defy eventually,” Bad reassured. Everyone solemnly nodded and turned back to Dream. “So will you cooperate?” Dream asked promptly. “Yes,” Bad answered calmly, “The Badlands are officially disbanded.”

Part 6 - The Refugees:
Trigger Warning: Self-Harm, Depression

Niki handed Foolish a bowl of mushroom stew. “Thank you,” he said gratefully. She handed another one to Hannah, who was right next to him. “Thanks.” Niki nodded and went on to where Eret was comforting Fundy and HBomb sat next to them. Fundy sat up silently as he was handed his soup. He’d barely talked at all since Eret had taken him here. Between seeing Wilbur, Schlatt, and Philza along with watching all those people die, it was too much for someone as young as him. Tubbo took it the worst though. “Tubbo,” Niki whispered. He continued to stare directly in front of him, eyes glazed over. “Tubbo, you need to eat.” “Not hungry.” “You haven’t eaten in two days,” Niki insisted. Tubbo continued to stare forward, unblinkingly, not saying a word. “Niki c’mon,” HBomb said gently as he rested a hand on her shoulder. She looked back at Tubbo once more before walking away to go sit with HBomb.

HBomb tried not to stare at Tubbo as he ate, but it was hard not to. Especially with Niki’s worry over him. It’d only been two days, but it just wasn’t like Tubbo at all, but then again, the only person he’d ever watched die was Schlatt. The other day he saw both Tommy and Sam die, and word got out that Quackity and Jack did also. “I’m worried about him,” Niki said softly. “I know. Me too,” HBomb responded between bites. “What if he just stops eating entirely?” “I won’t let him starve. If he doesn’t eat in a couple more days I’ll put the soup down his throat myself.” “Don’t joke around right now.” “I wasn’t.” They sat in silence after that. When they were nearly done with their soup Eret walked up to the two. “Dream is saying a speech tonight at my castle. I’m going to go and see what’s up,” he announced. “What if he kills you?” Niki said nervously. “I know the risks. And I have all my lives. I’ll respawn back here,” he reassured. “What if he captures you?” HBomb said grimly, “He could try and get information as to where we are.” “If I don’t come back in two days, move. I can last two days of torture.” “But where?” Niki asked. “It would defeat the point if I knew.” “Just… be careful,” HBomb requested. Eret nodded and left the underground city.

Foolish watched as Eret walked out of the cave, “Why didn’t we take those precautions with the Kinoko’s?” “No one knew they came here,” Hannah replied. “How do we know none of them will just tell Dream where we are?” “They wouldn’t,” Hannah turned to look at him, “Didn’t you use to work for them? When did you lose all your trust?” He looked her dead in the eyes, “When do you think?”

Part 7 - Recruitments:
Two Days After the Escape

Techno and Dream snuck through the woods that lay right next to Las Nevadas, where two of the strongest people on the server that are hunting for him might be. They had decided against invisibility potions just in case they ever had to actually go someplace on the server, not just the woods next to it. “He might not even be here,” Techno mumbled. “He was here yesterday and I know Tommy’s not here right now, so this is our best bet,” Dream whispered. “Is that a-” Techno never finished his sentence. He was staring at the middle of the lake. “Well we know Wilbur and Tommy were here,” Techno chuckled softly. “Technoblade? Dream?” Wilbur called out. “Keep it down,” Dream quickly whispered. “We’re not exactly supposed to be here,” Techno mumbled, “Or just be alive in general. Did you see what happened to the prison?” “Of course! And I gotta say, that’s some impressive work you guys did there. Techno, did you break Dream out of prison?” “Er… yeah, you could say that.” “Well nice job! It's almost as grand as the one I made over at L’Manburg,” he laughed, “And Dream, I just want to say thank you for bringing me back. That place felt like literal Hell.” He started laughing again. This was a terrible idea, Techno thought. This guy’s perfect, Dream chuckled to himself. “On the note of bringing you back,” Dream started, “We need your help now.” “Whatever you need! After all, I owe you my life. You’re my hero, Dream.” Techno looked at the ground. Limbo really messed this guy up. Hopefully Philza wasn’t too naive to see how crazy his son is. “We need you to spy on Quackity and Sam for us. It shouldn’t be too hard since you live right next to Las Nevadas.”

Quackity sat at the Las Nevadas restaurant. Sam stood next to him, ready to defend Quackity if it came to it. Charlie hadn’t been able to get much information on this guy's intentions. He claimed that he had been going back and forth on whether he wanted to kill Quackity or join him. Hopefully he could convince him of the latter, Quackity thought. Purpled walked in in full netherite. That wasn’t a good sign, Sam thought, I could still probably take him and it’s two against one, but still not a good sign. “Have you decided on where your loyalties lie?” Quackity asked as soon as he sat down. “Quackity, why should I join you?” “Money. Freedom. The sense of being wanted.” “Why am I wanted?” Purpled questioned. He already had a general idea of the answer. He just wanted to hear it. “Quackity, we are in some deep crap right now. Dream has escaped. You know this. We need to find and kill him before he hurts anyone. There’s also something else that I will only tell you if you agree to join us.” It was nice being wanted. He’d already made the answer when he walked in the door. “I’ll join you, Quackity. I’ll join Las Nevadas.”

“We’ve searched everywhere! Where is he?” Tommy paced the floor of the mansion. “Tommy, we’ve searched Techno’s house, the prison, and Dream’s old bases. I would hardly call that searching,” Tubbo responded. “Well where else would they be?” He yelled. “Not in an obvious place,” Tubbo suggested. “Michael!” They heard Ranboo walk into the mansion. Michael ran downstairs and jumped into his father’s arms while Tubbo and Tommy followed him. “Hey guys,” Ranboo greeted, “Hey Michael.” He gave Michael a peck on the head and set him down. Michael immediately ran off to go play. “Have you seen it?” Tommy immediately got to the point. “You mean the giant crater just over there? Yeah, I’ve seen it.” “We’re searching for Dream, but we have no idea where he is,” Tubbo explained. “It wouldn’t be much of a search if you did,” Ranboo responded sarcastically. “Well do you know where he could be?” Tommy asked impatiently. “Have you tried that mountain place?” Ranboo suggested. Tubbo shuffled his feet, “No.” “Well that would be a good place to start. Let’s go.”

Part 8 - Three Arrows Shot:
Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Gore, Manipulation

The only warning of Techno coming in was his thumping up the stairs. He didn’t say a word. Dream was waiting on top of the balcony, knowing he’d come. The old Badlander’s had left, giving Techno the perfect chance to kill Dream. Dream saw it coming from a mile away, but he didn’t anticipate how fast Techno’s reflexes were. He almost got him. “You son of a-” Techno started. “C’mon Techno,” Dream interrupted, still dodging between Techno’s attacks, “Let’s settle this like men. Talk it out.” “I prefer settling it like gods,” Techno replied angrily. “Ah yes,  ‘blood for the Blood God, Technoblade never dies.’ You’d never be able to settle this a civilized way,” Dream taunted. “Yeah, that’s not going to work,” Techno responded quickly, sliding under Dream to trip him. It worked and Techno was on top of Dream within seconds. Crap, Dream thought, I have to get through this quickly. “I wouldn’t kill me if I were you,” Dream said as calmly as he could, though his voice still shook a little bit. “And why not?” Techno asked, pressing his blade up against Dream’s throat. “Cause I can bring him back!” Dream said quickly, forgetting to act calm. It's too late now. “You killed him!” The sword nicked him just slightly to the left of his Adam's apple. “Well I wouldn’t have if you didn’t run off!” “That’s the worst excuse I’ve ever heard!” The nick became a cut. “Look, if you want him to come back, you can’t kill me,” Dream explained. “Then bring him back,” Techno demanded. “Well that would be a bad business move on my part.” Techno started to push on the sword. “I’ll bring him back! Just only after you assist me.” “So you want me to become your little puppet?” “You were willing to give up your life for Carl,” Dream reminded him, “Don’t you pay those who help you ten fold?” Techno stared at Dream for a second before standing up. “What do you need me to do?” Techno asked, the anger never leaving his voice. “Find the people who fought for Las Nevadas. Find them and capture them all. Kill them if you have to. I won’t be having a revolution in my country,” Dream commanded, “And remember, you’re doing this for Philza.”

Part 9 - Limbo:
Trigger Warning: Death

Philza woke up in a cave. He was surrounded by dirt and stone with a ceiling that he could touch without straightening his arm. He’d been here before. Just this time it happened so quickly. “Phil?” He never thought he’d hear that voice again. “Hey Tommy,” Philza greeted softly, “How’s your limbo?” “Dark,” he responded glumly. Philza nodded, “Mine too.” There was a moment of silence. “Are you alright, Tommy?” Philza finally asked. “Yeah, I am. I hate to say it, but this was easier with Wilbur here. At least he talked to me. Everyone is still pissed about the battle.” “Weren’t most people here on the same side?” “Jack wasn’t, and Punz tried to join Dream’s side afterwards. That coward. That’s why Dream killed him. At least I’ve got Mexican Dream though, wherever that idiot is.” Tommy sighed, “Why are you here?” “Techno and I tried to get away. He shot me in the back.” “I suppose that's worse than being stabbed in the chest. At least I knew it was going to happen.” “Trust me Tommy, surprise deaths are a lot better than knowing your inevitable fate.” I guess I should’ve been more reassuring, Philza thought. I just can’t help but feel pissed off right now. “How’s Tubbo?” Tommy perked up. “I haven’t seen him since the battle. All the survivors on the other side, along with Niki and HBomb, are missing. Probably for the best though. Dream’s taken over the entire place. He’s trying to disband The Badlands. I don’t know if he succeeded though,” Philza explained. “Tubbo,” Tommy whispered to himself. Why did they have to go and see what was happening at The Badlands?

“Someone just died,” Quackity announced. “Should I go check who?” Sam asked. “No, we can later. I want to keep working on this,” Quackity responded after thinking for a moment. “Does anyone know how to do it?” Sam pondered. “I’ve heard Schlatt’s done it once. Same with Wilbur.” “Well that’s not helpful. Did anyone see it happen?” “I don’t know who. Tubbo told me about both. He said Philza was with him for Schlatt’s. And Eret and Ranboo. I suppose we could ask Ghostbur, but he doesn’t talk very much. Oh, Tommy was with him for Wilbur’s.” “Have you seen Tommy around at all lately?” Sam asked with worry in his tone. He hadn’t handled death well the first time. Sure, this time he didn’t have Wilbur to torment him, but he was still worried. “I saw him a couple times hanging around with Mexican Dream. I walked into him talking with Jack once, but quickly left cause that wasn’t going well,” Quackity explained. “Tommy!” Sam called out.

“Sam’s calling me,” Tommy announced to Philza, “Want to come with me?” “I’m still trying to figure out how this place works,” Philza admitted. “Just think about going to them and they’ll basically just appear by you, and you’ll appear by them,” Tommy explained. “Alright,” Philza mumbled as he followed his instructions. This was going to be awkward. “Hey Tommy. We need to talk to you about something,” Quackity greeted, “And er… Philza, hey. Were you the one who just got here?” “Yes, that was me. Dream killed me. And no hard feelings for the crap you did to me.” “Right, um, yeah. No hard feelings.” “So how’s your guy’s limbo?” Philza asked, trying to make small talk. “Yeah, we don’t really talk about that stuff around here. Kind of an uncomfortable subject for most of us,” Sam explained uncomfortably. “Sorry. I didn’t know. That’s all Schlatt talked about when I was here with him. He kept complaining about the sound of the ocean and the rocking of a boat.” “Here with him? Phil, when were you here with Schlatt?” Tommy looked around the cave in a confused manner. “I was late to the fight for a reason Tommy. I was dead for a while before Dream brought me back to The Badlands.” “Really? Did you two know this?” He looked at Quackity and Sam. They both nodded. “I mean, I didn’t know he got revived till after I died, but yeah I knew he was dead,” Quackity confessed, “Anyways, Tommy and Philza, I suppose you’d be helpful too. Did Wilbur or Schlatt ever come to, you know, the Overworld? The land of the living? Not as Ghostbur or Glatt, but as themselves?” “Well Wilbur spoke to us right after we threw Dream in prison. His body wasn’t there, but his voice was there. He said there was like a tunnel and he saw us and went through it. He got pulled back after a few minutes though,” Tommy explained. “Wait, you spoke to Will? Before he was resurrected?” Philza interrogated. Tommy nodded, “He asked us how we won and said that he didn’t want to come back, though I suppose he changed his mind.” “Philza?” Sam looked at him. “Yeah I spoke to Schlatt a bit. We were trying to resurrect Wilbur, maybe it had something to do with your experience, but it didn’t work and the second time we tried Schlatt started talking through Ghostbur’s body saying that he didn’t want to come back and said that he wanted cigarettes and protein powder. Why do you need to know?” “Isn’t it obvious?” Quackity started, “We want to come back, even if it’s only temporary. Maybe if we go for a small period of time we can go for longer.” Tommy laughed, “Oh we’re not the ones to talk to for that.” “Who then?” Quackity pondered. “You’re not going to like it.” “Who?” He insisted. “Jack.”

Part 10 - Burning Lemons:
Five Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence, Death, Gore

“Charlie!” Quackity called out as soon as he got up the bubble elevator. He’d been scouting out the prison since the explosion. “Did you find anything?” Quackity asked with urgency, “Who all came there?” “Well the red-shirt guy, the bee guy, and the enderman guy kept coming back to it. The purple guy was looking around it a lot a couple days ago. The guy who used to be dead went to it the day after it happened. Oh, and one guy said that he did it.” “Who?” Quackity asked quickly. Was this it? “It was the blue rock guy. He went there with the demon, the cat guy, the girl who really wants breakfast, and the flowery girl,” Charlie explained. “Skeppy?” Sam questioned, “There is no way that was Skeppy.” “What exactly did he say?” Quackity asked. “The flowery girl said, ‘Did any of you guys do this?’ and the blue rock guy said, ‘Yes, cause I could’ve done this.’” Quackity put his face in his hands, “Charlie I need to teach you about sarcasm. Did you see anything else?” “Well most of the server went to the crater to look at it. There were also a lot of crows flying around.” Sam perked up, “Crows?” “Yeah, big, black crows flying around the entire thing. Some of them wore necklaces,” Charlie explained. “Philza Minecraft, what have you done?” Quackity mumbled.

The group of three all turned their heads as they heard someone come up the bubble elevator. “Ponk?” Sam was shocked at the sudden appearance of his old friend, though he didn't know if he could call them that now. He’d made some mistakes. “How do you know about this place?” He went on to ask. “Connor said you might be here,” he responded, “I’ve got to say, this place is amazing.” “Thanks, um, Quackity, Charlie, do you mind waiting downstairs?” Quackity nodded and directed Charlie to the hole in the ground. “Ponk, what are you doing here?” “What, are you not happy to see me?” Ponk asked sarcastically. Sam kept a straight, serious face. “I was just making sure you were all right. I saw the prison, though I think everyone has at this point. You’d have to be living under a rock to not have, so maybe Connor hasn’t, but almost everyone has.” “So you’re alright?” Sam asked impatiently. “I mean, yeah. I was just making sure you were,” Ponk replied a little taken aback. “Well I’m fine. I’m going to need you to leave now.” “Sam, do you really not want to see me? I mean the last time we saw each other you did this to me,” he gestured towards his nub of an arm, “I figured if I could forget about that, you certainly could.” “Can’t you see I’m busy right now?” Sam was starting to get frustrated. Why couldn’t he just leave? “Busy with what?” Ponk demanded, “Searching for Dream? Because I don’t see you doing it!” “Yes, searching for Dream. I’m not just going to run around the server like a headless chicken. So unless you have any information, the way out is right there,” his tone darkened, “You don’t have any information do you?” “What, do you think I could’ve done this?” Ponk yelled. “Of course not, you’re not capable of this,” Sam said with an eye roll. “I’m not capable because I’m a good guy or because you think I’m weak?” “Ponk-” “Cause I could easily do something like this. You saw me at Foolish’s place. I blew up his statue by just batting an eye at it.” “Ponk-” “Sure, the Egg helped a bit, but it was still me. I heard the Egg. I told it what to blow up. I mean, what have you done?” “Ponk, just shut up!” He swung his sword. He hadn’t meant to land it, but he did. Ponk lay on the ground bleeding now. “Ponk, I”m sorry. I didn't mean,” Sam leaned over him. His body disappeared. Ponk appeared at his respawn point. Callahan was there. “Follow me, Callahan,” Ponk commanded as he walked out of the building. He nodded and obediently fell into step with Ponk. They soon arrived at Ponk’s lemon tree. The sixth one. It had been standing for so long. It had no use now. “Do you have a flint and steel?” Ponk asked, not even looking at him. Just staring at the tree. Callahan tossed one to him. The two old friends watched as the tree crumbled to dust as the flames enveloped the entire thing. “I’m leaving this place, Callahan,” Ponk announced. Callahan turned to him. “I can’t take this place anymore. At least with the Egg I had some sense of purpose. Now I’m just nothing. You're the only friend I’ve got, and no offence, but I need someone who will talk.” Callahan nodded. “I think I’m going to find Alyssa. She’s been writing letters to us. I’m sure I can find where she’s been staying,” Ponk turned to look back at Callahan, “Will you be coming with me?” Callahan thought it over for a minute, and finally nodded.

Part 11 - Caught Red Handed:
Seven Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Death, Gore, Violence

Wilbur crouched behind the counter of the Las Nevadas restaurant. Sure this was a dangerous spot to be hiding, but he had been searching for food when Quackity and Sam walked in and he figured it was a good time to spy for Dream. “That’s messed up, Sam,” Quackity shook his head. “I didn’t mean to. He’s gone anyways now. It doesn’t matter,” Sam said with his head in his hands. “It matters because of your guilt. I can’t have this ruining our mission, nor can this cause people to become enemies of Las Nevadas.” “Trust me, guilt is something I can ignore. I’m the warden after all, or was,” Sam reassured, “And he left town with Callahan. He’s not going to become our enemy anytime soon. If anyone, we should be worrying about The Badlands. I mean, I did leave them to join Las Nevadas. Or Wilbur and Tommy. They’re bound to do something soon.” Wilbur’s eyes lit up with interest as they mentioned his name. “Hopefully they’re smart enough to wait until all this is over before they do something drastic,” Sam went on. “I wouldn’t put it past them. Wilbur’s unpredictable, and Tommy follows him around like a puppy.” He’s not wrong, Wilbur thought. “Come outside I need to show you something,” Quackity announced. What did Sam do? Wilbur waited a few minutes before he slowly got up from behind the counter and walked outside.

“I told you it wasn’t Charlie. I’d recognize that hair anywhere.” Quackity and Sam were standing outside, face to face with Wilbur. “Hey guys, do you have any spare food?” Wilbur asked nervously. “Give it a rest, Wilbur. How much did you hear?” Quackity pulled out his sword as he asked it. Sam followed his lead. Wilbur ran for the woods. Wilbur was faster than Quackity and Sam wore armor, slowing him down. This gave Wilbur an advantage. That was until he ran straight into Tommy. “What the-” Tommy rubbed his head in pain. Wilbur got off him quickly to find that Tubbo and Ranboo were there also. “Are you okay, Wilbur?” Tubbo asked. “Um, no not really. I’ve got to go now,” Wilbur replied and started to run off again. Tommy grabbed his arm, “Wait a minute. What is going on?” Quackity and Sam burst through the woods into the clearing with the stone building. “That,” Wilbur gasped. Wilbur started running again. Quackity and Sam started chasing after him, but Tommy blocked their path. “Tommy-” Quackity started. “Stay away from Wilbur,” Tommy commanded in as deep a voice he could make. Wilbur skidded to a halt, “Yes Tommy!” “I really don’t want to do this, Tommy,” Quackity held his sword up. Tommy was the first to swing his sword. Tubbo quickly joined in. Ranboo looked between the two sides and decided that he needed to help his friends, and started shooting at the two opponents from atop the stone building. Wilbur could easily run away now, but he didn’t want Tommy or Tubbo to die, so he made the decision to join the fight. Tubbo and Tommy fought Sam together, while Wilbur fought Quackity and Ranboo rained arrows down from above. Neither Wilbur nor Quackity were skilled his hand-to-hand combat, but they were equally skilled. Constantly dodging each others blows and coming back with their own. But then Ranboo shot Quackity in the shoulder. Quackity tried to ignore it, but it slowed down his movements a lot. Wilbur soon gave a killing blow. As soon as Quackity’s body fell to the ground and disappeared, Sam ran back to Las Nevadas, knowing he couldn’t fight four people. “Alright, I have to go,” Wilbur announced and started to run off. “Where are you going, Will?” Tommy asked with concern. He had no idea what just went on before the battle, but it wasn’t good. “Somewhere you guys can’t go,” Wilbur answered, turning around to face the trio once more. “Why not? Wilbur, what’s going on?” “I’m going to Dream, Tommy. I’m going to Dream and Techno and Philza to stay with them.” “What? No, Wilbur, you can’t. That’s a terrible idea. You don’t know what Dream’s capable of,” Tommy took a few steps back in shock. “Wilbur, why were Quackity and Sam chasing you?” Tubbo asked nervously. Now someone was asking the right questions, Wilbur thought with amusement. “They caught me spying on them,” Wilbur laughed, “Caught me red-handed. I can’t stay here anymore, and you guys can’t come with me, because as much as it seems I don’t care, Tommy, Tubbo, I don’t want you guys to die. I’m not going to let it happen by dragging you along to your enemies hide-out.” Ranboo shuffled his feet. He had been silent the entire time, but it was because he was thinking. Thinking about something that could possibly ruin all his friendships. Something that Tommy and Tubbo will never forgive him for. He sighed, “Can I come?” “What?” Tommy yelled out in surprise. “You’re not serious, are you Ranboo?” Tubbo asked. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, Ranboo,” Wilbur replied. “You can trust me. I’m part of The Syndicate with Techno and Phil. I helped break Dream and Techno out of prison,” Ranboo turned towards Tubbo and Tommy, “I’m really sorry guys, but my enderwalk state helped Dream for a reason. And I trust Techno and Philza. Maybe this can help me control it.” “Woah, woah, woah, back up a second here. Techno was in prison? And what is an enderwalk state?” Wilbur chuckled nervously. “It doesn’t matter. Please let me come. I’ve just ruined my friendship with them so I could come,” Ranboo begged. Tommy shot Ranboo in the head. Blood splattered everywhere before his body disappeared. “Tommy!” Tubbo shouted. “You can pick him up at his respawn point,” Tommy mumbled before dragging Tubbo off.

Part 12 - Two Days of Torture:
Trigger Warning: Forced Labor

Michael was ruthless. No breaks. You had to sneak a bite of food when he wasn’t looking. Eret and Karl were lucky that he had allowed George and Sapnap to help. They had no idea what time it was, but they were exhausted. They had started mining blackstone in the early afternoon. It had to have been past sundown by now. Karl kept insisting to George and Sapnap that they could take a break, as they were clearly exhausted, but they refused. Eret couldn’t help but be happy that they stayed. It made the work go quicker. Michael had said as soon as he and Karl each had an inventory full of blackstone, they could stop for the night. They only needed two more stacks. Eret was hoping he could get away then. He couldn’t believe he had ever considered staying here. A pebble hit Eret’s back. He turned around to see Karl eating a bit of steak. Eret nodded and started eating his own steak. His eyes wandered over to Michael. He was talking with Ranboo. It couldn’t have been that late then. Ranboo glanced at Eret and he quickly put his food away and started working again, begging that he wouldn’t say anything to Michael. George, who was mining closer to Michael so he could warn Karl and Eret of him coming over ever or if they could eat some food, snuck over to Eret. “Ranboo is trying to convince Michael to let him talk to you,” he whispered as he started mining side by side with Eret. Eret nodded and watched as George went back to his mining spot. Eret’s stomach felt sick. Maybe if he threw up he could go home. HIs thoughts were interrupted by Michael’s shout, “How much do you guys have left?” They huddled up and counted their blackstone stacks. “A little bit less than one,” Sapnap responded. Michael nodded and pondered something for a moment. “Eret, you're done for the day. Ranboo needs to speak with you. Come back here when you’re done though,” he announced, “Karl, finish up the work. Your friends may continue helping you. “Yes, sir,” Karl mumbled as the three went back to mining blackstone.

Eret cautiously followed Ranboo through the Nether to the secluded spot. “Are you doing alright, Eret?” Ranboo asked in a concerned tone. “Er, yeah I’m fine,” Eret responded nervously. What was he planning on doing? His stomach started growling. “Do you need some food?” Ranboo offered. “No, I’ve got some,” Eret replied quickly. Was this a trick? He saw him eat his own food earlier. After a few seconds of silence, Ranboo asked, “You know you can eat it, right?” “Um, yeah, of course.” Eret warily took out his steak and started eating it. After a few bites he stopped being cautious and devoured the rest of it. Ranboo looked at Eret with pity, “I’m not going to hurt you. I just needed to ask you something.” Eret immediately felt like he was going to throw all that steak back up again. Was this what Dream had planned? Make me feel comfortable and then try and trick me into telling one of his goons? “How is Tubbo?” What? “I don’t expect you to tell me where he is. I’ve made some terrible mistakes. I wouldn’t trust me either. I just need to know if he’s alright. I at least need to know if he’s alive.” Eret stalled for a second, but then nodded, “He’s alive. He’s not doing too well though. He’s very shaken up.” Should he have told him that? Ranboo looked down in shame, “Thank you. I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything else. Some of the things that happened, some of the things that I did, they were messed up.” There was another pause, “I better take you back to Michael.” He looked back up at Eret, “I know what Michael’s doing. If you guys ever need any help ever, you can ask me. I mean, I’ve got a child to raise now, but I’ll help with whatever I can.” Eret nodded in gratitude. Was this all an act? Or was he actually sorry? Ranboo led him back to where they were mining. The other three were just finishing up when they got there.

“What were you guys doing?” Michael interrogated them. “If it was your business I would have talked to him here,” Ranboo responded coldly. Michael frowned and mumbled something to himself. “Also Dream told me your guys' housing assignments. He wants everyone in Dream SMP territory, which is now also Boomerville, L’Manburg, or what’s left of it, Snowchester, The Badlands, and Las Nevadas,” Ranboo explained. “Well what are they?” Michael asked impatiently. “You’re staying at Jack’s old house in Snowchester. Karl is staying at HBomb’s old house in Boomerville, Eret is staying at Hannah’s old house, George is staying at Bad and Skeppy’s old mansion in The Badlands, and Sapnap is staying at mine and Tubbo’s old mansion in Snowchester. Sapnap, I’d appreciate it if you’d let me move Michael out before you settled.” Ranboo added, “My son Michael, not you.” “Of course,” Sapnap responded. The Snowchester mansion? The quartz mansion? Those were the two biggest and nicest builds on the server, or at least in Dream’s territory, other than the castle that’s being built. He knew what Dream was doing and he didn’t like it.

Part 13 - The Move:
Trigger Warning: Depression, Self-Harm, Violence, Gore, Drinking

HBomb, Foolish, Hannah, and Fundy sat together as Niki handed them some carrots. You would’ve never seen most of these people together before this. Now they've been living with each other for almost five days. Tubbo was the one who stood out, yet at the same time he didn’t. He hadn’t even moved since they’d come here. He hadn’t slept, hadn’t eaten, he barely even blinked. Niki walked over to him, “Tubbo, I have food, and don’t say you’re not hungry. You haven’t eaten in four days.” “I’m not.” “You might need your energy tonight. You have to eat something.” “I’ll be fine.” “Tubbo,” she raised her voice slightly in frustration. HBomb got up from where he was eating and walked over to the two. Niki started to walk off, knowing that HBomb was just going to do what he did every meal, but he surprised her. “Tubbo, you need to eat.” “Leave me alone,” he mumbled. HBomb grabbed Tubbo’s arm and heaved him up to his feet. Tubbo immediately started shaking and had to grab onto HBomb’s shoulder to stop him from falling. “We have to leave this place tonight. We can’t do that if you can’t even stand properly. Eat.” Tubbo pulled away from HBomb and fell on his hands and knees. HBomb helped him back in a sitting position. Tubbo held out an outstretched hand towards Niki.

The group stood in front of the portal that led out of Niki’s base. “We are going to travel halfway there in the Nether and then go off track and get into the Overworld to throw anybody looking for us off track. I’ll blow up the portal as we go through. We then travel the rest of the way through the Overworld. Niki is the only one who knows where we are going to don’t let her get captured at all costs.” HBomb explained the plan to everyone. Niki’s portal was close to the Nether Hub so they had to be careful. Niki would be leading them while he hung at the back and stayed as a lookout. “Is everyone ready?” HBomb asked. Everyone nodded. “Then Niki, lead the way.”

Fundy and Foolish, who shrunk down to human size, stuck right by Niki while Hannah assisted Tubbo behind them. Tubbo stumbled a lot but he managed to keep pace with everyone else. HBomb felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise. He looked around, but only saw piglin going about their business. HBomb sped up so he could talk to Niki, “I think someone’s watching us.” Niki nodded and HBomb fell back behind to the back. Fundy fell back with him. “Who do you think is watching us?” He asked nervously. “I don’t know. I only see piglin,” HBomb whispered back. Fundy went pale, “What if it’s-“ Fundy got yanked backwards by his tail. HBomb turned around and to his horror, Techno stood there holding a struggling Fundy by the scruff. “Run!” HBomb called out. Everyone turned around and as soon as they saw who they were facing they started running. That is except for Niki. While Foolish and Hannah helped lead Tubbo along, Niki ran at Techno with her sword out. Techno smashed a weakness and slowness potion on Fundy’s head and tossed him to the side. HBomb pulled out his axe and joined Niki in the fight. “You need to get out of here,” HBomb called out to Niki during the fight, “Where’d you learn to fight?” Niki was avoiding most of Techno’s attacks and countering them with her own. “Only from the best,” she replied, “Or more like the best’s mentor.” While HBomb didn't understand, Techno did. He switched his tactics to only ones he taught himself, not the ones Philza taught him. He almost landed a fatal blow on Niki, but HBomb blocked it. “Take Fundy and get out of here!” He yelled. She had to take the others to the base. He couldn’t let her stay to fight. Meanwhile, Foolish has snuck back to grab the collapsed Fundy. Niki saw this and knew, despite her judgement, she had to leave HBomb. They were losing and she couldn’t get captured nor could she allow Techno to follow them. She swung one last blow at Techno before she ran off with Foolish. HBomb didn’t last long after that. He had minor wounds all over his body and he was soaked in blood. Eventually, he collapsed. Techno didn’t bother even using the potions on him. He just threw him over his shoulder and left.

HBomb woke up in a cell. Nothing like Pandora’s Vault, but it did have obsidian walls and iron bars so whatever guard was on duty could see him. “You're awake.” Schlatt scrambled to stand up. “Where the heck am I? What happened to my wounds?” HBomb sat up against the wall. “Regen potion. Dream couldn’t let you die.” Schlatt started chuckling. HBomb noticed the empty, and full, bottles and realized he was drunk. Some guard. “Alright. So where am I?” HBomb repeated. Schlatt stopped laughing and stood up straighter, “In a cell.” “Right,” HBomb mumbled as he slumped against the wall. The two stayed silent, other than the occasional mumbling and laughing from Schlatt, for an hour or so. HBomb couldn’t stand watching it anymore, and he knew what was to come. “Can I have one?”

Part 14 - Kinoko Destroyed:
12 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Death

“Are we ever going to do anything?” Wilbur asked while munching on an apple. Dream, Philza, Techno, and Ranboo looked up with interest. “I mean, I’ve been here five days and all we’ve done is raid the remains of Techno’s vault that Ranboo learned about from Tubbo,” he went on, “And from what I can tell you two didn’t do anything other than ask me to spy for you in the week before that.” He took another bite of his apple. “These things take planning,” Dream explained whilst chewing on his own food. “You guys didn't exactly plan the destruction of L'Manburg,” Ranboo argued. Everyone looked at him. “He had a point,” he shrugged. “I agree. Besides, I’d like to get out of here. This place doesn’t exactly scream ‘happy memories,’ Techno added, gesturing to the walls around him. Wilbur nodded. Sure, Pogtopia had escape routes and supplies that were left behind, along with the fact that most people had generally forgotten that it was here, but none of them enjoyed the place at all. “Fine. What do you guys propose then?” Dream asked angrily. He didn’t enjoy having to share leadership. If all went to plan, though, that would end soon. “Something that would send a sign to everyone else. Something unexpected,” Wilbur held up a flint and steel, “I’m thinking maybe a bit of arson.” “I like the sound of that,” Techno rubbed his hands together excitedly. Ranboo looked nervous, “Where?” “We could do Snowchester,” Wilbur suggested. “No!” Techno and Ranboo shouted at the same time. Dream and Wilbur looked at them with confused looks on their faces. “Yeah, there’s a huge oil rig at that place. No arson should go there,” Techno lied. “Nope. No way any of us would make it out of there,” Ranboo added with a chuckle. The two, along with Philza,  made a silent agreement not to say anything about the nukes. At least for now. Ranboo had a different reason also. One that he wouldn’t tell any of the group, those Wilbur might know from Ghostbur meeting them and Philza knew. Dream gave the two a suspicious look, but nodded in agreement, “The Badlands and Las Nevadas aren’t exactly flammable, and Boomerville is too small and unknown for most people to really take notice if we burned it to the ground. So we should probably go for Kinoko.” The group thought it over for a minute, but soon they all agreed that Kinoko would be the best option for the arson.

The five went immediately rather than waiting for night. They didn’t want the Kinoko’s to be asleep during the fire. They were trying to send a sign, not kill anyone. Instead of using the cover of darkness, they used invisibility potions and took the risk of not wearing their armor. They all split up when they got there since the kingdom was rather large and had a lot of builds, especially compared to most of the other countries on the server. Sapnap noticed the fires almost immediately. He’d always had somewhat of a sixth sense when it came to knowing when there was fire or lava around, even though the building he was in wasn’t currently burning. He ran outside, “George! Karl!” He looked around. Smoke seemed to be rising in all directions. How were all these fires starting? He heard coughing nearby. “George?” He ran in the building he heard it in, ignoring the flames around him. He found George quickly since the building was small, but he was under some rubble that had caved in when the fires started. Sapnap quickly started trying to lift it up, but there was a large piece on George’s back. “Karl!” Sapnap started frantically calling out, “Help! Anybody! Karl! Foolish! Bad!” Sapnap fell to his knees and started coughing up smoke. He may be resistant to flames, but he reacted to smoke normally. “Go find Karl,” George rasped. “No. I’m not leaving you,” Sapnap responded and started trying to lift the debris off George again. “I’m a goner Sapnap, but Karl might not be.” George went into a fit of hoarse coughing again. “But you’ll come back, right? You’ve only died once.” Sapnap’s eyes started to fill with tears, from both the heat and George. “I went to the prison on a bad day,” George tried to chuckle, but couldn’t get it out. “No, no, no,” Sapnap started mumbling as he tried to lift the debris off once again. “Sapnap, leave. I’ve had a good life. I assisted in starting two countries, ran for vice president of L’Manburg, was king of the Dream SMP. I can die.” “Don’t say that!” “Sapnap, you're starting to burn. You have to get out of here or we’ll both die,” George begged. Sapnap shook his head frantically as he continued to try and lift the beam off, tears now streaming down his face. Sapnap heard stumbling footsteps outside. “Leave. Help Karl.” George's eyes started to close. Sapnap looked between George, the crumbling doorway, and his burning arms. “Goodbye,” he whispered as he made his final decision and ran out the doorway. A burn-covered Karl was stumbling across the grass with his arms full of books. Karl shoved a few into Sapnap’s arms as soon as they got to each other. It took Karl a moment to process Sapnap’s tears and burns, but he noticed. “What happened? Why are you burned?” “George didn’t-” Sapnap wasn’t able to finish his sentence. Karl understood and knew that he couldn’t talk about it right now. Karl had to stay strong for both of them, since they didn’t have Quackity to do that for them anymore. “C’mon. We have to get out of here,” Karl beckoned and the two carried the books to Alyssa’s stable, which was far enough from the flames to be a good stop to rest. They found Niki there. “What’s going on? Why are there fires everywhere?” Niki asked nervously. Karl hadn’t even thought about her. Sure, she wasn’t a part of Kinoko Kingdom, but she lived directly under them. Of course she was affected by this also. It seemed she got out unharmed for the most part, though. Good. He’d run into the flames to save a few books. George had already died from what he felt like was his fault, and Sapnap was covered in burns and scratches. Karl shook his head, “We don’t know. Are you alright?” “Yeah, I’m fine. A little shaken up, but fine.” She looked back at the collapsing buildings, “I suppose there is no rebuilding this place.” Karl had to hold back the tears that came with losing his home and one of his best friends, “No, I suppose there isn’t.”

Part 15 - Kinoko Fire Aftermath:
13 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Gore, Disability

Sapnap dug through the rubble of Kinoko. Where is he? A body can’t just up and walk away. Did he really just burn to a crisp? Can I just not recognize his body now? “Sapnap.” He pulled out his axe and turned around, but lowered it as soon as he saw who it was. “Hello Bad,” he greeted his old friend, “Um… you’re over that egg thing, right?” “Yes. Puffy gave up one of her lives stopping it,” Bad explained, “What- What happened to this place?” “Burned to the ground. Niki thinks it was Dream and Techno,” Sapnap explained as he kicked a piece of burnt wood. “Huh. That explains it,” Bad murmured to himself. “Hm?” Sapnap looked up. “Sapnap, I need to show you something. Go ahead and get Karl,” Bad ignored the question. “What about Nki?” “It doesn’t have much to do with her, but I suppose she can come.” Sapnap nodded and ran to the entrance to Niki’s underground base.

Bad led Karl and Sapnap to The Badlands. The Quartz Mansion to be specific. Niki had decided not to come since she didn’t want to butt in to what sounded like personal matters. “You haven’t told us why you're leading us all this way. We’re still recovering,” Karl pointed out. “I’m sorry, but it’s better for you just to see it. And it’s not something that can wait,” Bad explained. Karl and Sapnap looked at each other nervously. Skeppy jogged up to the trio when they got there. “He’s awake,” Skeppy announced. “Who’s awake?” Sapnap asked, looking between the two Badlanders. Skeppy didn’t say anything and beckoned them inside the mansion and led them upstairs. Ant, Puffy, and Hannah were all surrounding a bed, but moved out of the way when the group got upstairs. Sapnap froze, “G-George?” He was covered in burns. Enough to make him unrecognizable, but Sapnap and Karl recognized him. They recognized his dark brown eyes, his singed brunette hair, the tattered bits of his blue Supreme shirt that remained. The two ran to the side of his bed and fell to their knees. He was breathing. It was raspy, short breaths, but it was breathing. “We found him on the doorstep yesterday.” Sapnap and Karl turned to Bad as he spoke. “We don’t know who brought him. He hasn’t changed much, but he’s awake now. He’s been out for a while.” “He’s awake?” The two turned back towards him. “I know it doesn’t look like it, but his eyes move to whoever is talking. He can see and hear us,” Ant explained. George moved his eyes around a bit to show. Sapnap gulped, “Is he going to live?” “Yes. He will live, but, um, I need to talk to you two downstairs,” Bad responded. Reluctantly, Karl and Sapnap followed Bad and Puffy downstairs. “What is it? What’s wrong?” Sapnap asked urgently. “George will live, yes, but… um,” Bad started. “He won’t completely recover,” Puffy finished for him. “Wha-What do you mean?” Karl stuttered. “His spine is broken. We will do everything we can to help him, but there is a chance that he will never walk again,” Puffy explained solemnly. “N-” Sapnap took a deep breath, “Never walk again?” Bad and Puffy nodded their heads. “He can stay here until he’s recovered as much as possible. You guys too. Or you guys can stay forever. Join The Badlands. You’re always welcome,” Bad stated. “You want us to join you?” Karl questioned. “I mean, Kinoko’s gone, and I’ve known Sapnap for a long time. Plus, uh, George does have to stay here for a while.” “We’ll talk about it,” Sapnap responded, “We’ll think about joining The Badlands.”

Part 16 - The Stasis Chamber:
Trigger Warning: Depression

“How’s your guys' project going?” Philza asked Quackity and Sam. “Not well. Jack won’t tell us anything. He gets pissed about everything,” Quackity answered. “We tried talking to Ghostbur also, but he didn’t seem to know anything. You and Tommy are sure that you don’t know anything?” Sam questioned. “I’ve told you everything. I’m sure Tommy has also. Where is Tommy, by the way?” Philza responded. “I think he’s with Ghostbur and Mexican Dream,” Quackity replied, “Probably playing poker again.” “Poker?” “Yeah. Mexican Dream taught the two of them how to play. That’s all they do now. Punz will join in every once in a while. I’ve played a couple rounds also,” Quackity explained. “What about you, Sam?” Philza turned towards the creeper flipping through his notes. “I’ve never been a big poker fan,” he responded. “Well, I might go join them. I’m getting tired of Solitaire. I taught it to Wilbur when he was a kid. He was good at it.” Philza realized he was rambling. “Well, see you guys-” Philza felt a sharp pain all over his body. Pain. He hadn’t felt pain in months. “Phil, what’s happening?” Quackity eyes widened, “You’re transparent, I can see through you!” Philza started seeing two places at once. One was the dark cave he’d been in, but at the same time he saw the Syndicate room, with Niki, Foolish, Hannah, and Fundy staring at him wide-eyed. Slowly he started seeing more of the Syndicate room than he saw of the cave. “Philza?” Niki took a slow step forward. “H-How am I here?” Philza stuttered. “Your pearl. It was, like, glitchy. We activated it to see what was going on,” Hannah explained, “Are you, um, dead?” “Yeah, I am. I have been for a while, though I suppose it’s only been a few days here. Now, I need you guys to tell me as much as possible about what’s going on here.” He couldn’t take the time to process him being here. He didn’t know when he’d be dragged back and he had to learn as much about what is happening as possible. “We’re in hiding. We came here after Eret never came back to our original base. HBomb got captured on the way here. We- we don’t know if he’s still alive,” Niki explained. “Captured? By who?” Philza asked. What was Dream doing? “Techno. He grabbed Fundy and HBomb and Niki got into a fight with him. Niki and I got Fundy away, but HBomb got captured. He kept fighting to make sure the rest of us got away,” Foolish explained. “What about you?” Philza turned towards Hannah. “What about me?” She asked, confused about the question. “HBomb was fighting and they were helping Fundy get away. What were you doing?” What an odd question, Hannah thought. “I was helping Tubbo get away. He can’t walk well on his own.” “Tubbo?” Philza strained his neck to look over the refugees, though it hurt even more to move around. Tubbo was sitting in what used to be Ranboo’s chair staring blankly forward. “Tubbo, are you alright?” Philza asked the silent child. He didn’t say anything. “Tubbo, Tommy’s been worried about you. He always mentions you when we talk.” “Tommy?” Tubbo croaked as he looked up. Tubbo stumbled out of his chair, using the table to balance himself as he made his way over to Philza. The other refugees stared at Tubbo wide-eyed, not wanting to say anything in case it ruined what was happening right now. “Is he alright? Is he okay?” Tubbo asked, with a pleading look in his eyes. “Tommy is fine. He’s learned poker. He’s been playing with Mexican Dream and Ghostbur. He’s just worried about you,” Philza reassured him. Relief and gratefulness filled Tubbo’s eyes. The pain that Philza felt got worse as he started seeing the cave that Quackity and Sam sat in, and now Tommy and Punz. “I’m going back,” Philza grunted as the Syndicate room faded. Philza collapsed as soon as he got completely back. “What the heck just happened?” Quackity yelled out as Tommy and Sam ran over to help Philza back up. “The stasis chamber,” Philza mumbled. “What?” Punz questioned. “The stasis chamber,” Philza repeated a little louder, “I had a stasis chamber with a pearl in it. They teleported me to them.” “Who’s they?” Sam asked. “Niki, Foolish, Hannah, Fundy, and Tubbo.” “Tubbo? How is he?” Tommy’s head shot up at the mention of his name. “He, uh, didn’t look too good. It looked like he'd barely slept or ate in days, though most of them looked pretty tired and hungry. Tubbo seemed to have it the worst though.” Philza paused for a second, “He was really worried about you.” Tommy slumped against the wall. “Those are all people who fought on our side,” Sam pointed out. “Yeah, they said they were in hiding. HBomb used to be with them, but Techno captured him,” Philza explained. “Techno is working for Dream? I thought he would’ve left,” Sam pondered. “Yeah, I thought that was weird. Especially since we tried to leave before,” Philza agreed. “I’ve got an idea of what’s going on,” Punz spoke up grimly. Everyone turned towards him. “I worked with Dream for a long time. I know how he works and how he runs things. I also know that keeping Techno on his side would mean everything to him. I was there at Techno’s Execution. I was there when he was willing to give up his life for his horse. What do you think he’d do if it meant bringing Philza back?” “Dream just wanted another puppet to play with,” Quackity muttered. “Oh Techno, don’t do this for me,” Philza whispered to himself. “Philza, I’m going to need you to tell me everything. This just gives us all the more of a reason to figure out how to get us back there,” Quackity commanded, “Everyone, we need to get Jack to talk.”

Part 17 - Dinner Invitation:
Trigger Warning: Drinking, Violence, Gore, Manipulation, Disability, Torture

HBomb slipped an empty bottle between the bars of his cell to hand to Schlatt. He’d lost count of how many he’d had. The two cackled at a joke Schlatt made together, but they immediately stopped when they heard footsteps walking downstairs. Schaltt stood up straighter than normal and attempted to kick the bottles into a second cell. He got some in, but there were still a few laying around. Dream walked briskly down the hallway to stand in front of HBomb’s cell. He looked at Schlatt, “Have you been drinking on the job?” “Just a little bit, your highness,” Schlatt gave a bit of a bow as he said it. Dream chuckled a bit. What did he expect? Dream pulled out his iron key and unlocked the cell in which HBomb sat limply inside. “Stand up,” Dream commanded impatiently. “I don’t need to listen to you,” HBomb disobeyed. Impatient, Dream pulled HBomb up by his collar, but HBomb shoved himself away from him, causing his head to hit against the wall, not before Dream could smell his breath though. “Are you drunk?” Dream asked angrily. “Nope,” HBomb started laughing, “I haven’t drunk since I move in with Niki.” “Right, yes! You moved in with Niki. Where is she?” Dream asked. He was getting somewhere. Maybe Schlatt sharing his drinks was a good thing. “I didn’t move in with Niki,” HBomb lied. Never mind. “You just said you did,” Dream pointed out. “I did?” Dream nodded. “Well I was lying.” Dream punched HBomb in the jaw. “Where is Niki?” “Ow,” HBomb rubbed his chin in pain and then punched Dream. Dream dodged it easily and grabbed HBomb’s arm to twist it behind his back, making his arms immobile. “Ow. Let go!” HBomb demanded. “Tell me where Niki is,” Dream commanded. “Who’s Niki?” Dream pulled on his arm harder. HBomb kicked his leg back. Dream grunted as it made contact. HBomb tried it again, but Dream caught his ankle in between his calves this time, leaving HBomb on one foot. Dream pulled his arm more. “I don’t know where Niki is!” Dream heard HBomb’s arm snap and he dropped him to the floor. “Son of a-” HBomb mumbled. Dream walked out of the cell and made sure to lock it behind him. He also made a mental note not to let Schlatt guard again. “I’ll send Ranboo to guard soon,” he announced to Schlatt. Schlatt nodded and immediately started grabbing the bottles from the other cell as soon as Dream left.

Dream walked up the stairs into his castle, or at least what was made of the castle. It was going to be a lot bigger than the original one. About the size of the Snowchester mansion, or Sapnap’s mansion. He was staying there with him for now since it was the biggest building on the server. He’d made sure not to allow anyone to live with anyone else to keep people from planning things behind his back. He walked out of the under construction castle and found Eret and Karl being watched over by Michael as they worked. Sapnap was assisting them and George helped out as best he could from a wheelchair. “How are you doing, George?” Dream asked as he walked past him. George turned to him, surprised by the question. “I’m doing fine, I guess,” he responded. He wouldn’t say anything of the cruel treatment given to Eret and Karl. At least not yet. “Good. Would you like to have dinner with me at Las Nevadas later?” “Um, I might need someone to help take me over there, but sure,” George agreed. What was he doing? “I’ll send someone to pick you up. Make sure you’re at your house,” Dream commanded. George nodded, “See you then.”

Dream watched as Ant pushed George into the Las Nevadas restaurant and parked him next to the table Dream was at. “Thank you, Ant. Go see if Puffy needs help in the kitchen,” Dream commanded. Ant mumbled something incoherently as he walked off. “So, um, what do you need me for?” George asked as the door shut behind Ant. “I just wanted to talk with you. It’s been a long time since we hung out,” Dream answered, “You’ve been working hard lately. You shouldn’t be assisting Eret and Karl that much in your state. You know you don’t have to help, right?” “I know. I don’t think Eret and Karl should have to do it on their own, though,” George responded, trying to hold back his anger. “They will thank me in the future for this. People's lives can be ruined by guilt. I don’t want that to happen for them not atoning for their sins.” “What sins? Not fighting? Sapnap and I didn’t either.” “You and Sapnap were roped into this by them. Don’t worry, I know it’s not your fault.” Puffy and Ant had been listening in and decided that for George’s sake, they should take orders. Ant walked out the door to the kitchen quickly, “What would you guys like to eat?” Dream looked suspiciously at Ant before ordering the beetroot soup. George ordered the cooked chicken. “Have you gotten used to moving around?” Dream asked as soon as Ant left. George nodded, “I guess so. I can’t exactly get up the stairs in my house.” “Hm. I’ll get a ramp installed.” “Thank you.” George sat in an awkward silence while Dream stared at George, pondering what had been said and what George was thinking about. Ant came out soon with the food. “There’s nothing in this food, right Ant?” Dream asked as the soup was placed in front of him. If looks could kill, Ant would’ve dropped dead right there, along with anyone in Las Nevadas at the time. “Of course not, Dream,” Ant replied calmly before walking off. “Has he tried before?” George questioned. “No, but there's a first for everything. Besides, their being oddly quiet back there,” Dream replied. George almost choked on his chicken when he heard the door burst open behind him. He turned around to see who it was. “Technoblade,” Dream greeted as Techno walked towards the two. “We need to talk,” Techno crossed his arms when he got to them. “Can’t you see that I’m busy?” Dream gestured towards the food on the table. “Do I look like I care? I don’t give a crap if George hears this,” Techno replied angrily. “Techno-” Techno interrupted, “I need you to let me off my duties for like an hour. I think I know where they are, or at least I’ve narrowed it down.” “There’s no reason to go on an aimless search when I can learn the exact location from HBomb,” Dream responded. “There’s not that many places they could be, though! You’d be a fool to not let me do this,” Techno pleaded. “I’d be a fool to let your duties go undone.” “Ranboo can do them!” “Ranboo’s guarding HBomb.” “I thought Schaltt was watching HBomb,” Techno questioned. “Schlatt’s a terrible guard,” Dream explained vaguely. “Then have Schlatt do my work.” “Not even I could convince Schlatt to do your work.” “Get Michael then. He’ll do anything for you.” “Michael has to watch Eret and Karl.” “Then give Eret and Karl a break. They certainly need one.” “They don’t deserve one though. You're sticking with your duties. You can catch the criminals if you see them,” Dream concluded. Techno stormed out of the building, cracking the glass on the door as he slammed it shut.

Part 18 - Raise a Glass for Freedom:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Drinking, Manipulation

Wilbur walked out of the White House and headed on over to Snowchester. It was dark. You could hardly see at all. Wilbur made it about half way there before feeling the sharp poke of a sword against his back. “Easy, Techno. It’s just me.” He felt the sword move away from his back and he turned around. “Where are you going?” Techno interrogated. “Schlatt’s. I need a drink. Dream said that I was allowed out at night, remember?” “Yeah, I remember. Doesn’t make me any less curious.” And just like that Techno was gone, vanished into the night. Wilbur felt bad for Techno, but whatever Dream thought was best. He made it to what used to be Foolish’s house without any more stops. He walked in without warning. Schlatt would know it was him. Only he, Techno, and Dream were allowed out at night, and as far as he knew no one took the risk. Schlatt’s head shot up from his couch when he walked in. It was clear he had been asleep. “Will! What are you looking for on this fine night?” Schlatt asked dramatically. “A shot would be nice. Same one as last time. That one was good,” Wilbur answered as he sat down at his table. “I’ve got a new one that I really want to try though,” Schatt complained. “Why’d you ask then? Go ahead and get me the new one.” “Well I had to be polite.” Schlatt poured each of them their shots and they quickly downed them. “The other one’s better,” Wilbur stated. “Agreed.” “Do you want to go get it?” “I already have this one out.” “Fine.” Schlatt poured each of them another one. After drinking that one Wilbur asked, “Where do you get these anyways? Not even Dream has figured it out as far as I’m concerned.” “And I plan to keep it that way. Can’t have him cutting off my drink supply,” Schlatt responded as he poured them another one. “You’re in the drinking mood today,” Wilbur pointed out after he drank it. “You always get drunk before I do, and I need to talk to you about something,” Schlatt responded. “I’d prefer if you didn’t get me drunk just in case I run into Techno on my way back,” Wilbur requested. “You can sleep here tonight,” Schlatt offered. “Dream won’t like that.” “He also doesn’t like my drinking. Do you think I care what Dream thinks?” “No, but I’d like to keep his respect.” “Fine. One more and we can talk,” Schlatt gave in. The two swallowed their shots. “Give me one more. I had to torture HBomb today,” Wilbur demanded. Schlatt poured them each one more shot and tilted his head back as they drank them. “You done now?” Schlatt questioned. Wilbur nodded. “Good. I’m getting tired of this place. Dream’s a terrible ruler.” “I understand why you wanted me drunk.” “I probably should’ve made sure you wouldn’t tell anyone about this conversation.” “When have I ever kept my word?” Wilbur chuckled. Schlatt shrugged. “You know you’re not going to be able to leave, right?” Wilbur asked. “Of course I know that. That’s the problem,” Schlatt put his head in his hands as he said it. “What do you expect me to do about it?” “Nothing. I know you’d never betray your precious hero. Just needed someone to complain to.” “Hey, I’m here tonight. I’d say that’s like betraying Dream,” Wilbur defended himself. “That’s the equivalent of a kid taking a pencil from school and saying it’s stealing. If Dream really cared about people drinking he would find out my source,” Schlatt rolled his eyes. “I’d betray Dream,” Wilbur mumbled. “Then do it. Get me out of this place.” Wilbur got up and headed for the door, “I’m going to need a few more drinks for that to work.” He walked out and headed back to his home. He didn’t know what was going on through Schlatt’s head, but he was a fool. He could only hope that he didn’t do anything rash. He didn’t want to stop drinking just yet. Maybe Schlatt was right, he thought. Maybe he is a bit of a suck up to Dream. It had been two weeks since the takeover and the most he had done to defy is drink with Schlatt every other day or so. He’d even taken the time to tell Dream that he’d caught HBomb with more alcohol today. What happened to sticking it to the higher power? He sighed. He missed Tommy.

Part 19 - Regret:
15 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence

“I’m going to go find food. Maybe I can sneak to the cow farm in Boomerville,” Dream announced. “Get some of the melons while you're there,” Wilbur requested, “I’ve been craving some.” “Fine. I will if I can.” “Anyone wanna do some competitive Solitaire?” Wilbur asked as soon as Dream left. “I am not doing that with you again,” Techno answered. “Ah, why not?” “Solitaire is meant to be relaxing and you’ve gone and made it competitive, and you're not fun to hang out with during a competition.” Techno got up and pulled out his sword, “I’m going to practice.” “I actually need to talk to you three about something,” Philza announced. Techno sheathed his sword and sat back down, “What is it?” “Do you all really think it’s such a good idea to work with Dream?” Philza asked. The other three were surprised. “What do you mean?” Ranboo questioned. “I don’t think what Dream’s doing is right. Sure, I don’t like the government, but most of these places haven’t done anything wrong, and don’t you think it’s odd how Dream has no plans of destroying the Dream SMP?” “Dream has his reasons for everything. I owe him my life. I’m going to stick with him, and I suggest you do the same,” Wilbur said grimly. “I can’t abandon Dream, Philza. You can leave this place if you wish. Trust me, I’d understand, but I just can’t abandon this plan.” Techno explained. “I thought surely you’d understand Techno. Do you realize what we just did a couple days ago? I was sneaking around yesterday. George is seriously hurt and Sapnap and Karl didn’t go uninjured either. Ranboo?” “I have to understand why my enderwalk chose to help Dream,” Ranboo explained as he looked down in shame. Philza sighed, “I’m leaving. Dream’s a terrible person. I hope you guys will realize that soon.” Philza turned around and headed out of Pogtopia. “Goodbye Phil. Stay safe,” Techno mumbled as he walked out.

Philza didn’t know where to go. He had expected at least someone to come with him. There was only one person that he knew of who he could stay with for at least a night. Philza snuck around all the populated places till he reached the remains of Kinoko Kingdom. He wasn’t here for that this time. He searched through the trees till he found the entrance to the man made cave that Niki called home. “Philza?” She was shocked to see him. “What are you doing here? What’s been going on?” “Hey Niki. Do you, uh, think I could stay here for the night?” Philza asked awkwardly. “I’m not sure Phil. Quackity and Sam are looking for you. You and Techno and Dream. Where are they?” I guess she didn’t know about Wilbur or Ranboo yet. “I left them. I couldn’t make myself work with Dream any longer,” Philza explained. Niki’s tone darkened, “Philza, you have to tell me the truth.” Philza nodded. “Did you do this? Did you destroy Kinoko?” Philza stalled for a second and Niki looked down in disappointment. “I assisted in it, yes,” Philza finally answered. Niki sighed, “You can’t stay here Phil. I’m sorry. I don’t know what made you do what you did. L’Manburg at least had a reason to go. Kinoko did nothing. Even if you hadn’t helped, Sam and Quackity will kill me if they find out I helped you. I can give you some food and send you on your way, but that’s the most I’ll do.” “I understand. Just… Please don’t tell anyone that I was here,’ Philza requested. “Of course,” Niki nodded and she handed Philza some potatoes.

Philza walked out of the cave glumly. He walked back to the ruins and looked around. It was a mess. He wandered into the room that had been in the mountain. There was a hole in the floor which revealed a small room with odd posters on the walls. He jumped down into it. “What is this place?” he mumbled. The posters had been painted, and all of them had Karl with some people he had never seen before. One of the posters had three men standing on a beach with Karl sitting in the background, and that one had a book on the table in front of it. All of the posters had tables in front of them, but only that one had a book. Philza wiped the dust off the book and opened it up. It told a tale of pirates and adventure, and it was written by Karl. Was he an author now? One poster caught his eye. It was the only one with an actual person other than Karl in it. It had Karl and another guy standing at the front with Schlatt at the back in front of a mansion. The poster read “The Haunted Mansion.” Philza went to put the book back, but didn’t make it over to its place before he blacked out.

Part 20 - Two Questions:
15 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Torture

Philza blinked his eyes open. His head was throbbing and he immediately closed them again. Someone lifted his chin up and he opened his eyes again to find Quackity staring straight at him. Philza tried to pull his head away, but he was tied to a chair. Quackity turned around, “Thank you Purpled. You may leave now.” Philza heard footsteps walk away and an iron door shut. Quackity backed up and leaned against a wall, allowing Philza to look around. He was in a small metal room, with the only way out being an iron door with nothing to open it from inside the room. He could see Sam outside the door, probably ready to open it if Quackity needed. Philza looked back at Quackity, who was thinking about something. After a few minutes of silence, Quackity asked, “Are you not going to say anything?” “Not much to say,” Phillza responded, “I know why I’m here.” “If you know why your here, then answer the question,” Quackity demanded as he walked back to the center of the room, blocking the door. “Which one? I’d assume you have many.” Philza wasn’t in the mood for this. He was exhausted, had a massive headache, and he likely had no one to get him out of this place. Quackity walked forward and pushed Philza’s chair against the wall, holding it there on two legs, “Where are Dream and Techno?” “That’s none of your business.” Philza’s head bobbed forward as Quackity dropped the chair. “Fine then. We’ll work up to that. Why were you in Kinoko?” “That’s none of your business either.” Quackity pulled out his axe and put it against Philza’s throat. “You won’t kill me. You need me,” Philza challenged. “I don’t need someone who won’t talk.” Quackity slid the sword down to Philza’s arm, just below the shoulder. Philza felt it move down, but he continued to stare directly at Quackity. “What were you doing in Kinoko?” Quackity repeated. “Just looking around,” Philza answered calmly. “Why?” Quackity started pushing on the sword. Philza closed his eyes and held his breath, but Quackity stopped pushing after making a small cut, only visible from the dripping blood. He didn't take the sword off his arm though. Philza opened his eyes and glanced at the blood dripping down his arm before staring back at Quackity. “I suppose it was a bit of a mixture of boredom and curiosity,” Philza answered. “Curiosity about what?” “If there was anything left. Some untouched remains. An artifact if you wish.” “You mean this?” Quackity pulled out a thin book that read ‘The Beach Episode.’ “What is this anyways?” He questioned. “I don’t know, it’s Karl’s. I figured he was an author now or something,” Philza shrugged. Quackity laughed, “Karl is not an author. What is this actually?” “You can check the inside. It’s signed by Karl,” Philza insisted. Quackity flipped to the back where he found Karl’s signature. “Where did you find this?” Quackity asked. “Some basement. It had posters lining the walls of Karl with other people,” Philza explained. He didn’t see any harm in telling him that. It didn’t have anything to do with him or his old comrades. Quackity stared at the book for a second before putting it away. “See, that wasn’t that bad, was it?” Quackity pulled out his sword again and put it back in it’s spot on Philza’s arm. “I’m going to ask you one more question,” Quackity explained, “After that, we can be done for the day. I’ll let you rest for a bit and I’ll come back tomorrow. I just need you to answer this one question, or else I’m not going to leave.” Philza stared at Quackity intently, waiting for the question. “Alright then. Is Wilbur working with Dream and Techno?” “No,” Philza lied. “Then why did he disappear over a week ago? He usually spends most of his days near my land until then in which both he and Tommy stopped coming. Now I’ve seen Tommy around with Tubbo, but Wilbur is nowhere to be found.” The sword started digging into Philza’s skin. “He didn’t come to us,” Philza grunted. Philza squeezed the arm of the chair and closed his eyes as the sword went further in. “More than three people caused that fire. From what I’ve heard from Niki, she saw at the very least, four fires start at the same time, probably five. Don’t deny it, I know you, Techno, and Dream started those fires. Who else helped?” “That’s-” Philza grunted, “That’s a different question.” “I’ve changed my mind.” “It was just us three,” Philza managed to say through gritted teeth. “You’re a lot worse of a liar when you're in pain.” Quackity pushed on the sword one last time before having Sam let him out of the room. Philza let out his breath as soon as he left. His breathing was much faster and heavier than it was before. He looked at the deep gash Quackity made. Blood was pouring out of it and the pain was immense. Philza moved his wing to wrap around it to limit the bleeding before he leaned his head back against the back of he chair, closing his eyes to try and push through the pain.

Part 21 - Once a Spy, Always a Spy:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Torture, Forced Labor, Depression

Fundy ducked into a small cave and bit his hand to calm his breathing. He heard Wilbur and Dream walk past. “How long till this is done? Sapnap’s not being a great roommate,” Dream complained. “Michael said at this rate it will be done in a few weeks, but if you go on with your plans then it will likely take much longer. Sapnap does more work than anyone else,” Wilbur explained. What were they talking about? What plan? “Well I’m starting with George anyways. Maybe HBomb will finally give some useful information and he can start working,” Dream said hopefully. “At this rate, I doubt it. Have you tried getting it out of Eret?” Wilbur suggested. “No. I was hoping HBomb would speak up. He wasn’t involved in much before this. I figured he’d be easy to break. Maybe Techno will find someone else soon.” “Why don’t you let him actually search for them?” Wilbur asked. They got out of ear shot. Fundy peeked out of the hole and started running. He reached the lake surrounding the Community House and saw Skeppy and Puffy sitting on the other side. He quickly dived into the lake and stuck low in the lake. Puffy stood up after hearing the splash, “What was that?” “Fish.” Skeppy shrugged. Puffy cautiously sat back down and stopped talking about whatever they were talking about before. Fundy swam under the house and out the other side, coming out the side that faced Eret’s castle. Fundy looked in shock at the transformation the castle had made, or was making, but came back into reality when he heard footsteps and jumped behind a bush. A grim looking Sapnap walked by with a pickaxe over his shoulder. Fundy watched as he walked in the direction of the Nether portal and turned back towards the castle. He saw four figures at the castle. One was clearly George, who was building the castle along with two of the other figures while one of them stood and watched. He snuck closer to see that the two other workers were Karl and Eret while Michael was the one watching. “You guys have to finish the front half of the castle today. No breaks until then,” Michael commanded. Eret and Karl nodded while George spoke up, “We don’t have enough blackstone to finish the front half.” “Then mine more. Isn’t that why you guys sent Sapnap to the Nether anyways?” George mumbled something and continued working. All of these people didn’t fight for Dream, Fundy thought. They didn’t fight on Quackity’s side either, but I doubt that matters to Dream. Fundy felt a sneeze coming. He plugged his nose to limit the sound, but his arm twitched, making the bush rustle. Michael turned his head and started walking over to investigate. Fundy quickly scampered away and came across a seemingly endless field of wheat, carrots, potatoes, and beetroot. Large pens filled with cows, sheep, pigs, and chickens sat to the side of the field. Fundy suddenly felt very hungry and realized how little he had been able to eat in the past week. They had started running out of food, not that they had much to begin with. Fundy looked around and started grabbing food from the farm in bundles. He took a bite of a carrot and started eating more, and then grabbed more. He needed enough for everyone, and Tubbo had started eating again so they needed more than before. Fundy took a bite into a potato and started grabbing more of those. He got up, but immediately got shoved back down. Ant was holding him down with Bad standing behind him. Fundy started struggling. Squirming and thrashing and kicking. “Let me go! Please, please let me go. I can’t stay here. I can’t be here,” Fundy begged. “Fundy, calm down. We aren’t going to turn you in, as long as you cooperate,” Ant reassured. “Cooperate with what?” Fundy asked fearfully. “We just need you to plant back those crops, and we are going to need some of the extras also. We’ll get in trouble if there’s a noticeable amount missing,” Bad explained. “Y-you’ll let me go if I do that?” Fundy asked cautiously. Ant nodded and got up off him. Fundy quickly handed them a majority of the food back. “Is that enough?” Fundy asked, looking at the pitiful amount he was able to keep. “Yes it should be,” Bad answered, “Now get out of here. We won’t tell anyone you were here.” Fundy nodded and ran towards the Nether portal.

Niki was pacing the Syndicate meeting room when Fundy showed up. Tubbo was sitting in Ranboo’s old chair while Hannah and Foolish were looking over how much food they had left and how much they had to ration it. “Fundy!” Niki called out with relief as soon as she saw him. She ran over to him and put her hands gently on his shoulders, “Are you hurt?” “I’m fine,” Fundy reassured, “Can I sit down?” “Right,” Niki took her hands off his shoulders and turned towards Hannah, “Can you help Tubbo into a different room?” Tubbo stood up. “I can walk myself there,” he mumbled. Hannah started to get up, but Niki held her hand up to stop her. The more Tubbo could do on his own the better, and he didn’t need to feel helpless. Once Tubbo walked out of the meeting room, Fundy sat down where Tubbo was and Niki sat down in another empty seat. “Fundy, what did you see? What happened? Did anyone see you?” Niki interrogated. Fundy went on and explained everything that happened. “What happens if Bad and Ant do say that they saw you?” Foolish asked worryingly. “I wouldn’t worry about it. They don’t know where he went.” Niki reassured him. “They also sounded pretty worried about the food. They didn’t seem to care at all about me being there,” Fundy added. “Bad will do anything for The Badlands. If ratting you out will be good for them, then he will tell Dream that you were there, but Niki’s right. It won’t do them much good,” Hannah explained. “What do you think they’re doing to HBomb?” Niki questioned, “They mentioned that they are trying to get information from him, and they aren’t making him build the castle like they are the others.” “I don’t know if I want to know. Dream’s messed up. Whatever HBomb is going through, it’s not good,” Foolish shook his head grimly. “Can I go back and spy in a couple days?” Fundy requested. “You got caught. What’s stopping you from getting caught again?” Niki demanded. “I know the layout now. I know where some people will likely be. And we need information, Niki. None of us can go there and still feed information, we’ve seen what happened to Eret, so we have to resort to spying. I don’t want to be on the run forever.” Niki sighed, “Let me think about it.” “Fundy?” Tubbo was standing at the doorway. “Tubbo, were you listening in?” Niki questioned. She didn't want Tubbo to have any more problems with his health then he already does. Some of the stuff Fundy said might affect him in a bad way. Tubbo ignored her, “You said that Techno’s not actually searching for us, right?” “That’s what Wilbur said,” Fundy responded. “Doesn’t that mean we can go outside?”

Part 22 - Boomerville Abandoned:
20 Days After the Escape

“We need to talk.” Lazar walked up to Vikk. Vikk stood up from his place on the ground where he was caring for the melon farm. “What is it?” Vikk asked. “I don't think we should stay here any longer. Have you seen what’s been happening?” Lazar quizzed. “I mean, I know that the prison got blown up a few weeks ago. I haven’t been out much,” Vikk shrugged. “Kinoko Kingdom has been completely destroyed. Burned to the ground,” Lazar explained. “Oh wow,” Vikk’s eyes widened with surprise, “Was anyone hurt?” “I don’t know. I heard this from Connor. He said he’s leaving town till things die down. He apparently has some friends he can stay with.” There was a small pause before Lazar continued, “That’s not it though. Some of the people on the server like Foolish, Punz, and The Badlanders have been robbed and griefed.” “That kind of stuff happens all the time here,” Vikk pointed out. “I guess the griefing happens a lot, but a lot of stuff was taken. Connor said that if it wasn’t in their ender chest or hidden, then it was taken,” Lazar explained. “Are you sure all this is true? I mean, we are taking Connor’s word for all this,” Vikk asked skeptically. “Well I saw Kinoko for myself, and I went by the quartz mansion and Bad and Skeppy were angry about something,” Lazar responded. “So you just want to leave this place? What about Boomerville? What about the Church of Youtube?” Vikk gestured towards the red building. “Vikk, I talked to Niki also. She was near the ruins of Kinoko. She thinks Dream, Techno, and Philza are doing this. We’ve seen what those people can do and none of them exactly like the government, besides Dream who wants everyone to be a part of the Dream SMP. If we stay, there will be no Boomerville.” “No, Techno’s our friend, remember?” Vikk denied. “Maybe they won’t take care of us as violently as Kinoko, there’s only like two buildings here anyways, but they will get rid of Boomerville, and possibly us along with it,” Lazar replied grimly. “Vikk, I’m leaving. I was hoping you’d come with me. We came here together, I thought we could leave this place together. Either way, whether you come with me or not, I’m leaving.” Vikk looked down at the small melon farm, and then to the large crater that was L’Manburg, “We’ve been here for so long. I was tired of moving. I still am. This place is called Boomerville for a reason.” “I know,” Lazar rested his hand on Vikk’s shoulder, “I’m tired too, but if we get dragged into whatever's happening, it’s going to be a lot worse than having to leave this place.” Vikk sighed, “Alright. I guess so. Let’s pack up.”

Part 23 - It's Never to Early:
Trigger Warning: Drinking

Schlatt nonchalantly walked through the community house and down the wooden path to the close, but long-forgotten former country of Rutabagville, one of the many meeting spots he had found secretive, but not particularly suspicious, especially if he went to different spots each time. Schlatt walked through a hole in the wall that enclosed the small, snowy area and tread through the soft, white powder to a small area behind a hill. Leaning up against a small rock was a large scotch bottle. “Oh he outdid himself this time,” Schlatt smiled with glee as he picked up the glass bottle. He looked over the fancy label and made sure it hadn’t been opened before he stuck gently placed it in his briefcase and started heading back for his house. He brushed past Bad, Puffy, and Skeppy on his way there. Skeppy glanced at him while Puffy gave him a glare of pure hatred. Bad didn’t even bother to look his way. Schlatt gripped onto his suitcase as he walked past them, but continued his path to Snowchester, or where it used to be. He went to open his door, but found that it was already cracked. He cautiously pushed the door open. A tall figure backed up into the wall, tripping over a chair in the process. “Aren’t you a little young for that, Ranboo?” Schlatt questioned as he looked at the bottle in his hand. Ranboo looked down at the alcohol and back at Schlatt. “It’s not for me,” he gulped. “Alright,” Schlatt looked at him suspiciously, “Who’s it for then? Michael?” “Err.. yeah,” Ranboo mumbled. “Believable,” Schlatt said sarcastically. You’d think someone who used to be a part of the Syndicate would be a better liar, Schlatt thought. “Aren’t you supposed to be guarding HBomb?” Schlatt asked. “Dream’s with him right now,” Ranboo shuffled his feet. “Right. Get out of here. And don’t steal from me again. Don’t think I haven’t noticed the missing bottles,” Schlatt commanded angrily. Ranboo nodded and quickly made his way to the door. Schlatt grabbed Ranboo’s arm as he walked past him. Ranboo looked at him fearfully. “Who’s that really for? You’re a good kid, I know you aren’t going to drink that,” Schlatt paused, “And I know it’s not for Michael. He’s more of a suck up than Wilbur.” Ranboo didn’t answer. “Your silence answers for you. You're going to get in trouble, you know,” Schlatt warned. “He says it makes it hurt less,” Ranboo whispered. So this kid’s against Dream, Schlatt thought, interesting. Schlatt let go of Ranboo’s arm and watched as he ran back towards the main Dream SMP area. Schlatt shut the door behind him and went to his alcohol cabinet to put the new scotch up. He looked down at his leather watch. 2:00 pm. It wasn’t too early. He looked over the shelves, but ended up walking over to the fridge and grabbed a beer. He sat down and took a sip from the bottle. It was a wonder Dream never punished him, Schlatt pondered. He never even made him work. Of course, he didn’t make it easy for Dream. He purposely got himself ‘fired’ from every task he was given. What was Dream planning? Or maybe he was simply too busy with other things and he couldn’t bother with me. Schlatt finished the bottle and slumped against the chair. He’d have to take the risk next time he gets his drinks to leave early that way he can talk to-

Part 24 - The Beach Episode:
Trigger Warning: Forced Labor

Puffy ushered Skeppy and Bad inside Michael’s old house, which was her’s now. “What did you need us for?” Bad interrogated after the three of them had sat down. It was dangerous to be here together without arousing suspicion. “So a couple weeks ago, Ant and I were in Las Nevadas because Dream wanted us to run the restaurant while he was eating with George,” Puffy started, “Afterwards, Ant and I started snooping around the area. We didn’t know what we were looking for, we just wanted to find something of Dream’s that we could use against him. We ended up finding a room under the needle. We thought it was Dream’s at first, but it turned out to be Quackity’s. It seemed to have been untouched for a while, so we don’t think anyone else knows about it. There was just some supplies in there, and an ender chest which might be useful, but we also found this.” Puffy placed down a thin book on the table they surrounded. Bad carefully picked it up and flipped through it. “It seems like it’s just a story. Karl wrote it,” Bad replied. He handed the book to Skeppy to look through. “The Beach Episode. What’s so important about this?” Skeppy asked, confused. “That’s the thing, we don’t know,” Puffy leaned forward as she responded, “But it has to mean something. It was hidden under the floorboards. It wasn’t just sitting in a chest somewhere.” “Why don’t we just ask Karl about it?” Skeppy asked. “That’s going to be a problem,” Bad mumbled. “We could try and sneak to his house at night,” Puffy suggested. “And risk Techno catching us? No way,” Bad shook his head. “Well then we need to get him away from Michael,” Puffy responded. “He’s not going to let us,” Skeppy pointed out. “Who would he let talk to him?” Puffy asked. “Dream, Wilbur, Schlatt, and Ranboo,” Bad answered grimly. The three sat in silence, thinking up a way to get to Karl. Skeppy’s eyes lit up, “What if we don’t ask Karl?” Bad and Puffy turned to look at him. “We could ask Sapnap or George. They’re close to him, so maybe they know what this is and it’s importance.” “Doesn’t Michael watch over them also?” Bad pointed out. “No, Skeppy’s right,” Puffy responded, “We saw Sapnap leaving the castle for the Nether yesterday. And when Dream gave his speech he only told Eret and Karl to work on the castle.” “Well then let's go,” Bad commanded.

“Skeppy! Puffy!” Ranboo ran up to the group. Bad raised an eyebrow at him, not that anyone could see. Ranboo stopped in front of them, “Dream told me to tell Puffy to fill in the creeper holes in Las Nevadas and to have Skeppy tend to the animals.” “I tended the animals this morning!” Skeppy argued. Ranboo shrugged, “I don’t know, that’s just what I was told.” Bad noticed a lump in his suit before he ran off. He was hiding something, but what? “Dream’s trying to split us up,” Puffy grumbled. “He must’ve seen us together. Or maybe someone told him, like Schlatt,” Bad concluded, “I’ll go talk to Sapnap and George. You guys go do your tasks so you don’t get in trouble.” The two nodded and ran off. Bad continued the trek to the castle, making sure not to walk too fast so he doesn’t draw attention. When he got there he immediately walked over to George. “What is it?” George asked, a mix of fear and suspicion filled his eyes. Sapnap glanced at the two and Bad beckoned him over. He whispered something to Karl before heading over to them. “I need to talk to you guys,” Bad announced. He looked over at Michael, who was staring at them, “In private.” Sapnap and George looked at each other, but eventually nodded. Bad led the way with Sapnap pushing George behind them. “What is this place?” Sapnap asked when they arrived. “Ponk’s Master Oogway Shrine,” Bad answered. “What’d you need us for?” George interrogated. Bad pulled out the book and held it out, “I want to know what this is.” A confused look crossed both their faces and George grabbed it and Sapnap looked over his shoulder. “The Beach Episode,” George read aloud. The two read the book in silence till they got to the back and saw the signature. “Karl wrote this?” George asked. Bad nodded, “Do you know what it is?” “He had a bunch of books similar to this when we ran from the fire. I didn’t read them though. He was pretty protective over them,” Sapnap explained, “Where’d you get this?” “It was hidden in Las Nevadas. I figured it might be important,” Bad responded. He didn’t want to get the others in trouble by mentioning them. “Karl’s never mentioned writing stories before,” George mumbled. “Do you think it’s just a story?” Bad interrogated. George thought for a second before answering, “No. It seems like something more. It’s not exactly written like a normal story, and it’s really short.” They didn’t seem to know anything. “Do you think you could ask Karl about it, and get back to me? I can’t talk to him without it being suspicious,” Bad requested. They nodded while handing him back the book and the three walked out of the shrine.

Part 25 - Willed Out:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Suicide… Sort of… Not Really but it Should be Mentioned

Philza rubbed the back of his neck as he flipped through the pages of notes that Sam and Quackity had written. It had all the things they had tried along with everything they knew about how he, Wilbur, and Schlatt had come back before. “You guys don’t have any other ideas?” Philza questioned. Sam shook his head, “Nothings working. It seems like you have to either be dragged back or invited back.” “Or do whatever Jack did,” Quackity added. “Did you guys try breaking out? Like, leaving your Limbo?” Punz suggested. “Yep. Page six. It just reforms itself and takes you back,” Quackity replied. “What about giving yourself a bow and shooting yourself?” Tommy piped in. “First thing we tried. Page three. You immediately heal so you don’t have time to die,” Sam responded. “Hey guys.” Ghostbur appeared in front of everyone. “Hi Ghostbur,” Tommy greeted. “Does anyone want to play poker?” Ghostbur asked, “Mexican Dream and Jack are playing also.” Everyone’s heads shot up. “Jack?” Quackity questioned. Ghostbur nodded, “Would you like to play, Quackity?” “You know what Ghostbur, I would like to play, but would you mind if I had a word with Jack before we start?” Quackity agreed. “Of course!” Ghostbur replied. Ghostbur and Quackity, along with Sam and Philza, appeared next to a table with Mexican Dream and Jack sitting at it. Jack looked up and sighed when he saw the group. “So that’s six players,” Mexican Dream mumbled as he started dealing out cards. “Sam and I aren’t playing. We just want to speak with Jack,” Philza explained. Mexican Dream started mumbling something in Spanish as he picked up the cards and started to reshuffle. Quackity, Sam, Philza, and Jack went into a separate area where they couldn’t see or hear Mexican Dream and Ghostbur. “You know what we’re going to ask Jack,” Quackity said as soon as they got away. “I know, I know,” he replied. They waited in silence. “Well what is it? How’d you leave?” Philza asked eagerly. “It’s hard to explain,” Jack sighed, “I just kind of… wanted to.” “You just wanted to?” Sam said angrily. “What, you just got tired of this place and decided to leave?” Quackity asked sarcastically, “Why isn’t it working for us?” “I don’t know! I wanted Tommy dead for a while so when I died I got upset that I couldn’t kill him and just willed myself out of here,” Jack explained. “You wanted to kill Tommy?” Philza yelled out. “He knew,: Jack shrugged, “And I never actually did it.” “Did you try?” Philza interrogated. Jack nervously scratched the back of his head, “I did once.” “Wait a minute, you two can argue about this later. We’re going to back up a step. You willed yourself out of here?” Quackity interrupted. “I don’t know how to explain it any better!” Jack yelled. “Right. Jack, you’ve been mildly helpful. Thanks. I don’t know why that took you a year to tell us,” Quackity rolled his eyes. “I was trying to do it again,” Jack explained. “Did it work at all?” Sam piped in. “No. I felt nothing. Never even saw a glimpse,” Jack answered. “Alright then. C’mon Jack, let’s go play some poker. Sam, Philza, go over the new information with Tommy and Punz,” Quackity ordered before leaving with Jack.

Part 26 - Recruitments (Again):
24 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence

Dream held tighter onto the tree he was climbing as he reached for the distant apple. He plucked it from it’s branch and scurried further up the tree to reach another one. He heard a dead branch snap from below. He froze and listened for more noise. He heard the soft sound of footsteps against the grass. Slowly, he put his apples in his bag and pulled his axe out from his belt. He glanced at the beehive he had been avoiding and quietly made his way over to it. He stared at the ground below till he saw someone. He swung his axe at the small branch the hive was hanging from and watched as the branch and hive fell at the figure's feet. At that moment, Dream got a good look at the person and realized who it was. “Crap,” Dream mumbled and jumped down from the tree. He grabbed his wrist and ran away from the hive, dragging them along with him. “Michael, are you alright?” Dream asked as soon as they got away. “Dream? Yeah, I’m fine,” Michael answered while he rubbed the wrist Dream had grabbed.

“The branch was dead. I heard it fall on you while I was up there. It’s a good thing I noticed before the bees started attacking you.”

“Oh, thanks. I owe you one.”

There was a short pause.

“I’ve been looking for you,” Michael announced.

“Oh, have you?”

“Yeah. Quackity, Sam, and Purpled have been looking for you. Foolish sometimes also helps.”

“I’ve heard. It hasn’t been helpful in gathering food.”

“Are you hungry? I have some pork on me.”

Dream chuckled, “Techno’s not going to eat that. I’ll take it for me and the others though. He can eat these apples.”

Dream gestured towards the apples in his bag and Michael dug through his own bag for the cooked pork he carried on him. He handed it to Dream and Dream thanked him.

“Why have you been looking for me?” Dream asked as he put the pork in his bag.

“Well, uh, I was wondering if I could join you.”

“And why should I let you?”

“I tried to break you out of jail, remember? I want to help you!”

Dream thought for a second, though he already knew his answer. He had expected him to ask this. He just wanted to ponder what Michael was thinking about.

“Yes, I suppose you can come along. Stick with me, and keep quiet.”

Michael nodded quickly and Dream led the way to Pogtopia.

Fundy trekked through the forest that lay between his humble abode and the superpower that is Las Nevadas. He was proud of himself. He had gotten himself together, so now he should be able to join Las Nevadas. He came across the large Las Nevadas sign and made his way to the bulky figure standing near the needle. He could tell it wasn’t Quackity, but maybe they knew where he was. “Sam!” Fundy called out. “Fundy?” “Do you know where Quackity is?” Fundy asked. “Uh, yeah. He’s in the casino,” Sam gestured to the large white building. Fundy jogged to the casino and opened up the large doors. “Whoa,” Fundy gasped at the room. It was filled with slot machines, roulette, and gambling machines of all sorts. “It’s nice, isn’t it?” Quackity walked up to Fundy. Fundy nodded, still looking around. “Foolish, can you give us a sec? I’ll come get you when we’re done.” Foolish walked out the large door and they waited for it to shut behind him. “So what’s your business here Fundy? Have you thought about what I said?” Quackity asked.

“Er.. yes! That’s what I came here for! I’ve been taking care of myself. I’ve slept a bit more, and I’ve been eating healthier. Even Yogurt seems happier.”

“I’m glad! So I’m assuming you're here because you would like to join now?”

“Yeah, if it’s not a bother to you of course.”

“Of course not! I just need to ask you a few questions so that you can be sure that you’d like to join.”

“Okay. What is it?”

“Well first of all I need to know how much you are willing to fight. I’m assuming you know what’s happened at Pandora’s Vault and Kinoko Kingdom. Sam, Purpled, and I are searching for Dream and Techno at this very moment. If it comes to a fight, I need to know that you will help.”

“Yes. I will help… Do I have to help search for them?”

“I’d like it if you did, but I suppose you don’t.”

“Alright then. Anything else?”

“What’s your relationship with Dream, Techno, Wilbur, and Philza?”

“Dream and Techno blew up my country, and I was a part of the Butcher Army, you know that. I hate them.”

“What about Philza? He assisted in blowing it up also.”

“He’s, uh, my grandpa. And Wilbur’s my father.”

Quackity’s eyes widened. This would be a problem.

“How close are you to them?”

“I don’t see Philza often, but we’ve had some good times. I can fight him if I have to. My relationship with Wilbur is complicated. I haven’t talked to him since he was resurrected, and even when he was alive the first time we didn’t have the best relationship. Is Wilbur helping them?”

“It’s not confirmed, but I suspect it. Fundy, I will only let you join if you promise not to let your family get in the way of us.”

“Of course. Anything.”

“Good. Welcome to Las Nevadas.”

Part 27 - One Carefree Day:
Niki led the group through the hole in the wall they had made and out into the basement of the igloo. After long debates with each other and days of thinking it over, they’d all decided that as long as they were careful and didn’t go near the Dream SMP, it likely was safe to go out. At least to get food if nothing else. Fundy’s food that he had taken from the Dream SMP farm had been helpful, but it didn’t last long. They’d be out of food within another week, and that’s with only one meal a day and everyone eating half of what they should be. Even if Fundy hadn’t heard what Wilbur had said then one of them would have to go out anyways so they wouldn’t starve.

Everyone had to squint their eyes from the sun when they stepped outside of the igloo. Niki closed her eyes as she felt a cool breeze. She couldn’t help but smile. The only one of them that had stepped outside in over two weeks was Fundy, and it felt good. Tubbo looked down at the footprints he was making and listened for the crunch of the snow with each step. Fundy blinked with surprise as a small snowflake landed on his nose. He looked to the sky and watched as the sky started to drop snowflakes on all of them. Foolish joined him in staring at the sky, but stopped when one hit his eye. Hannah held out her hand and watched as each bit of snow would melt at the touch of it. Foolish felt something cold meet his face. He turned around to see Fundy laughing with his hands covered in snow. Foolish’s heart melted with joy at the sight of Fundy so happy and carefree again. He bent down and formed his own snowball and threw it at Fundy’s chest, knocking Fundy down. Fundy quickly started making more and Foolish did the same. Niki and Hannah soon joined in. Tubbo continued to take in his surroundings. The large spruce forest that lay between them and the cabin, the towering mountains in the distance, and the freezing ocean that quietly lapped up onto the shore. The large amount of snow on the branch above Tubbo suddenly dropped onto him. Fundy, who had thrown a snowball at it, was doubled over with laughter. A look of concern crossed Niki’s face and Foolish and Hannah curiously watched what he would do. Tubbo turned around grinning and started chunking snowballs at Fundy. The two chased each other around, ducking behind the trees and tossing snowballs at each other whenever they had the chance. The other three stood watching. They all smiled at the sight. “I’m going to go get some food,” Niki announced, “Ranboo has a cow farm over there. I don’t think it’s been destroyed.” “I’ll come with you. It’s better to stick together,” Hannah stated. Niki nodded and the two walked off towards the woods. Foolish grabbed an icicle that was hanging from a branch and started sucking on it as he sat down. Fundy pointed to him and Tubbo started trying to get icicles from branches, but he couldn’t reach them. Fundy started to climb the tree and knocked a couple down while Tubbo caught them as they fell. Fundy climbed down and Tubbo handed him one of the gathered icicles. Tubbo kept his in his mouth, just letting it melt, but Fundy would take it out every few seconds and look at how much smaller it had gotten. After it had been around twenty minutes, Foolish started to get worried. He got up and carefully snuck over to where Niki and Hannah had gone. He sighed with relief when he saw them chattering and petting Techno’s dogs. Fundy and Tubbo ran up from behind him and immediately ran to the dogs. Foolish chuckled as the dogs rolled over and jumped on top of them. Foolish jogged over to where Hannah and Niki crouched. They were talking about baking. Such a meaningless topic in these times, but he could see that it brought Niki joy to talk about it. She needed this. She’d been working hard to keep them all together and alive. He sat down next to them and started to stroke a nearby dog, just listening to the carefree conversation they were having.

Part 28 - Once Daily Pt. 1:
Trigger Warning: Torture, Gore, Violence

16 Days After the Escape

“Philza.” The iron door shut as Quackity stepped into the small room. Philza looked up and spread his wings slightly to make him look stronger and more threatening. “Quackity,” he greeted. “How’s the arm?” Quackity asked calmly as he pulled out his axe and stepped towards him. “The bone looks good,” Philza responded. “Would you like to go further or start on the other arm?” Quackity started to sharpen the axe as he asked it. “I suppose the other one. I don’t want my right arm completely immobile,” Philza answered nonchalantly. “Hm. Interesting choice.” Quackity pulled out a flint and steel and started to heat up the axe. They sat there in silence for a few minutes while Quackity waited for the axe to get hot. “Are you ready?” Quackity questioned. Philza nodded. Why’d he ask him? Rather than putting the axe against his upper arm like last time, he hovered it a couple centimeters above it.

“Do you remember the question from yesterday?” Quackity interrogated

“Which one?”

“Who else is working with you guys?”

“Working with who?”

The axe touched his arm. Quackity didn’t push down at all, but the burning was painful enough.

“Guess,” Quackity demanded.

“No one else was working with us.”

“Who’s us?”

“Me, Dream, and Techno.”

“You stalled for a second before you answered. Are you leaving someone out?”

“I don’t believe you.”

The axe started to go through his skin. Philza closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

17 Days After the Escape

“How attached are you to your wings?” Quackity questioned as he stroked the black feathers.

“They're a part of me. It’d be like me asking if you're attached to your legs.”

Quackity plucked a feather out. It stung a bit, but not as bad as the previous days.

“Are you willing to tell me who started those fires yet?”

“I already have.”

Quackity yanked out a handful.

“Are you willing to tell me truthfully?”

18 Days After the Escape

“We’re trying something new today.”

“What is it?” Philza sighed.

Quackity took a large step towards Philza and plugged his nose. Philza tried to hold his breath, but eventually had to open his mouth. Quackity dumped a green liquid from a glass bottle into his mouth. Philza leaned forward and started coughing up blood, but soon started throwing up instead. Quackity held up a potion of regeneration, “I will give this to you, but you have to tell me who's helping you guys.” Philza shook his head. He couldn’t make out any words.

22 Days After the Escape

Sam walked in the door. “Where’s Quackity?” Philza mumbled. Philza noticed the large bucket of water in Sam’s hand.

“Quackity’s busy today.”

“What’s the bucket for? Where’s a weapon, or a potion?”

“I do things differently than Quackity.”

Sam placed the bucket on Philza’s lap, holding it steady with one hand and grabbing the back of Philza’s head with the other. “I want to know what Dream and Techno’s supplies look like.”

Philza was shocked by the question. It had been the same question everyday, and then all the sudden he had a different person, different method, and different question. Sam shoved Philza’s head into the bucket. After around a minute he pulled his head back up. Philza started coughing up water.

“Answer the question.”

Philza’s head was dunked back into the water for another minute.

“Netherrite,” he gasped when he was pulled back up.

“Full?”

Philza quickly nodded.

“What about food?”

“Um…” His head got dunked into the water before he could answer. This time he was down there for around a minute and a half. He started struggling at around 45 seconds. He slumped a bit when he got pulled out. His breathing had quickened significantly and he was coughing up more water. After a few seconds he got dunked again.

“I don’t know,” Philza rasped, trying to hold back a cough so he could answer.

“Why not?”

“I-” He got dunked again before he could finish.

“I haven’t been there in a while. Things change.”

“Alright then. How many people have to eat that food?”

Philza had to process the question for a second, so he wasn’t prepared for the next dunk.

Philza started hacking again, and got dunked mid-cough.

“Two,” he managed to get out.

Sam dunked his head under the water again and held him in there until he stopped struggling, then he pulled the bucket away from him and set it on the ground. Philza’s head was slumped over. Sam lifted his head up by the hair to make sure he was fine and then left the room. Philza hadn’t even realized the door was open the entire time.

Part 29 - Once Daily Pt. 2:
Trigger Warning: Torture, Violence, Gore

25 Days After the Escape

Philza sighed with relief at the sight of Quackity walking through the door. It wasn’t Sam. Quackity was holding a long metal rod that twisted a bunch at the end. “Do you know what this is, Philza?” Quackity asked as the door shut behind him. Philza stared at the end of the rod, “It’s a branding iron.”

“Good job! Now do you know what it does?” Quackity pointed the branding iron at Philza’s stomach.

“It will leave a permanent burn on me.”

“People used to use these to brand their cattle, that way everyone would know that it’s theirs. Each farmer at a different brand they used that way no one could take their cattle.” Quackity looked Philza in the eyes, “You’re my livestock, Philza. And I don’t want anyone to take you. Though, I suppose if you’re willing to be cooperative, then this won’t be necessary.” Philza looked down at the branding iron. He didn’t want to look Quackity in the eyes.

“What’s your relationship with Michael?”

“McChill?” Philza looked up in surprise.

Quackity nodded.

“I’ve never spoken to him.”

“What’s his relationship with Techno?”

“I don’t think he’s spoken to him either.”

He wasn’t lying, Quackity thought. “What about Dream?”

“Michael tried to break him out of prison.” Should he have said that? Surely he knew if he worked with Sam.

“Would Michael try and work with Dream if given the chance?”

“Um, probably. I don’t know much about him.”

“Michael disappeared. You're saying that he would have joined Dream and Techno?”

Crap, he might be with Dream and Techno.

“Maybe not, um, I don’t know much about him.”

“It’s too late to deny it,” Quackity chuckled.

Quackity noticed Philza’s shaking and his tendency to avert eye contact. He was starting to break him.

28 Days After the Escape

The door shut as Sam walked in the door. He was holding three bottles filled with a red liquid along with a netherrite sword. Sam immediately got down on his knees next to Philza and slashed at Philza’s arm with his sword. Philza gritted his teeth and watched as the blood dripped from his arm. Sam never talked much when he did this. Not like Quackity. He just got straight to the point.

“I’m assuming you’ve felt the pain of a potion of harming.”

Philza nodded.

“Have you ever felt it when you didn’t have your skin to protect you from it?” Sam poured a single drop of the potion onto the cut he had made. Philza closed his eyes and called out in pain.

“Who broke Techno and Dream out of prison?”

Sam didn’t give Philza time to answer before he poured a bit more of the potion. Philza tried to pull his arm away, but he couldn’t break the chains that tied him to the chair.

“I did,” Philza muttered.

“Who helped?”

“No one. It was just me.”

Sam poured half the bottle onto the cut. He waited until Philza was done screaming before asking it again.

“Who helped?”

“No one.”

“You didn’t do this on your own. You didn’t pour all that water and explode it and manage to live and do it undetected.”

“I did.”

Sam noticed that his voice had become much quieter and he seemed tired. He pulled out a syringe and filled it up with the harming potion. Philza’s eyes widened with fear.

“Philza, who helped blow up the prison?”

Sam injected the needle into Philza’s vein when he didn’t say anything.

“It was the Syn-” Philza stopped himself.

“The what? Sin?”

Philza shook his head quickly.

“I’m gonna need you to finish your sentence.”

Philza shook his head again.

“Alright then.” Sam injected the harming potion and Philza immediately passed out from the pain.

29 Days After the Escape

Philza woke up somewhere new. It was a small room with dirt for the floor, and he was laying on top of multiple bamboo shoots with his arms and legs tied to them also. He tried to struggle, but once again he couldn’t break his bonds and his body was still sore from the potions. Both Quackity and Sam were standing across the room.

“Sam taught me a little trick,” Quackity started, “Have you ever heard of Bamboo Torture?” Quackity went to stand over Philza.

“I can’t say I have.”

“Bamboo shoots grow very quickly. So quickly that they’ll just grow right through you if you give it a few days.” Quackity bent down and rubbed his finger on the bamboo. “See, it’s already started.” His finger had dripping blood on it. Philza noticed the pain in his back and realized that he was right. “Now these shoots won’t stop. So you need to get off of them, which we’ll only do if you tell us what the Sin is.”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“That’s fine. You have a couple days.”

1 Month After the Escape

Philza cried out as the bamboo started pushing on something important. Quackity calmly walked over to Philza, “You can stop this whenever you want.” Quackity watched Philza’s tears slide down his cheeks, a sight he’d only seen once before. Philza mumbled something incoherent.

“What was that?”

“The Syndicate,” Philza said a little louder.

The old man had finally given up.

Quackity smirked, “What’s The Syndicate?”

“A group of anarchists. Can you get me off these things now?”

“Nope. You’ve yet to tell us who’s in the Syndicate.”

Philza shook his head violently, “Please. Let me off these.”

“Not until you tell us who was in it.”

Philza closed his eyes to stop the tears. “Techno and I.”

“And?”

“Ranboo and Niki.”

Quackity’s eyes widened with surprise, “Really?”

Philza nodded, “I promise. Now please let me off of these.”

Quackity beckoned Sam over, who cut the bamboo just below Philza and lifted him onto the ground before he pulled the bamboo out of his back. Philza went limp once they were out.

“Get him some bandages,” Quackity commanded.

Sam raised an eyebrow.

“I’m serious. I don’t want to bleed out.”

Sam started heading out the door. “Wait,” Quackity stopped him. Sam turned around. “Get him a bit of food too. The man hasn’t eaten in two weeks.”

Part 30 - The Source:
Trigger Warning: Drinking

Schlatt woke up with a headache. Wilbur had come over the night before. He’d be coming soon. Despite feeling the wrath of his hangover, Schlatt got up from bed and walked over to the alcohol. He picked up the scotch bottle he had gotten the week before and peeled back the label. L12TU read on the back of it. Location twelve on Tuesday. That was the Eiffel Tower. He’d have to leave now if he wished to meet him before he left. He quickly got dressed and rushed out the door. He immediately ran into Techno. “You're up early,” Techno crossed his arms. “What’s it to you?” Schlatt demanded.

“Nothing. Just odd since Wilbur came over last night.”

Of course he knew that. “I didn’t drink very much. I had a lot earlier that day.”

“Like that's ever stopped you.”

“When I wake up and why is none of your business. Now get out of my way.”

“You could’ve walked around me,” Techno pointed out as he stepped to the side.

Schlatt impatiently walked past him and started heading for Las Nevadas. No one was there when he got there. There was also no bottle yet. Good. Schlatt leaned against the stone tower and waited for their arrival. It took them about thirty minutes to get there. “What are you doing here?” Connor looked around nervously, “What if someone followed you?” “The only people awake are Dream, Techno, and Ranboo,” Schlatt rolled his eyes. “Those are the people I’m most worried about!” Connor yelled, but quickly lowered his voice, “What did you need me for?” “Hand me a beer first. You can have one also.” Connor set the two cases of beer he was holding down and got each of them one of the cold bottles. The two sat down and leaned against the Eiffel Tower. “You owe me money you know. You were supposed to leave it two weeks ago,” Connor stated after he took a sip. “Right, uh, here you go.” Schlatt pulled out 20 diamonds and handed them to Connor.

“You’re missing 30.”

“I’ll get them to you. Money’s tight these days.”

“Go mining.”

“Schlatt chuckled, “When have I ever gone mining?”

“You’re lucky we’re friends.” Connor took another sip of his beer, “So what did you need?”

“I’m tired of Dream’s rule. I can’t follow him anymore.”

“Then run away. It’s not hard. Come now.”

“I don’t run away. That’s not how I work.”

“Yes you do. That’s what you did during the war.”

“Shut up. No, I want to start my own reign. I miss being president.”

Connor chuckled, “Good luck with that.”

“Such a good friend,” Schlatt mumbled sarcastically.

“You're not serious, are you?” Connor’s eyes widened, “You’ll be killed.”

“No, we’ll be killed.”

“What?!” Connor yelled out, forgetting to be quiet, as he jumped to his feet.

“I can’t start a country by myself.”

“I only have one life left, Schlatt! I can’t go against Dream!”

“So do I! We can be in the Afterlife together!”

“No! You can go to the Afterlife on your own.”

“You’ve been risking your life for this,” Schlatt lifted up his beer to show.

“That’s for money. That’s different.”

“Like I’ve been paying you. C’mon, did you say we were friends?”

“We’re not that good of friends!”

“Connor, don’t you remember SMPLive? The Cuck Shed?”

Connor sighed, “How about this? We can make a deal. You like deals. First of all, you’ve got to get me 50 diamonds.”

“I owe you 30.”

“The price rises for this. Second, I need you to have at least three people join.”

“No problem. Everyone hates Dream.”

“You forget that they also hate you. Third, I want netherite armor and tools.”

“Netherrite? That’s going to be a problem.”

“If I’m going to risk my life for this then I want it to at least be hard for them. Last, get some land. You can’t start a country without land. All this, and I’ll join.”

“You’re a greedy man.”

“I’ve learned it from the best.”

The two laughed a bit before Schlatt got up and grabbed the cases of beer.

“I’m gonna get the stuff!” Schlatt yelled out as Connor walked off.

“I’d like to see it when you do!”

Schlatt had no idea how he was going to get the stuff.

Techno silently followed Connor through the mountains next to Las Nevadas till they were out of ear shot from Schlatt. He swiftly rushed forward and rested his sword near Connor’s neck, brushing against his adam's apple. “Schlatt!” Connor called out angrily. “Schlatt!” He called out again, but this time nervousness and fear swarmed his tone and eyes. “Look, I’ll give you twenty diamonds if you let me go,” Connor bargained.

“I’ve no need for diamonds. I have plenty.”

“Look, I’ll give you anything. Don’t take me to that place.”

“I want information.”

“I’m not exactly great with that. What do you need?”

“I want to know where the refugees are.”

“Refugees? I don’t know what you're on about.”

“Niki, Foolish, Hannah, Tubbo, Fundy, and Purpled.”

“Well I saw Purpled once in the town me and my friends live in. He left a couple days after though. I don’t know about the others. They’re nowhere in the Dream SMP area.”

“Well I figured that much.”

“I mean that they are nowhere around the locations Schlatt and I have set up, which are relatively secretive.”

“Of course they aren’t,” Techno mumbled as he sheathed the sword. He sat down and leaned his head against a rock. Connor had never seen him look so weak, so tired, so powerless. That was until he punched a rock and a crack ran through it. Connor backed up in surprise. “I’m, uh, going to go now,” Connor stuttered as he started walking away. He couldn’t help but look back at the fallen soldier. He looked as if he was grieving.

Part 31 - True Friends:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Manipulation

Sapnap couldn’t find a moment to talk to Karl. Michael was always watching him, and this didn’t seem like the type of conversation he could have with him around. Besides, he would get angry if Karl said a word or stopped working to talk to him or George. So Sapnap decided to resort to sneaking out at night. The problem was that he lived with Dream, so even if he managed to not get caught by Techno, he would have to manage to get out of the house without Dream catching him. Luckily, he had a plan that just might get him out uninjured and unnoticed by both of them. Sapnap stared outside his bedroom window on the third floor. Finally, a figure appeared. They didn’t go into Schlatt’s house so it wasn’t Wilbur and he knew that Dream was in his room. Sapnap silently tip-toed downstairs to the area just under the chandelier. He was quick about it, and managed to start a fire with his flint in steel within seconds. He started a few more and waited for it to spread a bit before yelling out, “Fire!” The flames gave him bad memories. Memories he didn’t want to go through again. He quickly ran out the door when he heard Dream running down the stairs, brushing past Techno once he got out the door. “Where are you going?” Techno demanded. “Out!” Sapnap yelled, gesturing to the blazing fire. Ranboo must not have been sleeping because he walked outside his house to see what was going on and watched as Sapnap ran away from the mansion and Snowchester before he jogged towards the flames to assist Dream and Techno.

Sapnap ran across the top of the tunnel that Tubbo had made and from there quickly got to HBomb’s house in Boomerville. Karl was awake when he got there. He seemed shaken up about something. “Karl, are you alright?” Sapnap asked as he ran to hold him steady. Karl stared blankly at Sapnap before blinking and shaking his head a bit, “Sapnap? What are you doing here? What time is it?”

“About midnight. Are you alright? You look pale.”

“Um, yeah I’m fine. One minute, I need to get something.” Karl gently pushed himself away from Sapnap and walked over to a chest that sat against the wall. “What’s that?” Sapnap questioned, attempting to look over Karl’s shoulder from a distance. “Book and quills,” Karl replied.

“Speaking of that, I need to talk to you about something. It’s a bit urgent as you can tell, since I came here in the middle of the night.”

“Right, give me a sec.” Karl went on to write in two different books and then grabbed a large, rolled up piece of paper from the chest. “Are you done yet?” Sapnap asked impatiently. Why was he acting so weird? “Mhm,” Karl responded as he moved a crafting table to the side, revealing a hole in the floor. He climbed down a ladder into it. “Well it doesn’t look like you're done.” Sapnap walked over to the hole in the floor and peered in. “Don’t come down,” Karl commanded. Sapnap ignored him and made his way into the hole.

“What is this?” Sapnap’s mouth gaped open. The room was lined with sloppy, hand-drawn posters besides two of them, one of which Karl was hanging up now. Those posters looked professional. There was a small shelf to the side with books on it and each poster had a book placed in a lectern in front of it, that was, other than the poster that read ‘The Beach Episode.’

Karl seemed to snap out of his state after the poster was hung up and the two books were put in their rightful places, one in front of the newly hung up poster and the other on the shelf. “Sapnap, you can’t be in here!” Karl yelled nervously.

“In the house or in this basement?” Sapnap raised an eyebrow.

“Both! What if Techno saw you? What if he found this place? You could’ve been killed!”

“I took care of it! And I needed to talk to you!” Sapnap looked around the room, “I think it’s about this.”

“How much do you know about this?”

“What I’m seeing now. I also read ‘The Beach Episode.’”

Karl’s eyes widened, “Where is it?”

Sapnap went on to explain the conversation he and George had had with Bad. “So what’s going on? What is all this? Cause it doesn’t look like it’s just a hobby.”

Karl hesitated, “I don’t want Bad to know.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know,” Karl shrugged, “I don’t trust him.”

“He’s my dad! And you were part of The Badlands! Why not? Is it that serious?”

“Yes it’s that serious! And sure, he took us in, but what has he done recently that I should trust him for? He hasn’t helped me or Eret. He hasn’t stood up to Dream. He gave Dream his own country! He’s a coward!”

“He’s doing what’s best for his country! You’d know this if you ever bothered to run your own!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

“It means, you were always disappearing to what I can assume was this place! You always seemed out of it and you didn’t even invite Quackity to join us! Foolish did more for Kinoko than you ever did, and he’s not even a part of it!”

“TAKE THAT BACK!”

“IT’S THE TRUTH!”

“You have no idea what I’m going through right now!”

“I’ve been with you everyday during it! I have a decent idea!”

“That’s not what I’m talking about!”

“Then no, I don’t have any idea what you're going through! It’s not like you ever tell me!”

“I don’t know if I want to tell you anymore!”

“Then don’t!”

“Fine! I won’t!”

Sapnap stormed out of the house. Dream was waiting outside for him. “Are you alright?” Dream looked concerned. “I’m fine,” Sapnap mumbled, not stopping to talk. Dream kept pace with him, “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not to you.”

Dream frowned, “Why not? Maybe I can help.”

“What do you mean ‘why not?’ Maybe because you’ve been torturing my friend through forced labor!”

“Torturing? Everyone’s been having their fair share of work. Besides, he didn’t sound like your friend in there.”

Sapnap stopped and turned to look at Dream, “He is my friend. What happened in there was just a petty argument.”

“Well he’s not a very good one. I mean, what kind of friend relies on their friends, one of which is a cripple, to do their work for them? Didn’t he also choose to save a few measly books over you and George during the fire? George might be able to walk now and not have scars all up and down his body if it weren’t for him.”

“How did you know about that?”

“You don’t know? I was the one who saved George from the fire. I saw you run out of there to help Karl with those books.”

“There is no way you saved George,” Sapnap shook his head and continued walking.

“I did. He’s my friend. I don’t let my friends get hurt. Why do you think he was taken to The Badlands rather than you guys? I couldn’t be seen, but I needed him to be safe.”

There was a pause as the two continued their way down to Snowchester. “Do you want to go explore The Nether tomorrow?” Dream asked as they arrived at their front door, “Just like old times. Maybe we can go by the beach with George afterwards to relax and cool off in the water.” Sapnap agreed, though still skeptical about the offer, however, he didn’t want to anger Dream.

Part 32 - Nothing Beats Game Night:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of PTSD, Mentions of Isolation

“GIVE ME MY MONEY!” Quackity yelled, slamming on the table.

“NO!” Tommy quickly refused.

“TOMMY, GIVE QUACKITY HIS MONEY!” Philza demanded.

“GIVE HIM HIS MONEY SO I CAN GO!” Punz shouted angrily.

“GIVE HIM HIS MONEY SO I CAN GET MYSELF OUT!” Jack piped in.

“KEEP THE MONEY, MAN. DON’T GIVE IN!” Mexican Dream encouraged.

“BUTT OUT OF IT MEXICAN DREAM. YOU’RE NOT EVEN IN THE GAME ANYMORE!” Quackity turned towards Mexican Dream.

“I LIKED POKER BETTER!” Ghostbur wailed.

“WHY’D YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE MONOPOLY, QUACKITY?” Sam asked, frustrated.

“IT TEACHES GOOD LESSONS ABOUT SAVING AND INVESTMENTS!” Quackity explained.

“NOT TO THESE IDIOTS!” Sam gestured around the room.

“HEY! I’M NOT AN IDIOT!” Tommy flipped the board over.

“GREAT! NOW NOBODY CAN PLAY!” Quackity kicked a piece on the ground.

“I DIDN’T WANT TO ANYWAYS!” Punz disappeared from the room with Jack, Mexican Dream, and Ghostbur quickly doing the same.while Philza had the board game, along with its many scattered pieces, disappear.

“I’m picking the game next time,” Sam announced. “Oh, what could go better than this?” Quackity rolled his eyes. “Operation?” “I’m down for Operation,” Tommy agreed. Philza nodded. Quackity sighed, “Fine. We can play Operation next time.” Sam sat back down in one of the chairs they had been put around the table they played Monopoly at. Philza and Quackity joined him. “Are you guys going to start working again?” Tommy asked as he sat down also. “I guess so,” Philza shrugged as he summoned the notebook they had been writing in his hand. “Mind if I stay?” “As long as you’re quiet,” Quackity agreed. Tommy nodded and the group stayed silent as Philza, Quackity, and Sam each looked through their own copies of the notebook, trying to come up with new ideas or alter old ones they had done. After a few minutes Tommy asked, “So have you figured out what Jack meant?” “If we had we wouldn’t be here,” Quackity sighed. Tommy, out of curiosity, summoned another copy of the notebook to flip through it. There were pages describing what Philza saw with Schlatt, what he had seen with Wilbur, along with Tommy’s, Philza’s, and Jack’s experiences in being revived. Tommy flipped through the many pages that listed different things they had tried till he got to the back which had a list of everyone’s Limbos and after that there was a list of weird things about the Afterlife. “Hey, you guys forgot something,” Tommy pointed to the last page of the book. “We stopped looking at that page a while ago,” Sam explained, “Nothing in it seemed to help us at all.” “But maybe this will.” “I’m sure we got everything, Tommy,” Quackity reassured him, but went on to flip to the back of the book to look through the list. “You forgot that we can’t feel emotions,” Tommy pointed out. The other three looked at each other. “I mean, I can’t be the only one. We all pretend to feel them and know when we should be feeling what, but we all have never actually felt any in this place. That’s why I felt so much PTSD when I left this place the first time. It all came at once.” “He’s not wrong. I noticed that the first time I left too. That’s also why I was able to look past what happened when I first saw you guys here,” Phil explained. “How have I not noticed that?” Sam mumbled. “You didn’t show much emotion in the first place,” Tommy shrugged, “Besides, it’s hard to notice unless you’ve been revived or someone points it out to you. We’re not cold shells of ourselves so it’s not completely noticeable.” “I semi-noticed, but didn’t pay much attention to it,” Quackity admitted. “Could this bring anything to the table?” Sam asked, looking around at everybody. “I want to talk to Jack again,” Quackity decided. He called for Jack and the group waited a bit till he appeared beside them and sat down. “Jack, when you died the first time, did you notice anything odd?” Quackity asked after he had settled in.

“I noticed I was dead and falling through the void. I’d say that’s pretty odd, or at least it was at the time,” Jack answered sarcastically.

“Other than that,” Quackity rolled his eyes.

“I was only here for a couple minutes. I didn’t have time to notice much other than that.”

“Did you notice a lack of feelings? Emotions?”

Jack thought for a moment, “I mean, maybe for the first few seconds, but I was pretty pissed after that.”

“How pissed?” Quackity leaned forward.

“Pissed enough to scream into the void about how much I wanted to kill a child.”

Quackity sat up, “Boys, I think we have a new idea.”

“Why? What is it?” Jack looked around, confused.

“Tommy pointed out to us that we can’t feel emotions, and as far as we can tell, you’re the only one who ever has,” Philza explained.

Jack’s eyes widened, “So you mean, if we can manage to feel emotion, we might be able to break out of this place.”

“That seems easier said than done,” Sam mumbled, “Feeling emotions in a place where they don’t exist? I don’t know how Jack managed it.”

“Jack, are they playing poker right now?” Quackity asked.

“Yeah, why?”

“Tommy, go join them. The adults need to talk right now.”

“What?! I was the one who gave you guys the idea! Why do I have to go?”

“Listen to me, Tommy. We’ll come get you later.”

Tommy reluctantly went to go play poker with the others. “Should I go too?” Jack asked.

“No. I’ve got an idea as to how to test this emotion thing, but you guys aren’t going to like it,” Quackity warned.

“What is it?” Philza raised an eyebrow.

“So we need a test subject for this, and so it makes sense to choose the most emotional person here, which would be either Tommy or Ghostbur, and I don’t know what’s going to happen if Ghostbur gets brought back to life and I don’t want to risk it.”

“What do you mean by test subject? Why did you have to send Tommy away for this?” Sam asked, concerned for the kids' wellbeing.

“It’s obvious that it’s going to be difficult to get someone angry or upset in here, which I’d assume works the best,” Quackity took a deep breath, “I think we should isolate Tommy. Don’t tell him we are doing this. Isolate him and then when he seems to be breaking mention people like Dream, Wilbur, and Tubbo. We’ll have to get Punz in on it also. I don’t trust telling Mexican Dream and Ghostbur the plan.”

“Quackity, isn’t this what Dream did to Tommy in exile? We can’t do this to him! He’s just a child!” Sam yelled.

“I agree with Sam. Tommy’s been through enough,” Philza shook his head.

“Well does anyone else have any ideas on how to test this?” Quackity exasperated.

“Could we not just talk about Tubbo and Dream in front of him now?” Philza suggested.

“That wouldn’t work. When you got dragged back to the overworld a while back you mentioned Tubbo and it barely phased him,” Quackity pointed out.

“Quackity is right,” Jack stated, “It’s not the best idea, but it’s all we have.”

“You’re actually agreeing to this?” Sam questioned angrily.

Jack nodded. Philza sighed, “If it becomes to much for him, then I’m stopping.”

“You too? This is a terrible, terrible idea. How can you guys agree to this?”

“Sam, I thought you’d agree more than anybody,” Quackity exclaimed, “You’ve been working on this thing more than anyone else and when we finally have our first idea in months you refuse to take part in it? Just remember, you’re not going to feel any emotions as you do this. It may be terrible morally, but it won’t affect you mentally till we are out of this place.”

“I don’t care about how I feel! I care about Tommy!”

“When we get out of here he’s going to feel terrible anyways! Like he said, he had major PTSD last time he got out of this place. I’d imagine it’s worse the second time.”

“You’re not making me feel any better about this!”

“Look, Sam, Tommy wants out of this place just as much as the rest of us. If you really care about him you’d help him do so.”

“If I agree to this, and if this works, as soon as Tommy gets out we will rest at nothing to go out so we can help him out.”

“Deal,” Quackity nodded.

“I guess we aren’t playing Operation then.”

“No, we’re still playing it. Just without Tommy.”

Part 33 - White Room Covered in Red:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Insanity, Self-Harm, Torture, Manipulation, Death

35 Days After the Escape

Philza’s hands trembled as he ate the raw, peeled potatoes. He hadn’t eaten in five days. He didn’t think Quackity would feed him again after the first time, but here he was. When he came back from the bamboo, the entire room had been turned white. He had also been changed into white clothes. Quackity and Sam didn’t visit anymore. Someone had to slide the white potatoes in the slot, but he hadn’t heard them. He hadn’t heard anything other than the noises he made himself. He liked to make noises sometimes. He got tired of the quiet. Sometimes he would whistle or kick the wall so it wasn’t so quiet. He also got tired of the white. It strained his eyes and made him feel lonely and hollow inside. The only colored thing in the room were the black stubs that were left of his once glorious wings. Sometimes he would twist a wound the wrong way, that way it would open up and he could see the red blood drip down his arm and onto the white ground, but it would always be gone after he went to sleep. The potatoes were flavorless, but Philza was hungry so he continued to eat them, despite his shrunken stomach telling him to stop after one. A few minutes later he threw up. He heard the crashing sound of a bottle as he often does before he falls asleep and when he awoke the next day the puke was gone.

“Do you think we can ask him the questions yet?” Quackity asked as he stared at the hollow shell of a man known as Philza Minecraft through a one way mirror Sam had set up. “It’s been six days, and look at him. He might actually tell us everything. Do you know what you’re going to say to him?” Sam questioned. “I have a general idea,” Quackity shrugged. “He’s made himself bleed again,” Sam nodded towards Philza, who was watching blood drip down his arm, “Should I put him to sleep?” “No. I think I’ll talk to him now.” Sam nodded and walked over to the iron door to pull the lever. “Should you put on some white clothes first before going in?” Sam suggested before pulling it. “Right,” Quackity mumbled before he jogged upstairs. He came back down in a white button up and slacks a few minutes later. Sam pushed down on the lever and Quackity walked in.

“Did you hurt yourself?” Quackity asked calmly as soon as the door was shut. Philza looked up from his bleeding arm, “It doesn’t hurt.”

“It might hurt in the long run. Could get infected.”

“Then I’ll use a healing potion.”

“I’d rather not waste my supplies when I can prevent it.” Quackity had plenty of supplies.

“Then use my supplies.”

“I don’t know where they are.”

“Have you not been to mine and Techno’s houses? I should have some there.”

“Techno took all the supplies. Do you know where we could find him in case this does happen?” Actually Quackity and Sam had taken most of the supplies. Techno must’ve not had room in his inventory. Or time.

“I haven’t seen him in a while. He might have moved. He didn’t like where he was.”

“Why didn’t he like it?”

“Bad memories. He talked about fighting Tommy, and Wilbur’s insanity, and he especially got bad memories from the room under the lake where we found some old potions.”

Holy crap. Quackity knew where they were, or at least where they’d been.

“If Techno’s not there, who else might be there that I can ask?” He had to know what he was up against.

“Didn’t you say Michael was there?”

“We’re not completely sure. Who all is there with him? Just want to make sure you’re safe.”

“Dream is there, but he doesn’t like you very much. You might be able to ask Wilbur or Ranboo though.”

“Ranboo? I thought he didn’t like Dream?”

“He liked Techno and I. He also said something about an enderwalk I think.”

He really was just revealing everything, wasn’t he? What a sad sight. A useful one, but sad.

“Do you know what this enderwalk is?”

“No, he never told me. He sleep-walked a lot though.”

“What do your friends want? What are their goals?”

“I don’t know what this has to do with healing potions.”

“Well if their goal is to kill me or Sam, then we will have to send somebody else.”

“Oh, no it’s nothing like that, though Dream and Techno don’t like you guys very much. They might kill you if they have the chance. They just want to get rid of the governments other than the Dream SMP. I thought that was weird.”

“Yes, that is weird. Weren’t you in The Syndicate with Niki? Why isn’t she with Techno and Dream?”

“She doesn’t like Dream or trust him. She also got angry about what we did to Kinoko. She said that Kinoko did nothing wrong. She wouldn’t let me stay the night at her house after I left Pogtopia.”

Well that confirms it. “Is there anything else you think I should know if I have to go over there?”

Philza thought for a moment, “Dream is the only one who ever goes out, so there should be someone there to help you.”

“Thank you Philza. You’ve been very cooperative and helpful.” Quackity knocked on the door and Sam let him out. “Did he seriously tell you everything? I didn’t think it would go that well!” Sam said wide-eyed. Sam had set up a hidden camera and microphone in the room along with the one way mirror, so even though Philza couldn’t hear them from the inside, they could hear him from the outside. Quackity smiled, “I couldn’t believe it either. This is a huge breakthrough!” “What should we do with him now? He’s told us everything he knows,” Sam pointed out. “Dispose of him. I don’t care how,” Quackity responded. “Are you serious?” “Like you said, he’s told us everything. We have no use for him anymore.” Quackity walked off to a different part of the basement, over to the bamboo room. “I’ve told you everything! Let me go!” His prisoner shrieked as they struggled against their bonds. Blood dripped down the bamboo shoots and formed a puddle on the ground. “I know.” Quackity walked over to the prisoner and swiftly chopped off their head, letting it roll across the floor. “You have no use to me either anymore.” Niki’s body quickly disappeared before Quackity had to look at the severed head. That seemed like enough of a punishment.

Part 34 - A Godly Encounter:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Depression, Mentions of Death

“Can I go out for a bit?” Tubbo asked. “Someone has to come with you. And don’t leave this area,” Niki replied. She wasn’t worried. They’d been going out almost everyday now to either get food or just some fresh air. She didn’t know why, but Techno never came here. Actually, from what Fundy has said, he doesn’t even leave the main Dream SMP area. “Fundy, can you go with me?” Tubbo begged. “Yeah, sure,” Fundy shrugged and stood up from his chair. “Be careful!” Niki called as the two left the room. Fundy yawned as he stretched his arms out, “So what did you want to do?” “Follow me. It’s going to be a bit of a walk,” Tubbo beckoned Fundy away from the refugee's hideout. “We’re not allowed to leave this area. It’s not safe,” Fundy reminded him. “Relax, we aren’t going anywhere near the main Dream SMP land.” Fundy reluctantly followed Tubbo, trudging through the snow and weaving around the trees. Eventually the snow ended and they continued walking. “Where are we going?” Fundy finally asked after they’d been walking for around 20 minutes. “I’m just following a hunch,” Tubbo replied. “That doesn’t answer the question,” Fundy mumbled. After about ten more minutes, Fundy stopped in his tracks, “Tubbo, I think we should head back. Niki and the others will be worried.” “We’re almost there,” Tubbo stated, ignoring Fundy and continuing the trek. Fundy made the decision to continue following him, for Tubbo’s safety if anything.

After five more minutes of walking, the two refugees arrived at their destination, a small crater and a stack of blocks towering into the sky from inside the hole that was clearly created by tnt. Along with this stuff, there was a small, wooden house, a white tent, and a bedrock sign that read ‘Drista.’ “What is this place?” Fundy stared in awe at the remains of Logstedshire. Tubbo started shaking as he saw the tower. “Tubbo, are you alright?” Fundy asked after he got no answer. Tubbo swallowed and took a deep breath, “C’mon.” The two scoured the ruins and searched all through the area around it. Tubbo started looking around the forest behind the crater while Fundy started searching around the tent, not knowing what he was looking for. His eye caught on the ‘Drista’ sign. He got distracted with it and while he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings a knife was pressed against his throat, “Where’s Tommy?” An angry female voice asked him. “Drista, stop it,” Tubbo commanded. Fundy glanced to the side of him to see Tubbo with his arms up as a sign that he didn’t want to fight. “Tubbo, get out of here!” Fundy urged him. “Relax Fundy. She’s not going to hurt us,” Tubbo reassured him, glaring at Drista as he said it. “Don’t be so sure about that. Now where is he?” Drista pushed on the knife, but not hard enough to cut through the skin. “He’s gone! Dead!” Fundy said quickly. Drista put her arm back at her side, “What?” Tubbo stared at the ground glumly as Fundy ran to his side, finally getting a look at his attacker. She wore a green hoodie and a mask that covered her face. She had long blonde hair and resembled Dream quite a bit, except she glowed with a seemingly godly aura. “What do you mean he’s dead? He was fine the last time I saw him!” Drista yelled with a mix of anger, confusion, and grief. Fundy glanced at Tubbo, “I don’t think we should talk about it.” “I better get an explanation or I’m going to prong your eyes out with a fork.” Fundy would’ve thought nothing of the threat till she actually pulled out a fork. “Dream killed him!” Fundy said in a panicked voice, “There was a war and he didn’t make it out. Did you really not know this?” “I don’t typically spend my time worrying about you mortals and your business,” Drista sneered as she put the fork away. So she is a god, Fundy thought. “Can you bring him back?” Tubbo’s head perked up as he said it. Drista shook her head, “That’s not within my power. DreamXD’s maybe, but not mine. And he’d never do it.” Fundy looked at the shaken up Tubbo, “Do you need to sit down?” Tubbo nodded and Fundy helped him onto a large rock. The three stayed there in silence. “I came here to look for his ghost. This is where he was exiled to,” Tubbo finally broke the silence. Fundy, shocked by the statement, asked, “Why would he go somewhere that brought back the terrible memories?” “It’s the only place I could check.”

Part 35 - The First of Four:
Trigger Warning: Gore, Mentions of Violence, Drinking, Mentions of Torture

Schlatt had been strip mining for days, only finding a measly 10 diamonds when he needed 84. That didn’t even count the eight netherite ingots he needed. This wasn’t working. He’d have to do this a different way. Schlatt sighed and walked through his tunnels till he found the ladder that led him back into his house. He changed into one of his many suits and cleaned the dirt off his face and horns. Schlatt then left his house and made his way for Dream’s castle, making sure to grab a bottle of whiskey before he went. He ignored Michael, Karl, and Eret when he got there, who still hadn’t finished it, though they looked like they were almost done, and instead made a straight shot for the hole which led into the obsidian room which held the prisoners. He ignored the prisoners till he got to the end of the hallway, to the cell that held HBomb with Ranboo standing guard in front of it. “I don’t think you’re supposed to be here,” Ranboo said nervously. “Yeah! Get out!” HBomb hollered. He had a half-empty bottle of tequila next to him. “You know you can just ask me for alcohol. You don’t have to rob my house,” Schlatt stated as he handed the whiskey bottle through the iron bars. “You’re gonna have to roll it. My legs don’t work,” HBomb explained. Schlatt took a good look at the prisoner and realized that all his limbs were broken and he was also covered in scratches, bruises, and burns. Schlatt bent down and rolled the bottle over to HBomb who immediately opened it with his mouth and took a swig of it, somehow using his teeth to hold it up before setting it back down. “Impressive,” Schlatt mumbled. “What are you doing here? Dream said not to let anyone besides Wilbur in,” Ranboo demanded. “Well you’re doing a bad job,” Schlatt said sarcastically, “I’ve come to ask you for diamonds and netherite.” “Why should I give you that?” Ranboo questioned. He didn’t trust Schlatt, despite him helping out HBomb. “If you want more alcohol for HBomb then I need the diamonds and netherite. My source wants to be paid.” Schlatt didn’t trust Ranboo, despite him defying Dream, though he wasn’t sure why Dream allowed him to drink still.

“Give him money,” HBomb demanded.

“I don’t even have the money. Dream has banned ender chests, remember? All my diamonds and netherite were in there.”

“Can you not get one?” Schlatt pointed out.

“He closed off the Nether portal a while back and he’s always going through our stuff. I have no blaze powder. The only one who ever relights it now is Michael when he takes Eret and Karl to get more supplies.”

“Dang it,” Schlatt mumbled.

“Does this mean I’m not getting more alcohol?” HBomb asked after drinking more of the whiskey.

“I guess not,” Schlatt shrugged and started to walk off.

“Wait!” Ranboo stopped him, “I’ll get you the money.”

“That’s what I like to hear!”

Schlatt started walking out of the room, but stopped in front of one of the cells. “Why are you guys being so quiet?” Schlatt asked. Ghostinnit looked up, “Dream doesn’t like us talking.”

Part 36 - Blood for the Blood God:
40 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Manipulation, Death, Violence

“I’m going to go get more food. Probably some sweet berries from the forest by Snowchester,” Dream announced. “You went out yesterday,” Techno eyed him with suspicion. “Well don’t eat so much,” Dream argued as he left the ravine.

FOLLOW HIM

FOLLOW HIM

E

DREAM SUS

FOLLOW HIM

E

DREAM SUS

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

FOLLOW HIM

“I’m not going to follow him. There’s five of us. We probably are out of food.”

FOLLOW HIM

E

FOLLOW HIM

DREAM SUS

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

FOLLOW HIM

DREAM SUS

SHUT UP GUYS

DREAM SUS

“Shut up. I’m staying here. I’ll train later. That should calm you guys down.”

“Who are you talking to?” Michael walked towards him, munching on a carrot.

“Where’d you get that?” Techno questioned.

“The food stash. Where else?”

Techno quickly got up and jogged towards the area of chests where they kept all their food, along with other supplies. He started digging through the chests and sure enough, there were plenty of stacks of food left.

FOLLOW HIM

FOLLOW HIM

FOLLOW HIM

DREAM SUS

E

FOLLOW HIM

E

DREAM SUS

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

FOLLOW HIM

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

“Fine,” Techno mumbled. He quietly started to sneak out of Pogtopia as to not draw attention to the others. He felt someone grip his shoulder, “Where are you going?” Techno gritted his teeth and turned to face Wilbur. “That’s none of your business,” Techno replied impatiently.

“You know, you’ve become a lot more short-tempered since Philza left.”

“And you’ve become a lot more annoying since you came back.” Techno pulled away from Wilbur and continued the path out of Pogtopia, but Wilbur followed him out of curiosity. As much as he wanted to question Techno’s motives, Wilbur held his tongue once they got outside. Techno knew that Dream climbed on rocks and trees as to not leave footprints and to make it harder for people to see him when he was out, so rather than looking at the ground for clues to where he went, he looked for branches and rocks that had been recently pushed slightly or leaves that had been knocked to the ground in specific places. Sure enough, he actually was going towards Snowchester. Techno didn’t bother to do what Dream did since Dream was much more agile than Wilbur and Techno’s bright red robe and pink tone would stand out anyways among the trees. Neither of the two had been out since they went around griefing and robbing places a few weeks back, but as much as they wanted to stand there and take a breath of fresh air they couldn’t just stand around. Techno led the way to Snowchester, constantly checking around for both signs of life and to make sure Dream didn’t stop going this way at any point. “What the heck is this?” Wilbur mumbled. Techno turned around to see him lifting up his foot and looking at the bottom of it, which was covered in a green goo. “Slime,” Techno shrugged. “Are we in a slime chunk?” Techno thought for a moment, “No. That’s weird.” “Yeah. That’s why I pointed it out.” A bush rusted near them. They heard a quiet, “Crap, crap, crap, crap.” Techno drew his sword and kicked the bush. “Ow!” A guy with a green goo, similar to the stuff on Wilbur’s foot, all over his body fell out of the bush. “Are you spying on me?” He shouted. “I’m pretty sure it’s the other way around. Who are you?” Techno demanded. “And what is that stuff on you?” Wilbur asked, still trying to wipe it off his foot. “Can I get that?” Charlie asked, gesturing towards Wilbur. “Huh?” Techno’s eyes widened. Charlie ran past Techno and put one hand on the ground and one on Wilbur’s foot. “Get off me!” Wilbur yelled, pulling away, but not before Charlie sucked all the goo back onto him. “Thank you Wilbur Soot from L’Manburg! Now I am complete! Well, other than the piece that was in Philza Minecraft from The Syndicate.” “Wait, Philza?” Techno pointed his sword at Charlie’s chest. “Quackity from Las Nevadas took some of my goop and put it in Philza Minecraft from The Syndicate. I didn’t want to, but Quackity’s my best friend so I let him. Wasn’t Philza Minecraft your best friend Technoblade from Pogtopia?” Techno’s voice shook, “What do you mean was? What did Quackity do to Philza?” “He’s dust now. Just like you will be in another few hundred years.”

PHILZA NO

DEADZA

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

DEADZA

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

E

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

“Techno, think rationally here,” Wilbur said nervously as he backed away.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

DEADZA

PHILZA NO

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

PHILZA NO

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

“We could take him prisoner. He knows stuff. He knows about The Syndicate and Pogtopia and maybe he can tell us stuff about Quackity and Sam.”

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

Techno watched the body disappear.

Part 36 - Snowchester Disbanded:
40 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence, Death

Dream hid in the woods till he caught sight of the figure standing in the shadows of one of the many wooden buildings in Snowchester. “So where are they?” Jack jumped at Dream’s voice. “In this building,” he responded. “And no one else is here?” Dream questioned. “Tubbo’s with Tommy and no one else ever comes here anymore, with Foolish being a part of Las Nevadas and Ranboo disappearing, I’m assuming to work with you guys. Dream nodded, “Well c’mon. I need to make sure you’re not lying about this.” Dream pulled out his axe. Jack swallowed hard and led Dream into the building. Dream froze in the doorway after Jack opened the door, “You guys actually made them.” “They work too. We tested one. That’s why there’s an empty spot. I can show you the crater,” Jack offered. “No, this is fine. I don’t want to stick around too long. What about the other empty spot?” “Stolen, but that was a while ago. Haven’t heard about anyone having it. I don’t know what happened.” Dream had an idea. “Alright then. Let’s grab it and get out of here,” Dream commanded. Then they heard voices. “I swear I saw them! Techno and Wilbur leaving Pogtopia!” “I believe you, Tubbo, but your solution is to nuke them?” “Well we can’t fight them on our own. We couldn’t even beat Dream on our own. So let’s blow them up!” “What about Ranboo and Wilbur?” “Ranboo has another life, and didn’t you never want Wilbur back in the first place? Maybe he deserves to be dead.” Tommy and Tubbo walked into the laboratory. “Jack, what are you doing?” Tubbo’s mouth gaped open. “Jack, grab the nuke and go. Head to Pogtopia,” Dream commanded. Jack did just as he was asked as Dream engaged in battle with Tommy and Tubbo, however, Jack was stopped just outside by Foolish. “What’s going on?” Tubbo ran outside, “Foolish, he has a nuke! There’s a button on the side, but it’s covered by a plastic case. That detonates it so be careful. Get it!” Tubbo ran back inside to help Tommy. Jack put the nuke down and pulled out his axe while Foolish pulled out his sword. The two battles raged on till Dream had Tubbo pinned against the floor using his legs and left arm while Tommy was pinned against the wall using his right. The two braced themselves for the worst, but suddenly Quackity, Sam, and Purpled burst into the room. Dream immediately got off Tommy and Tubbo, tripped Quackity with his leg and ran out the door, only to find that Jack had been killed and his body disappeared and Fundy and Foolish had gained possession of the nuke. Didn’t matter. He knew where to go. Dream continued to run to Pogtopia.

“Follow him! I’ll catch up in a minute” Quackity commanded. Sam, Foolish, Fundy, and Purpled ran off in the direction Dream had gone. “Are you two alright?” Quackity asked, concerned. Tubbo nodded, trying to catch his breath. “Yeah we’re fine. What are you guys doing here?” Tommy questioned. “A friend of mine has been spying on them to learn about their plans in the past few days, and he saw Dream, Techno, and Wilbur heading here. While the rest of us went to Pogtopia to attack these guys, we sent Foolish here to make sure everything was good. Good thing we did too.” “It’s also a good thing we didn’t blow you guys up,” Tommy sighed. “Blow us up? Is that what that is?” Quackity nodded at the nuke laying on the ground. “Yes, but I”m disassembling it,” Tubbo responded, picking it up and placing it on the table where it originally sat. “Why? We could use that!” Quackity argued. “They’re probably not going to be in Pogtopia anymore. Knowing Dream and Techno, they probably have hundreds of backup hideouts, so it’s not like we can use it. And who's to say they won’t try to use it again? Then we’re all screwed.” Tommy nodded in agreement. Quackity sighed, “Well it’s not my nuke to decide for. I’ve got to go. Stay safe.” Quackity ran off into the woods after his allies and Dream. Tubbo put on his lab coat and goggles and carefully started to disassemble the nuke. “Tubbo, I’m tired,” Tommy announced as he sat against the wall, watching Tubbo work, “Tired of searching. As soon as we finally find them they’re probably up and gone. We can’t take them. We would’ve died just then if it weren’t for Quackity and the others. I just want to rest in what little time we probably have left.” “What do you propose?” Tubbo looked up from his work. “Come move in with me. Bring Michael. This place isn’t even a country anymore. Jack, Foolish, and Ranboo have all left. I don’t want to live alone.” Tubbo didn’t even think for a full minute. “I think that’s a good idea.”

Part 38 - A Rude Awakening:
Trigger Warning: Isolation, Manipulation

“Ghostbur picked Go Fish. Do you wanna join us, man?” Mexican Dream asked. “It’s fine. They don’t want me there,” Tommy mumbled. “Your loss, man.” Tommy sighed and started a game of Solitaire. That seemed to be all he did these days. He hated the game. He didn’t know what he did wrong. All the sudden no one was inviting him to games or when he was invited they’d say there wasn’t enough room for him, even if they were just playing poker. No one ever talked to him besides Mexican Dream and Ghostbur and even they always abandoned him for games. What had he done? He angrily swiped the cards off the table he was playing on when he lost. The void was lonely. What if he didn’t do anything? What if they had just used him to get information, and now that they had it he was useless to them? After all, he was the coward who didn’t pick a side. The coward who ran away from the war till he was forced into it. He hoped Tubbo wasn’t going through what he was. No, he wouldn’t be. Everyone loved Tubbo. Tubbo was innocent, a fighter, a leader, the president. President… Why weren’t Schaltt and Wilbur here? Why’d he have to be here, but those terrible people got to be up in the Overworld living out their lives? “Why do I have to be here?” Tommy called out, kicking the table. “Why isn’t Dream here?” Another kick. “Why isn’t Wilbur here?” Another kick. “Why isn’t Schlatt here? What did you do to get resurrected? At least Wilbur was powerful! You’re just a broken old drunk! Get in here Schlatt! Come here Schlatt! You deserve to be here going through Hell with me!” Tommy went in for another kick, but stumbled over as he was caught off-guard. “Will you stop calling for me? I’m trying to sleep!” “Schlatt?” Tommy’s eyes widened at the sight. Surely not? “And that’s Glatt to you. Different people!” “Uh, sorry. Glatt? Where have you been? I didn’t even realize you were here.” Tommy scrambled to his feet. “Well Schlatt’s not here. Of course I am! And I’ve been asleep! Until now that is.” Glatt paused. “Where’s everyone else? A bunch of people came here a couple years back or something like that. Just after I got here.” Tommy looked down, “Playing Go Fish or something stupid.”

“You’re, what, like eight? Why aren’t you playing?”

“I’m seventeen, and they don’t want me to play. They used me till I was worthless.”

“They sound like jerks.”

Tommy’s head perked up, “They are.”

“Well forget about them! What is this, a deck of cards? Let's play poker! I’m awake anyways.”

Tommy smiled and gathered up the cards that were scattered across the floor and started shuffling them. “You suck at shuffling. Hand those over,” Glatt commanded. “Mexican Dream usually shuffled,” Tommy mumbled as he handed the deck over. “I said to forget about them. Here, I’ll show you how.” Tommy watched Glatt shuffle the cards a few times and then he handed them back. “Better. Just keep practicing,” Glatt advised as Tommy flipped the cards through his hands. After shuffling them a few times Tommy dealt the cards and the two started. They played 37 rounds. Tommy only won eleven rounds, but nevertheless, this was the most fun he had had in months. They would’ve played more, but after the 37th round Ghostbur showed up. “Hi Tommy! Who’s this?” “Ghostbur, this is Glatt,” Tommy introduced him. “Hi Glatt!” Ghostbur greeted. “Is this one of the jerks who used and abandoned you?” Glatt glared at Ghostbur. “What?” Ghostbur questioned, surprised by the statement. “No, Ghostbur still talks to me,” Tommy explained. “But didn’t he still leave you to play Go Fish and all those other games with the others? Doesn’t that mean he’s still choosing them over you?” “I mean, I guess so-” “Then tell him to leave! If they don’t recognize you for what you are, shove them out of your life, or death in this case.” “Tommy?” Ghostbur frowned. Tommy hesitated, “Ghostbur, I think you should leave.” Ghostbur gave Tommy a sad look before disappearing.

Part 39 - He Doesn't Know, Dream:
Trigger Warning: Torture, Violence, Gore, Drinking, Addiction

“What do you mean this is all you have?” Schlatt asked angrily. “You didn’t specify an amount. Besides, I only get every other day off and I have a son who already has to take care of himself most of the time and I’d like to spend at least part of those nights with him,” Ranboo argued as he shoved the 40 diamonds into Schlatt’s hands. “You didn’t even get the netherite!” Schlatt shouted. “The portals aren’t lit! You know this! And how am I supposed to go out at night to get to the portal anyways! You can get the rest of your diamonds and netherite somewhere else.” Ranboo opened the door, but turned to look back at Schlatt, “By the way, even I know that alcohol doesn’t cost netherite.” He slammed the door and left, heading for Dream’s castle. He passed by Ant and Skeppy heading to the farm to work on his way there, but he couldn’t bring himself to look at their hateful glares. He also couldn’t bear to look at Eret and Karl now working on the inside of the castle. At least it was almost done, but then Dream would just force them onto a different project, wouldn’t he? He nodded a greeting to the ghosts as he passed by each of them. All of them typically just sat leaned up against a wall most of the time, besides Ghosity who was always pacing. “Hello Ranboo,” Dream greeted him, “Should we get started?” So it would be him today. Dream tossed Ranboo a lighter and opened the door to HBomb’s cell. The two walked in Dream lifted HBomb up by his hair. HBomb started gagging since he had had a bottle in his mouth. He spit the bottle out and it smashed on the floor, but not until HBomb swallowed way too much hard alcohol at once. His foot started bleeding from a glass being embedded in it. “Get over here. Burn him,” Dream commanded. Ranboo slowly raised the lighter up to HBomb’s stomach. Dream aggressively grabbed Ranboo’s arm and lifted it up to HBomb’s chin, and then shoved the flame against it. HBomb grimaced, “Can I have some more?” “You can have as much as you want if you tell me where Niki and the others are,” Dream said through gritted teeth. “Really?” “Of course.” “Well I don’t know where they are.” “Ranboo, burn his ear.” Ranboo reluctantly lifted the lighter to HBomb’s left earlobe. “The inside of his ear, Ranboo.” Ranboo turned the lighter 90 degrees and faced it towards the inside of HBomb’s ear. “I got you the long lighter this time. You can stick it further in.” HBomb, called out in pain as the Dream shoved Ranboo’s hand so the flame was deep in his ear. “Give me more!” HBomb shouted. “Tell me where they are!” “I don’t know where they are!” “Ranboo, stick it further in!” Ranboo closed his eyes and pushed the lighter further in HBomb’s ear. “Stop it, Stop it!” HBomb cried out, “Please, give me another swig.” “You know, drinking doesn’t fix your problems. Just tell me where they are.” “But it makes them go away!” Angrily, Dream let go of HBomb’s hair and Ranboo quickly pulled the lighter out as HBomb slumped to the floor. HBomb immediately picked up one of the nearby bottles with his mouth and started chugging. “Great, I can’t hear,” HBomb mumbled after he set the bottle back down. Dream led Ranboo out of the cell and left him to guard HBomb and the ghosts. Ranboo knew that torturing HBomb was taking a mental toll on him, but HBomb had said he’d be tortured anyways, so he mine as well have alcohol, and Ranboo was willing to do whatever HBomb wanted.

Part 40 - It Worked:
Trigger Warning: Manipulation

“When do you think we can start trying to revive him?” Philza asked, “It’s been months now.” “I figured we should wait a while since he still has Ghostbur and Mexican Dream to keep him company,” Quackity shrugged. “I haven’t seen them hang out with Tommy in a while actually. They're with Punz and Jack right now,” Sam pointed out. “That’s odd,” Quackity mumbled, “They used to spend most of their time with him, or at least Ghostbur did. How long has it been since they last hung out with him?” “I’d say around two months,” Sam answered. “Huh. Ghostbur!” Quackity called. Ghostbur appeared next to them, “Hey guys! What is it?” “Why aren’t you hanging out with Tommy anymore?” Quackity interrogated. “He doesn’t want me to. He says that I abandoned him. But it’s alright, he has a new friend.”

“What new friend? I haven’t felt anyone else enter the Afterlife.”

“He said his name was Glatt I believe. They were playing poker together and told me to leave. I haven’t returned since. Maybe you guys should go see him. He missed you.”

“Glatt? Great, not that idiot,” Quackity mumbled as he ran his hands through his hair. “Is that Schlatt’s ghost?” Philza questioned. Quackity nodded. “Well then if it’s Schlatt it might have made him worse. We could probably go now.” Sam and Quackity agreed and the three appeared in front of Glatt, who was helping Tommy bench press. “I told you you could lift this much!” Tommy smiled and continued bench pressing. “Tommy?” Tommy nearly dropped the weight at the sound of Quackity’s voice, but Glatt grabbed it before it hit his chest. “What are you guys doing here?” Tommy demanded after he had sat up. “Come to work out with us? I can see you haven’t been doing your squats, Quackity,” Glatt scoffed. Quackity shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down in embarrassment. “Tommy, what are you doing?” Philza took a step towards them. “What, are you surprised that someone actually enjoys my company?” Tommy responded, crossing his arms.

“Isn’t Schlatt your enemy? Didn’t he exile you?”

“It’s Glatt, not Schlatt. And I’ve had more fun with him than I’ve had in years. Since before the Disc War.”

“You don’t mean that. What about Wilbur and Tubbo?”

“Wilbur forced me into a war over some stupid country and Tubbo exiled me because Dream said so. They didn’t care about me!”

“So did Schlatt!”

“This isn’t Schlatt! You don’t compare Wilbur and Ghostbur!”

“Ghostbur and Wilbur are nothing alike! Glatt is trying to manipulate you into thinking you have no other friends!”

“BECAUSE I DON’T! YOU GUYS USED ME! SAM, YOU LET ME DIE! PHILZA, YOU KILLED WILBUR! AND QUACKITY, YOU ARGUED OVER ME LIKE I WAS A TOY! THAT’S ALL I AM TO YOU GUYS! A TOY YOU’LL PLAY WITH TILL YOU’RE BORED AND THEN YOU JUST THROW IT OUT!”

Philza, Quackity, and Sam watched in shock as tears started streaming down Tommy’s face.

“THAT’S ALL I’VE EVER BEEN! EVEN BACK WHEN I FIRST CAME TO THAT STUPID SMP AND DREAM IMMEDIATELY EXILED ME AND THREW ME IN JAIL!”

Tommy was flickering in and out of this realm.

“WHY DOES NO ONE UNDERSTAND THAT I’M JUST A KID?”

He was gone. Philza’s, Quackity’s, and Sam’s mouths were gaped open, their eyes wide. “Well I’m going back to sleep,” Glatt announced, disappearing. “It worked,” Quackity whispered, “It actually worked.”

“Theseus?”

Part 41 - Welcome Home Theseus:
Trigger Warning: Trauma

Tommy was breathing too quickly. Tommy was breathing. He was breathing. He could breathe. He closed his eyes against the bright sun. He hadn’t seen light in so, so long. He hadn’t felt the wind, felt the heat, felt pain. He pinched himself, but immediately pulled away. He could feel pain. He was alive. Tommy was alive.

“Theseus?” Only two people had ever called him that, and one said it to him in the very spot he lay now just before he died. He felt someone lift his upper body into a sitting position and hold him there. Tommy opened his eyes once again to see a concerned and surprised Techno staring down at him. “Did Dream revive you?” Techno asked as he looked around the area to make sure no one was around. Tommy pulled away quickly, “No. You’re going to take me to him. You took HBomb.” “I’m not going to take you to him. If he didn’t revive you then he doesn’t know you’re alive.”

Tommy shook his head, “You’re lying.”

“Tommy, if I wanted to bring you to Dream then you’d already be there. We have to get out of here before someone comes who will take you to Dream,” Techno urged. Tommy nodded and Techno helped him up. “Can you run?” Techno asked. Tommy nodded again. “Follow me then.” Techno made sure not to run that fast so Tommy could keep up and he also made sure to take the back routes so no one would see them. He did have to shove Tommy into a bush once when Puffy passed by, but they soon made it to L’Crater. Techno turned to Tommy, “I’m going to need you to hang onto my back.” Tommy immediately went to do it. What happened to him? Before they’d have to argue for twenty minutes over this. With Tommy holding onto his shoulders, Techno scaled down the crater. He knew the general area it was in, but even still often forgot where it was. He saw some murky water dripping about eighteen meters away so he went in that direction. The water was coming from the sewer. Just what he was looking for. He heaved himself over the ledge and into the filthy tunnel. He stretched when he felt Tommy’s weight leave his back. “Welcome home Theseus,” Techno mumbled. “Is this where you live?” Tommy asked, staring at the messy pile of bedding. “Dream didn’t assign me a house because I’m supposed to be working 24/7. What he doesn’t understand is that sleep is a thing and I’m gonna participate in it still, so I sneak off here sometimes.” Techno tossed Tommy a golden apple, “Eat this so you can get your strength back up.” “You hated me eating your golden apples.” “Well I’m giving you permission for this one. You were a lot slower than normal on the run here.” Tommy sat down on the bedding and took a bite of the apple. He closed his eyes and let the fruity, empowering flavors sit in his mouth. Techno watched him eat the apple with curiosity. “So, how are you alive?” Tommy stopped eating to think, “I think Quackity, Sam, and Philza got me resurrected.” “But how? They’re dead too, right?” “It’s hard to explain. I don’t want to talk about it.” “That’s fine. Take your time.” Techno looked over Tommy. His clothes were in tatters, specifically a large rip on the front of his shirt and an identical one on the back. “Do you need a change of clothes?” Techno asked. Tommy looked down at his clothes and then nodded. “Alright, well Dream destroyed your house so who do you think you're close in size to?” “I probably have some clothes at Tubbo and Ranboo’s.”

“Dream is currently living there with Sapnap. They’re probably destroyed also. Do you think you’re close in size to Karl? He lives close by and he mainly just wears sweatshirts. Plus I know he’s out right now.” Tommy nodded. He was so quiet now. He used to never shut up. Techno stood up, “Try and be quiet. No one ever goes around here, but if you think someone might see you then go around the corner down there.” Techno grabbed onto the wall of the crater and started his climb up. Tommy started shaking. He was living with the man who was hunting Tubbo. Hunting all of them. He captured HBomb, and who knows what he’s going through. He didn’t die. He was living with Techno again. Tommy suddenly realized how tired he was. Should he sleep? What if Dream found him, or Techno was lying? He’d have to stay awake.

Techno returned around fifteen minutes later. “I see you haven’t moved,” he remarked, throwing one of Karl’s sweatshirts and a pair of jeans at Tommy. Tommy stood up and started changing out of his tattered clothes. “You’ve got some scars on you, Theseus. Do you keep your wounds after you die?” Techno asked. “Each time you die you lose all your injuries except a scar for the one that killed you,” Tommy answered quietly. “What’s that star shaped one on your side? Looks like it’s from an arrow.”

“That’s because it is from one. Life number two.”

“Well tell me how it happened.”

“Why do you wanna know?” Tommy questioned.

“Scars are cool. Besides, I wanna learn more about you.”

Tommy sighed, “I challenged Dream to a duel for L’Manburg and lost. I ended up giving up my discs to keep the country instead.”

“That’s noble of you. What about that one on your neck? That’s from some sort of blade.”

“That’s the first one. After Eret betrayed us and we got attacked. Dream sliced my throat.”

“I’m assuming the big one on the front and back is the newest. It looks like a sword, but it’s very long for a stab, but it has to be a stab and not a slice because it went all the way through.”

“Dream stabbed my chest and then pulled the sword down to the middle of my stomach.” Talking about it made Tommy feel sick, but it also felt good to face this stuff. No one ever bothered to talk about it with him.

“Where’s the third scar? You died four times, right?”

Tommy lifted up part of his hair to reveal multiple tiny scars on his head. “This one was mainly internal. Dream beat me to death with a potato when I was locked in the prison with him.”

“I will not be bringing you potatoes to eat then,” Techno chuckled. Tommy slipped the sweatshirt over his head and covered up the scars. “Why do you wear a crown? A crown represents everything that you’re against.”

“A fashion statement,” Techno replied sarcastically.

“Oh c’mon. I told you about my scars,” Tommy pleaded.

“Tommy, do you remember our argument during the Doomsday War?”

Tommy nodded, “Of course. You were talking about how I used and betrayed you. How I didn’t see you as a person and only saw you as The Blade.”

“Well I usually put up with being The Blade because it’s better than the alternative.”

After a long pause Tommy asked, “What’s the alternative?”

“Tommy, when you look at me, what do you see?”

“I see Technoblade. What do you mean?”

“Alright. What about now?” Techno took off his crown and red robe. “What do I look like to you? I’ll give you a hint. Imagine you saw me walking around the Nether.”

“A piglin,” Tommy mumbled.

“You don’t understand what it's like to walk down a street, not doing anything, and see mothers hiding their children behind their back, see people gripping onto their sword once you get within fifty feet of them. All they saw was a piglin. Someone with no feelings. Someone who will attack them and their families as soon as I see them. Tommy, I was a child and people did this. I thought I had done something wrong. I didn’t know why everyone hated me. So when I realized that it was because I was different, because they didn’t see me as a person, I made something of myself. I made The Blade. And when I walk down the street, mother’s still hide their children from me, but at least it’s from what I’ve made myself and not what they think I am.”

Part 42 - One Man's Trash is Another Man's Treasure:
45 Days After the Escape

Trigger Warning: Violence, Death, Gore

Dream dived into the water from the dock house, which was their new hideout. Close, but no one ever went there. At least this time they actually needed food. In reality he just wanted to get away from Techno. He’d become bothersome since he learned that Philza was dead with his constant asking for him to be revived. Does he not understand that he will be revived in Las Nevadas? He will just be killed again. Something caught Dream’s eye while he was swimming underwater. Was that obsidian? He also heard the sound of flowing water, which wasn’t normal in an ocean. He swam towards the obsidian and found himself in a room with a jukebox in the center and words scribbled on the walls. ‘Dream is the reason.’ Dream chuckled. This had to be Ranboo’s. His enderwalk state mentioned something about this. He was surprised that he hadn’t had to force Ranboo into his enderwalk yet, but he was actually being cooperative. If everything went to plan he might have to force the enderwalk though, or at least threaten to. There wasn’t much in the dark room so he dived back into the water and up to the surface where to his surprise he found Punz standing there. “I thought I saw you,” Punz smiled. “What do you want?” Dream asked impatiently. “I sense war brewing around here and I came to join your ranks. You know, like old times.”

“And why should I trust you? You’re the one who threw me in that prison.”

“That was for money. I’m joining you now because I share your goal! Make the server one big happy family again.”

“You’re joining me now because you’re a coward and know I’m going to win.”

Nervousness crossed Punz’s face, “That’s not true-”

“So you don’t think I’m going to win?”

“No, that’s not-”

Dream walked over and put his arm around Punz’s shoulders, “This was nice. Glad we got to talk again. Bye now.” Dream snapped Punz’s neck. That was for the months he spent in misery.

Punz angrily got on his horse and started galloping for Las Nevadas. He immediately found Quackity. “What are you doing here, Punz?” Quackity demanded. “Let me join your side.”

Part 43 - A Call to Battle:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Death, Manipulation

48 Days After the Escape

“Gather everyone round, Michael. I want to have a meeting,” Dream commanded. Wilbur and Jack were already there so they went to sit on the floor where Dream was. Michael soon came back with Ranboo and Techno. “What is it?” Ranboo asked as he and Michael sat on the ground with the others. Techno leaned up against a wall at the back. Dream sat down to come face to face with the others. “From what I have seen, the only two factions left are The Badlands and Las Nevadas, meaning we are almost done with our goal. I think we should attack Las Nevadas.” “What about tnt? Could wipe out one or both of the countries quickly and without a fight,” Wilbur suggested. “Even if we had the supplies for that, which we don’t, we aren’t doing this to kill anyone, remember?” Dream reminded him. “Why not?” Jack questioned, “They killed both Ranboo and I, and you back at the Disc Confrontation. You also seemed pretty determined to kill Tommy and Tubbo back at Snowchester.” “You were going to kill Tommy and Tubbo?” Wilbur was surprised. He shouldn’t have been, but with all Dream’s talk of keeping people alive along with them being two of the few people he cared about, he was surprised at the mention of them almost dying. “Of course he tried to kill them. What he meant to say was that we aren’t killing people who will follow his lead. Which is why he wants to attack Las Nevadas, but has yet to say anything about attacking The Badlands or shutting the Dream SMP down,” Techno spoke up. Everyone stared at Techno after his accusation. “Then why are you here if Dream’s planning on becoming all that you’re against?” Jack interrogated. “Long story I don’t want to explain. Don’t be put off by what I said. I suggest you stay on our side. You most certainly will die if you leave us now by either us or the other side.” Ranboo and Jack, who were starting to have doubts over which side they were on, gulped. “Don’t be such a downer, Techno. I trust all of you will make the right decision. Speaking of the right decision, I have a feeling that The Badlanders will make it. We might be able to convince them to fight on our side,” Dream stated. He didn’t deny what Techno said.

Part 44 - Another Citizenship Revoked:
The refugees feasted on bread that Drista had given everyone. She refused to give them anything except food, but that was enough. “So have you guys used any of the stasis chambers, or do you just avoid them all day?” Drista asked in between bites. “We brought Philza here, but he’s dead so he went back to the Afterlife after a few minutes,” Niki explained. “Philza’s dead?” Drista frowned. Niki nodded. “He was fun to mess with,” Drista said glumly, “I should’ve never gotten attached to this place and you guys. You all end up dying.” Hannah wrapped her arm around the young god’s shoulders for comfort, but Drista shoved her away. “Why don’t you guys use the stasis chambers and take Ranboo or Techno hostage?” Drista changed the subject. “They outgear us. Even if we had their gear, we could never fight Techno,” Niki responded. “There’s five of you guys. You couldn’t take Ranboo?” “Not all of us are fit to fight. Especially Ranboo.” “Mine as well just say my name,” Tubbo mumbled. Fundy went into a hacking fit of coughs. Niki rushed over and placed a bottle of honey they’d gotten from Techno’s bee farm in his hands. Tubbo felt bad for Fundy’s illness which wouldn’t have come if he hadn’t dragged Fundy all the way to Logstedshire and back in the cold. Niki waited for Fundy to down the honey before she went back to her seat. “Can I go outside?” Tubbo asked. “I’ll go with him,” Foolish announced as he stood up. “I’ll go too,” Hannah stated, standing up also. “I wanna go,” Fundy complained. “Fundy, you can barely walk, and it’s freezing out. Get some rest,” Niki sighed. Foolish, Hannah, and Tubbo left the meeting room and stepped outside into the freezing snow. “How long do you plan on staying, Drista?” Niki asked after they left. “I don’t know. DreamXD is such a bore. Always serious. I prefer hanging among the mortals.”

“Well it’s not like much goes on around here either.”

“I know, but it’s still interesting to learn things about you guys. Like Fundy’s illness. I didn’t know you guys would get sick from just being in the cold.”

Niki laughed and Fundy mumbled something incoherent. Suddenly Drista gripped onto the table and her eyes went wide. “What’s wrong? What is it?” Niki asked urgently. “There’s been a tear between realities. I’ve got to go.” Drista appeared in front of DreamXD sitting on his throne. “What happened?” Drista asked quickly. “I underestimated how strong human emotions are again,” DreamXD replied darkly.

“Someone else resurrected themselves? Can you not stop them from doing this?”

“I can make it harder, but completely stop? No. I thought I made it almost impossible last time, but some kid managed it.”

“Who?” Drista’s eyes widened. Kid?

“Why should you care? And where have you been? You’ve been with the mortals again haven’t you?”

“I care because it might be my friend!”

“You don’t befriend mortals! Even you know this, Drista!”

“Of course I know, but they’re so fun and interesting!”

“What were you doing in the Overworld that took days? You don’t dawdle there for more than a few minutes, much less days!”

“Talking to people who care about what I have to say!”

“They care about what you have to say because they’re using you. They see power and they grasp it. They’re going to use you, Drista. Can you not see that?”

“Not all of them are like that!”

DreamXD sighed, “Drista, don’t go back to the Overworld.”

“You can’t make me stay,” Drista sneered.

“I can and will. If you step foot in that realm I will revoke your powers.”

“You’re bluffing,” Drista took a step back, “I’d be stuck there forever.”

“A mere mortal.”

“Fine. But DreamXD, I need to know, was it Tommy who was resurrected?”

DreamXD thought for a moment, “Yes. It was.”

Drista smiled, “Then maybe being a mortal isn’t so bad.”

Drista appeared back in the meeting room. She felt so weak and powerless. She could barely move. Her eyes felt heavy and her whole body just felt uncomfortable. The room felt so cold. She had never felt the cold before. It stung her cheeks and feet. “Drista! What happened?” “Tommy’s alive. DreamXD revoked my godship. I’m a mortal. Tommy’s alive though.” Fundy sat up, “Tommy’s alive? How?” Drista explained everything that had happened in the God Realm and watched Niki’s and Fundy’s faces fill with shock. “We have to find him,” Fundy announced. “No,” Niki said quickly, “He died in The Badlands. That’s where he will be resurrected. It’s too dangerous. I need you two to promise me that you won’t go and find him. And promise me that you won’t tell anyone else that he is alive, at least not yet. Especially Tubbo. Whatever you do, you can not tell Tubbo that Tommy is alive.”

Part 45 - Revenge for the Undeserved:
Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Gore, Mentions of Torture

50 Days After the Escape

Techno had volunteered to go to The Badlands to recruit because of his good relationship with both Skeppy and Puffy, and though he attacked Hannah, Bad, and Ant during the Red Banquet, they had forgiven him for that because of them being under the Egg’s possession. Dream wanted to go, but with Ant and Bad previously being guards of the prison and Puffy disowning him, they decided that it was a bad idea. They also decided that Ranboo would be going also since he was both capable in battle, had a good relationship with the Badlanders, and they had a feeling that if they were to run into Tommy and Tubbo, then they would be less likely to fight Ranboo. They wanted to keep the group small to not draw attention and to not seem threatening, so after two days of debating on who should go and what needed to be said, Techno and Ranboo left for The Badlands. The two walked in silence as to not be caught. Techno led the way and they managed to get to The Badlands without running into anybody. When they reached the mansion, they were immediately seen by Sapnap and Puffy, not that they were trying to stay hidden once they got there. Techno and Ranboo quickly threw their arms up as a sign of peace when Sapnap pulled out his axe. Puffy gripped the handle of her sword, but didn’t unsheath it. “What are you guys doing here?” Sapnap demanded taking a step towards them. They hadn’t taken into account that Sapnap would be here. When they learned he was staying here, they had assumed it was only temporary as Sapnap, George, and Karl had never shown interest in The Badlands before. In fact Techno had assumed they would leave just like the Boomers had. “We just want to talk with the Badlanders,” Techno reassured him. “I’m listening.” So he had joined The Badlands. That would mean George and Karl would likely be here also. “I’d prefer to talk to Bad, Ant, Skeppy, Hannah, and Puffy.” Techno tried to make his voice calm and collected despite feeling irritated at Sapnap. “Sapnap is just as much a part of The Badlands as the rest of us,” Puffy piped in, “And if it’s a matter for all of us, it’s a matter for-” Puffy’s eyes went wide. Techno quickly turned around and managed to duck under the netherite sword that Sam had swung at him in an attempt to kill him when he wasn’t looking. Techno quickly unsheathed his sword and felt the ring of the clashing metal go through his body as their swords hit each other. He missed the feeling. The voices definitely missed the feeling.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

TECHNOBLADE NEVER DIES

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

TECHNOBLADE NEVER DIES

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

Sapnap went to attack Ranboo, but Puffy held him back. “Techno, Sam, stop!” Puffy commanded, but the two vicious warriors ignored her. “You shouldn’t have come out of your little hiding spot,” Sam sneered. “You’re going to wish you never came out at all when I’m done with you,” Techno responded with anger filling his tone. Ranboo shot an arrow at Sam, but it missed by a hair. “Leave Ranboo! This is my battle!” Techno called out. “Techno, we need to go,” Ranboo urged, but Techno ignored him. Ranboo backed up, but didn’t leave. “Your pride is going to be your downfall. You’ll regret not letting your friend help,” Sam stated as he disarmed Techno, however, Techno quickly pulled out his trident and managed to leave a gash in Sam’s left arm when he was off his guard for a second. Sam didn’t let this affect him and swung his sword through the air towards Techno’s head, but Techno once again was able to dodge it, only getting a chunk of his air chopped off, leaving it to fall gracefully to the floor as the two fighters continued their duel. “Why’d you kill him? He was a good man!” Techno demanded.

“He had no use. He told us everything we needed to know.”

“Philza wouldn’t do that.”

“He put up a good fight. Three weeks of torture before he broke.”

Techno’s tone darkened, “You did what?” Sam had expected Techno to falter from the statement, but Techno immediately disarmed Sam and knocked him to the ground, holding the trident to his chest. “I am going to make you feel more pain in the next few minutes than you have felt in your entire life.” Before Techno did anything, Ranboo quickly shot an arrow, this time hitting Sam in the head and killing him. “Why would you do that?” Techno demanded. “We need to leave before he comes back with the others,” Ranboo stated, ignoring the question. “Philza’s dead?” Puffy questioned. Techno had forgotten that Sapnap and Puffy were there. Techno turned towards her, “He wasn’t even working for us when it happened.” Puffy was surprised by the statement. Techno turned to head back to the docks, but Puffy’s hand rested on his shoulder, “I don’t believe in what you believe in, but I will fight on your side when war breaks out.” Techno brushed her hand away, “Then follow us.”

Part 46 - The Badlands Caught in the Crossfire of it All:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Death

51 Days After the Escape

The entirety of The Badlands, other than Puffy of course, sat around the meeting table. The last time the table had been used was when most of them were possessed by the Egg. It had been revamped since then and now both the table and chairs were made of quartz and there were some potted plants of various flowers that Hannah had collected in the center. Despite the bad memories of this table, none of the Badlanders surrounding it felt nervous about the called meeting. They all knew what it was about. Bad waited patiently for everyone to get settled. Skeppy slumped in his seat with his hands shoved into his pockets. Ant leaned back in his chair with only two legs on the ground and resting his feet on top of the cool, quartz table. Hannah distracted herself with the colorful flowers on the table while she waited for someone to start the meeting. Sapnap whispered something in George’s ear, causing him to burst out with laughter while Karl attempted to fix his hair, only making it messier than it was before. Things were very professional here. “We all know what this meeting is about,” Bad started, “What side are we going to fight on if it comes to a fight?” “Which seems likely based on yesterday,” Ant added. “Surely we should fight with Dream and the others? Puffy’s with them,” Skeppy stated. “That would make the most sense,” Bad agreed. “We can’t forget about Sam fighting on the other side though,” Hannah reminded them, “He was once a part of this country too.” “And Techno killed Sam. Should we really fight on that side?” Sapnap spoke up. “But Sam killed Philza,” George argued. “We have no correlation with Philza, though,” Karl replied. “We don’t have much correlation with Sam either,” George responded. “But we do,” Ant prompted. “What about Puffy though?” Skeppy repeated. “And Dream. He may have done some terrible things, but that doesn’t change the fact that he was my friend. Yours too George and Sapnap,” Bad reminded. George nodded. “Quackity’s our friend too. We can’t just fight against him,” Sapnap argued. “This isn’t getting us anywhere,” Hannah sighed. “Hannah’s right,” Skeppy agreed. “Let’s just agree to not fight unless it’s absolutely necessary,” Bad decided. Everyone nodded and mumbled in agreement.

Part 47 - Killing Two Birds with One Stone:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Manipulation, Mentions of Forced Labor, Death?

Schlatt watched the sun slowly start to hide under the horizon from his window. He dumped one last shot into his mouth and got up from his seat and walked outside his house. He could hardly see, but that didn’t matter. He knew that they would find him. He started wandering about Snowchester. He grunted as his body was knocked to the ground, “You’re going to get my suit messed up.” Techno heaved Schlatt up by his arm and started dragging him through the snow. “C’mon Techno, let’s talk!” Schlatt didn’t struggle as he made quick steps to keep up with Techno. “You know the rules,” Techno growled. “But only you can help me.” Techno stopped and turned around, “I’m not joining your petty revolution.”

“So you already know?”

“You probably shouldn’t have met with your friend just after running into me.”

Schlatt shrugged, “What’s keeping you tied to Dream?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“It is now. What’s he got that I don’t?”

Techno didn’t say anything and started taking Schlatt to Dream and Sapnap’s house again.

“I don’t even need you to join me! I just need 34 diamonds and 8 netherite.”

Techno stopped again, “What about the other 50?”

“Let’s just say you’re my second option.”

Techno sighed, “Unless you can somehow figure out how to resurrect people, I will never help you.”

Holy crap. He really hoped he remembered how. “Let's say I did figure out how. Would you join me and give me the supplies?”

“I can’t bring myself to join your country, but if you find a way to resurrect people, I will give you the supplies you need. I’m assuming you know who I want alive.”

“Will you let me go now?”

Techno let go of Schlatt’s arm, “Go home. I’m not letting you off the hook next time.”

Schlatt planned on going home, but only for a minute. He grabbed two books and quills from a chest and ran out the door of his house once again. He snuck towards the castle, only seeing Techno once. He was heading into L’Crater. Schlatt eyed him suspiciously, but at least he wouldn’t have to worry about Techno seeing him the rest of the way.

“Get out of here, Schlatt,” Ranboo commanded, gripping his sword. If he was coming at this hour then he wasn’t up to any good. “I’m going to need you to open this cell,” Schlatt stated as he leaned against Ghostza’s cell. “Can you open my cell?” HBomb called out. “You know I can’t do that,” Ranboo shook his head.

“Why not? Ranboo, I don’t know you too well, but I can tell that you don’t enjoy doing this.”

“You don’t know me at all and you’ll never understand. I need you to leave. I don’t want to fight you.”

“Then just unlock the cell! We don’t have to fight!”

“If I do that, things are going to get a lot worse for me and everyone else around here.”

“C’mon, how much harm can Ghostza do?” Ghostza stared hopefully Schlatt, along with all the other ghosts. Most of them had even stood up and were leaning against the bars of their cells to watch.

“It’s not what Ghostza can do! It’s what I can do! What I will do!”

“Dream can mind control him or some crap like that,” HBomb mumbled.

“It’s not mind control, but I will do almost anything he asks of me.”

“That kind of sounds like mind control,” Schlatt raised an eyebrow.

Ranboo closed his eyes and took a deep breath, raising his sword, “Leave.”

Between Ranboo being mind-controlled or Techno giving him all the supplies he needed, Schaltt had to go with the latter. He quickly pulled out a pickaxe and smashed the lock to Ghostza’s cell. “I’ll meet you outside,” Schlatt said as he yanked the door to the cell open. Ranboo charged at Schlatt. Schlatt managed to block his attack with a shield. “He’s already escaping, Ranboo. There’s no point in fighting,” Schlatt stated as he pulled his sword out. “At least I can show Dream I put up a fight,” Ranboo responded. “If you let me do this, I might be able to stop Dream. You’re doing whatever he says anyways. I promise I’ll get you out of this mind-control thing, but you have to let me do this.”

Ranboo backed away, “I don’t want to. You don’t understand how terrible it is to wake up and realize you don’t remember anything from the past few days. How terrible it is to learn of all the things I’ve done and not be able to talk to anyone about it. How terrible it is to not be able to do anything about it.”

“Someone will help you. You’re just going to have to push through it for a little bit.”

Ranboo sat down against the wall. The area under his eyes appeared to be burning. After a minute of silence Ranboo finally said, “Go! Do whatever you want!” Schlatt pulled out his pickaxe once more and smashed the lock of Ghosity’s cell. “The rest of you guys are gonna have to stay here for a bit,” Schlatt announced. He stopped in front of one of the cells. It was empty. “What happened to Ghostinnit?” He asked. “I don’t know. Dream’s pissed about it though,” Ranboo replied solemnly. Schlatt didn’t take the time to think about it and led Ghosity out of the dungeon to find Ghostza standing just by the entrance. Schlatt pulled out the two books and started writing in them. “This hopefully won’t hurt,” Schlatt mumbled. “What are you doing?” Ghosity questioned. Schlatt pulled out his sword and cut each of their fingers. He then rubbed Ghostza’s blood on one of the books.

Schlatt appeared in a dark cave with Ghostza next to him. “Where are we?” Ghostza’s voice filled with panic. Schlatt led Ghostza through the cave till he saw a figure sitting down in a chair. The figure stood up. “What’s going on?” Philza demanded, staring Ghostza in the eyes. “You’re coming with me, Philza,” Schlatt commanded.

Schlatt woke back up in the same place he was. It appeared no time had passed, but Ghostza wasn’t there. Ghosity backed away. “Your turn,” Schlatt mumbled, quickly grabbing Ghosity’s bleeding finger and rubbing it on the book.

This time they appeared in a small room with no windows or doors. The only things in the room were a table and some chairs and a light dangling above it. “What did you do with Philza?” Quackity demanded. “It’s alright. You’re coming too.”

Schlatt was alone this time when he awoke in the castle. He quickly ran outside and immediately found Philza. He was lying on the ground, his breathing quick and eyes wide. He turned towards Schlatt, “You resurrected me. Why’d you resurrect me? What do you want?” “Calm down. I don’t need you for anything other than for you to find Techno at L’Crater and tell him to meet me at my house tomorrow morning.” Philza took a deep breath and nodded. He had to find Techno. He slowly stood up, opened up his wings, and took off. That would distract Techno for a while. Schlatt started jogging towards Las Nevadas. Quackity was pacing near the fountain when he got there. “What are you doing?” Quackity demanded once more. “Just resurrecting my best friend,” Schlatt responded, putting his arm around Quackity’s shoulders. “Get away from me,” Quackity pushed Schlatt away.

“Is that any way to greet me?”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. I should’ve punched you.”

“With those arms?”

Angrily, Quackity swung his arm at Schlatt’s face, but Schlatt caught his arm before it could make contact. He then twisted Quackity’s arm and pulled it behind his back. Quackity grunted. “I need your help standing up to Dream,” Schlatt whispered in Quackity’s ear.

“Not gonna happen,” Quackity sneered.

“Well then I’ll just turn you in to Dream. I wonder if he’ll shove you in a cell or put you working day and night with Eret and Karl. What would you prefer? I might be able to put a good word in.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“You’re right. You don’t deserve a good word. I don’t know what I’d say.”

Quackity sighed, “What do you want me to do for your pathetic revolution?”

“Join my country! And I need two more members.”

“You think I know where anyone is?”

“You might have an idea. You led the other side before Dream won, and none of them are working with Dream currently.”

Quackity paused, “I might have an idea.”

Schlatt smiled, “Manburg will rise stronger than ever before!”

Part 48 - Neutral Party:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Death, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Torture

55 Days After the Escape

Niki smiled as she pulled the fresh bread out of the furnace. She took a deep breath in to let the scent embrace her. She set the hot pan on the counter and pulled her oven mitts off before shoving them in a drawer. She heard the echoing sound of footsteps coming down into her underground home. She quickly ducked behind the counter and unsheathed her sword, praying it wasn’t Quackity or his comrades again. “Niki! It’s HBomb!” “Eret also!” Niki sighed and sheathed her sword back before rising up from behind the counter. “Hey guys,” she greeted, “What are you doing here?” “We hadn’t seen you in a while, and with everything that’s going on we figured we should check on you,” Eret explained, “Besides, I’m not even king anymore. No one lives in the Dream SMP. Everyone’s either a part of Las Nevadas, The Badlands, or on the run with Dream.” “What happened to you? You’re covered in burns, and what’s that scar on your neck from?” HBomb interrogated. Niki traced the scar with her finger, “It’s nothing. And I’m fine.” “Those scars didn’t just appear one day, Niki,” HBomb urged. “Leave her be,” Eret commanded. Eret knew that they were death scars, meaning she’d lost two lives since the last time he saw her. She’d talk about it if she wanted to. “Do you guys want some bread?” Niki offered, pulling out a bread knife, butter, and a butter knife. The two guests nodded and Niki started sawing at the hot bread with her bread knife before rubbing butter on each of the slices. The three started eating their slices. “This is really good,” HBomb complimented in between bites. “So what do you guys think of everything that’s going on? Do you plan on joining a side?” Eret asked once he was done eating. “I’m not happy with either of the sides currently and I don’t exactly trust The Badlands, so no,” Niki responded. HBomb shrugged, “I have no opinion on the matter, so I’ll probably just stay neutral. What about you, Eret? Are you going to join Dream?” “I was at the Disc Confrontation, you know. I could never betray Tommy and Tubbo,” Eret replied. “Are they even fighting with Las Nevadas?” HBomb asked. “I don’t think so,” Eret answered, “I’ve only ever seen them at Tommy’s house nowadays. I think they’re staying neutral also.” “That’s good. Those two don’t need to fight anymore,” Niki stated. HBomb nodded in agreement. “Are you safe in your castle, Eret? It’s in the center of everything,” Niki questioned. “I should be alright. What happened in The Badlands the other day worries me though,” Eret admitted. “Why? What happened in The Badlands?” Niki interrogated. “Apparently Techno and Sam got into a fight there. Sam ended up losing a life and Puffy joined Techno,” Eret explained. “Why would Puffy join Techno after that?” “According to Sapnap, Sam admitted to torturing and killing Philza. That’s what started the fight in the first place.” “This is the first I’m hearing of this,” HBomb admitted. “Well, do you want to stay here?” Niki offered. “That might be a good idea,” Eret agreed, “At least for a little while.”

Part 49 - I'm Free:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Trauma

Techno split the hard loaf of bread and handed one of the halves to Tommy. Tommy took a bite. “Why’s it so hard?” He complained through a full mouth. “That’s half my rations right there. Don’t complain. It has been on me for a couple days though, so that’s probably why,” Techno chuckled, taking a bite himself. Tommy was right. It was a bit hard. “So how are you doing?” Techno asked once he had finished. Tommy only shrugged. Techno held out his hand, “Lets train. Both of us need it.” Tommy grabbed his hand and Techno pulled him to his feet. “Are the voices bothering you?” Tommy questioned. “They’re always bothering me.” Tommy grabbed a wooden sword and shield Techno had given him and got into position. “Legs further apart,” Techno demanded, kicking one of Tommy’s legs back. Tommy steadied himself and backed his foot up a bit. Techno got in a similar position in front of him with his own wooden tools. Techno swung first and Tommy ducked under it and attempted to slash at Techno’s legs, but Techno knocked his sword out of his hand. “Always make sure you can see my sword. Don’t put all your focus on where you’re going to attack. You also have a terrible grip.” Tommy grabbed his sword that had hit the wall and got back into position. “Feet further apart.” Tommy adjusted, but was quickly knocked down from a quick attack. “Keep your guard up. Especially on a battlefield. You may end up facing multiple opponents at once.” Tommy sighed and nodded, standing up to get back into position. “Put your fee-” “I know, I know,” Tommy mumbled, moving his foot backwards a few inches, this time keeping his eyes on Techno. Tommy attacked first this time. Techno immediately put his sword up in defence and blocked it. The two continued to swing and dodge each other. “You’re too still. Most people around here are stronger than you and out size you, so use your size and speed to an advantage.” “Pay attention to your surroundings. You don’t have much space here, but don’t let that be a disadvantage. Get your opponent up against a wall and if this were a real fight you could get me on the ledge.” “Don’t forget about your shield. It’s saved my life too many times to count.” “If you stand in the lower sections it will be a lot harder for me to hit you, but you have to be careful since the easiest place for me to hit you in that case would be the head.” Tommy closed his eyes and leaned against the wall to catch a breath. Techno looked as if he hadn’t even broken a sweat. “I should go. I’ve been gone too-” He was cut off by the clanking of metal. Tommy opened his eyes to find Techno and Philza with each of their swords against the others. It looked like Techno had been the one to attack. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” Philza gasped. “You’re not real. Who are you?” Techno demanded. “Schlatt resurrected me,” Philza quickly explained, pushing Techno’s sword back. “That’s not possible. You’re dead,” Techno shook his head. Techno shot his leg out to trip Philza, but ended up being caught off balance. Philza knocked him to the ground, but failed to hold him down. Techno jumped back up and swung his sword at Philza’s arm, but once again Philza dodged it. Techno went to attack again, but Tommy pulled him back. “Philza, that day we were playing Monopoly and we all got into a fight. You should remember that day. What game did Sam want to play afterwards?” “It was Operation. He wanted to play Operation,” Philza answered with a shaky voice. Tommy nodded and let go of Techno, “It’s him.” Techno dropped his sword and wrapped his arms around Philza and pulled him into a hug. “Stop doing this to me. You have no idea the crap I’ve been through.” “Don’t attack me again.” Techno nodded vigorously. He didn’t know what Philza had been through. He refused to tell him the first time he was resurrected. All he knew was from the few things Sam had said. Philza pulled away from Techno’s embrace after a couple minutes. Techno placed a golden apple in his hand. “Eat,” he commanded softly, “And sit down.” Philza nodded and did as he was told, going to sit on the pallet Tommy slept on which was just across from the one Techno slept on. “Schlatt wanted you to meet him at his house in the morning,” Philza explained. “I’ll leave soon,” Techno replied. “Are you going to go do your duties like you were or stay here?” Tommy asked. Techno laughed, “I don’t even have to follow Dream’s orders anymore! Philza was the only thing he had against me! The three of us can leave this place together!” Tommy shook his head, “What about Tubbo?” “What about him? I don’t even know where he is. He’s probably not even around here anymore.” Philza froze. “What is it? Are you alright?” Techno asked. “Philza and I know where Tubbo and the others are,” Tommy admitted. “And you never told me?” Techno yelled angrily. “I didn’t want them to get hurt! We know you took HBomb. I didn’t want you to do the same to the others. Besides, it’s not within the borders.” Techno sighed, “How do you know this?” “Philza’s stasis chamber. They activated it when he was dead and he went there temporarily,” Tommy explained. “Wait, they’re in the meeting room?” Tommy nodded. “Alright. Once Philza has recovered, so probably in a few days, we will go find Tubbo and take him with us.”

Part 50 - Can't Stay Away:
Trigger Warning: Mention of Violence, Mention of Death

“How long have you guys been around here?” Ponk questioned in between bites. “Not long. We’ve just been wandering since we left Boomerville a while back,” Vikk explained. Ponk, Alyssa, and Callahan had run into Vikk and Lazar during a walk in the park and as soon as they recognized their old friends Ponk had offered to buy the two lunch, to which they quickly accepted. “Do you guys have enough diamonds for a hotel room?” Alyssa asked. Lazar nodded, “We’ve been mining frequently when we get into remote areas.” “Have you guys heard much from the Dream SMP?” Vikk interrogated. “No. What happened after Callahan and I left?” Ponk responded. “We didn’t stay much longer. Kinoko was burned to the ground and lots of places were being robbed and griefed. Most people seemed to think that it was Dream and Techno,” Lazar explained. “Was anybody hurt?” Ponk’s eyes went wide. “George was badly hurt, but I don’t know the details. No one died though,” Lazar answered. “Dream wouldn’t hurt George,” Alyssa shook her head, “And didn’t Sapnap live there also? It couldn’t have been Dream.” “Dream’s changed a lot since we knew him,” Ponk mumbled, “Everyone has.” The group turned when the door to the restaurant was slammed shut. A boy with a purple hoodie covering his face, soaked from the rain, went and took a seat at one of the bar stools near the cashier. Though no one else thought anything of it, Callahan started nudging Ponk and gesturing towards the boy. “What is it?” Ponk questioned, grabbing Callahan’s arm before he could nudge him again. Ponk looked back at the boy in the hoodie. He pulled the hood down and ran his hand through his wet hair as he waited for someone to take his order. “Purpled?” Ponk called. Purpled turned to look at the group. “Why does everyone keep finding me?” Purpled mumbled before getting up and walking over to the table. “How’s it been?” Ponk greeted. “Well I just got a job, so that’s good. Not happy about the location,” Purpled replied. “Are you still doing mercenary work?” Alyssa questioned. Purpled nodded. “Where’s the location?” Vikk asked. “I’ve been hired to help out back in the Dream SMP. I wouldn’t go, but I’m being paid well,” Purpled shrugged. “Who hired you?” Ponk asked, shocked. “Quackity. The dude gets resurrected and his first thought is to go out and find me to drag me back.” “Quackity died?” Vikk questioned. “Right, you all left before the big battles.” Purpled explained everything that had happened leading up to the Battle of The Badlands and the Battle of Las Nevadas. “I think Dream took over, but I didn’t stick around to find out,” Purpled added. “Things really went downhill after I left,” Alyssa mumbled. “Right, well, I’m going to go,” Purpled announced. “You’re not going to eat?” Lazar questioned. “I think I’ll push through the rain,” Purpled stated as he left the diner. He did not want to deal with them. He climbed onto his horse and continued his ride to the Dream SMP. Callahan started gesturing towards the door. “I don’t know what you’re saying,” Ponk shook his head. “He wants us to follow Purpled, I think,” Alyssa explained. Callahan nodded. “There is no way I’m going back there,” Lazar shook his head. “Why not? It might not be such a bad idea. We can visit our old friends. Alyssa, you’ve mentioned wanting to see Dream and the others before,” Ponk urged. “Ponk, did you not hear what Purpled just told us? That place is literal Hell,” Alyssa exclaimed. “It’s not a terrible idea. It’d be an adventure, you know, like the old times,” Vikk nudged Lazar. “I don’t know if I want any adventures. I thought we wanted to settle down?” Lazar argued. “Ponk, are you sure you don’t just want to see Sam again?” Alyssa interrogated. “That’s not true. At least not the only reason,” Ponk responded angrily. “Ponk, Purpled said that he thinks he’s dead, and he knows that he lost two lives before that battle.” “We don’t know that for sure!” Ponk argued, “He might need help! We have to help him!” Alyssa shook her head solemnly, “Ponk, there’s nothing to help.” Ponk abruptly stood up from the table, “I’m leaving for the Dream SMP. I care about my friends, unlike you all.” Callahan quickly slid out of the booth to join him. “You too?” Alyssa sighed. “Lazar, I think we should go,” Vikk begged. “When we were leaving you were wanting to stay settled down! Now all the sudden you want to go on some stupid adventure that will get us killed!” “Settling in that place was an adventure! Alyssa said it herself! That place is Hell!” “You’re crazy,” Lazar shook his head. “Whether you come with me or not, I’m leaving,” Vikk announced, standing up. Lazar recognized the familiar words. Back from when he had convinced Vikk to leave with him. Lazar sighed, “This is a terrible idea.” He stood up from the table, “Let’s go.” “Really?” Vikk laughed. The two headed out into the rain with Ponk and Callahan behind them. “They’re crazy. They’re going to die,” Alyssa mumbled. She stared at the door they walked out of. “They’re crazy.” She ran out the door to catch up.

Part 51 - The Final Thing:
Trigger Warning: Mention of Death, Mention of Drinking, Mention of Violence, Gore

Quackity leaned against the back of the Eiffel Tower, a place Schlatt had assured was safe for the time being. He’d been there for days with Schlatt bringing him food and sometimes booze. Quackity heard the soft sound of footsteps crunching the sand heading towards him. Cautiously, he peaked around one of the large feet holding up the tower. “I wasn’t sure you’d come,” Quackity chuckled, coming out from behind the stone to shake Purpled’s hand. “You make a hard bargain to refuse,” Purpled responded, gripping Quackity’s hand to shake it. “So what do we do now?” Purpled questioned after pulling away. “We have to go find somebody and then just wait till Schlatt comes to bring more food,” Quackity answered as he started heading southwest towards the forest by Las Nevadas. They passed Wilbur and Tommy’s stone building and amongst the lush greenery they found three headstones. “They buried you guys?” Purpled asked in surprise. The headstones read Jack’s, Quackity’s, and Charlie’s names. “I came across these a couple days ago. I hadn’t even known Charlie died, but it made me start thinking,” Quackity handed Purpled a shovel and planted his own in the ground in front of Charlie’s tombstone, “Help me start digging.” “You want me to dig up someone's grave? What kind of country is this?” “It’ll be fine if my hunch is right,” Quackity attempted to reassure him. Purpled sighed and started digging up Charlie’s grave along with Quackity, though he was doing significantly less work. After digging for what felt like ages, especially after the long trip Purpled had been on, Purpled’s shovel came out covered in green goop. “Dig carefully from here on out. Only small scoops,” Quackity commanded. The two scraped the last bits of dirt away to reveal Charlie surrounded by green goop. Quackity leaned over him as if he was about to whisper, but instead he yelled, “C’mon Charlie. Play times over.” Charlie’s eyes shot open and all the slime got sucked back into him with a large slurping noise. “Hello Quackity from Las Nevadas! Hello Purpled from UFO! Quackity from Las Nevadas, I thought you had turned to dust!” Charlie greeted loudly. Quackity reached down and helped him get out of the hole, “I did, but I was brought back.” “I got to stay in a nice, damp hole while you were gone, but now I can see my best friend!” “I’m glad I get to see you too,” Quackity smiled, “Now I need you to be really quiet like you did when you were watching people. We have to go to the Eiffel Tower and wait for Schlatt.” Charlie nodded and the trio headed back for the Eiffel Tower to find that Schlatt was already there. “Hello Schlatt from Manburg!” Charlie greeted. “Who’s this?” Schlatt questioned skeptically. “This is Charlie, and you know Purpled,” Quackity introduced them. Purpled glared at Schlatt remembering the axe plunging into his chest, “Yeah, we know each other.” He knew what he was getting into when he agreed to the letter, but that didn’t make him hate him any less. “Well this is great! I can contact Connor now and we can start building this place up!” Schlatt announced excitedly. “You want Connor on your side,” Purpled scoffed. “We’re friends,” Schlatt shrugged. “Where are we setting up anyways?” Quackity interrogated. “Same place it has always been!” Schlatt answered. It took Quackity a minute to understand, “You want to build a country in L’Crater?”

Part 52 - A New Home:
Trigger Warning: Trauma

Techno walked quietly through the deep snow of Snowchester. Despite not technically having to work for Dream anymore, he continued to do patrols and act as if nothing had changed so Dream doesn’t go out searching for him. The moon shone bright tonight, making it easier to see, not that he typically struggled anyways. Techno heard wood creaking behind him and he quickly drew his sword and turned around. A little boy stood in the doorway of Ranboo’s house, and Techno soon realized that it was a small, piglin child. Let's see how much he remembered. “Hello,” Techno greeted in Piglinish. “Hello,” the piglin replied quietly. “What’s your name?” Techno asked softly, taking a few steps closer. “Michael.” So a human name. Interesting.

“I don’t know where my daddy’s are,” the piglin whispered.

“''I’m sure they’re in the Nether somewhere. I can take you to the portal if you need''.”

“No, they live here.”

“What are your dad’s names?”

“Ranboo and Tubbo.” Ranboo and Tubbo? Techno’s heart filled with pity.

“When did you last see them?” Michael’s eye welled with tears.

“Tubbo hasn’t been here for a long time and Ranboo wouldn’t tell me where he was and Ranboo started disappearing and only coming every other night and the past two nights he was supposed to he hasn’t and I’m hungry and I miss them.” Michael was crying. What had happened to Ranboo? He patrolled every night, so he had to be staying somewhere else during the night. Now that he thought about it, he almost never saw Ranboo around during the day. Maybe sometimes in the morning, but that’s it. Techno kneeled in front of the crying boy, “Do you have any food?” Michael shook his head. “''Do you want to come with me till we can find your dads? I’ll keep you safe,''” Techno offered. Michael shook his head, “I can’t go with strangers.” Techno thought for a moment, “Do you know Tommy?” Surely he did if he was Ranboo’s and Tubbo’s son. Michael’s head perked up a bit, “Tommy helped Tubbo take care of me.” “''Well, he’s living with me right now. If you come with me, you can see him.” Michael nodded, “I want to see Tommy.” Techno smiled to ease Michael, “May I put you on my shoulders?''” Michael nodded and Techno easily lifted the child up and set him on his shoulders with Michael wrapping his hands around Techno’s head to hold on.

Techno carefully set Michael down on the cold sewer floor and gestured for him to sit on the ground next to Philza, who recognized the piglin child and made room for him on the pile of blankets. “You should be sleeping,” Techno whispered. “I tried,” Philza responded, “What’s Michael doing here?” “He doesn’t know where Ranboo is and he has no food,” Techno answered, handing Philza and Michael each two raw potatoes. “Techno, you’re splitting rations that are too small for even one person and splitting them amongst four. This isn’t working.”.

“I don’t need to eat. We’ll leave this place before I have to.”

“Techno, you have to eat. We don’t know when we are leaving, and taking Michael in makes it even more difficult to.”

“What’s wrong with Tommy?” Michael asked. Techno turned to see Tommy thrashing around in his sleep. “He’s having a nightmare,” Techno replied softly as he walked over and leaned down next to Tommy and started rubbing his back to calm him down. Michael toddled over and curled up next to Tommy. “''He would have nightmares when I lived with him. So would Daddys,''” Michael whispered. Tommy’s eyes blinked awake, “Michael?” “He’s staying with us now,” Techno explained as he handed Tommy stale bread. Something caught Techno’s eye from L’Crater. “Everyone be quiet,” he commanded and repeated in Piglinish for Michael. He eased his way to the drop off into the crater. There were five figures and he quickly recognized them as Schlatt, Connor, Quackity, Purpled, and Charlie. He had actually gotten the three members. Schlatt was actually going to rebel. “You three need to get further into the sewer now,” Techno commanded. Michael and Philza got up, but Tommy remained seated. “Why? Who is it?” “That doesn’t matter. Just c’mon.” “I think it matters. What if I don’t want to run from them?” “Tommy, I promise I’ll explain it to you, but we need to go. I don’t want them to hear us,” Techno urged. Tommy hesitated before standing up and following Techno through the damp sewers.

“So what do you think?” Schlatt asked with outspread arms. Connor looked through the items Schlatt had given him, “I’ve got to say Schlatt, I didn’t think you would do it. I definitely didn’t think you’d be resurrecting people. The location sucks, but I guess I didn’t make specifications. Sure, I’ll join Manburg.”

Part 53 - The Manburg Rebellion:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Manipulation, Trauma

Dream stared down at the crowd of curious people, with the only person not there being Ranboo, though he’d already talked about everything he was going to announce here to both him and Wilbur. Wilbur needed to feel wanted and like he had any power in this country. Wilbur stood to his right on the terrace of the finished blackstone castle while Techno stood to his left. He had to find Philza soon to make sure he had Techno on his side. He was surprised that the Blood God hadn't fled this place with his friend yet, but he was sure he had his reasons. He suspected that he was hiding someone else with Philza also. He’d gotten much thinner in the past few days and he seemed to have been slimming out even before Ghostza got resurrected by Schlatt. Of course there was always the possibility that Schlatt hadn’t sent Ghostza to Techno, but he doubted this with how much Techno had been disappearing lately. If only he could figure out where he was going, especially with what he was about to announce. “Hello everyone,” Dream smiled, not that anyone could see. Michael stared up at him eagerly from the front of the crowd with Schlatt next to him, though Schlatt stood towards the edge. The Badlanders clustered together towards the back and Sapnap and George stood a few feet to the side of them while Karl and Eret stood shaking and thin on the other side of Michael. It was a wonder that Schlatt had come to this, though I guess that he had yet to announce his independence, nor the fact that Quackity and Charlie were resurrected and that Connor and Purpled were here. “Look at this great thing we’ve accomplished!” Dream gestured around him to the large castle, which was now bigger than both the mansion and the casino. Puffy and Ant had to hold their tongues to keep themselves from defending Karl and Eret. They didn’t want to get them or the other Badlanders in trouble. “We’re thriving! This great castle has been built! We all have homes, we all have food!” It was fine though. He’d be running from this place soon. It was fine. “A king couldn’t ask for more! And it’s not just those silly things that I have. I have the bestest friends a man could ask for.” Sapnap and George smirked. “An amazing right-hand man.” Wilbur grinned and made sure to let everyone know that Dream was referring to him. “And my most loyal followers!.” Michael looked like an excited puppy, the Badlanders tried to hold back their fury, and Eret and Karl looked down with a mix of shame, hatred, and fear. Schlatt remained expressionless. “But I’m not completely happy. Not all of my citizens have been loyal. Not everyone thinks this thriving country is good enough for them. We have a traitor in our midst.” Memories flashed through Wilbur’s and Eret’s minds. Schlatt wasn’t about to let this man announce his country for him. “Nice speech! I can take it from here though,” Schlatt shouted, “This man, if he’s even humane enough to be called that, has been ruling long enough! I know you all hate him. I know you all only stay with him because you’re being manipulated or controlled by him in some way. You had no other option. But now you do! And it’s not just me. I’ve already got four other people joining me!” “And why should we trust you?” Puffy demanded. “You’re just as much of a tyrant as him!” Ant yelled. Dream would have to deal with that later. “Michael, do me a favor and get Schlatt and come bring him to me downstairs,” Dream commanded politely. “With pleasure,” Michael smiled gleefully as he pulled out his sword and charged at Schlatt. “Hey guys, I need a little help!” Schlatt called out. “Why-” Ant started, but then Quackity, Charlie, Purpled, and Connor rushed out of hiding to help out their leader. “Techno, capture them,” Dream ordered. Techno backed up, “No. I’m not fighting for you anymore, Dream. You can find a different weapon.” Techno leaped from the terrace, managing to grip onto the ledge a window sat on before he hit the ground before he dropped the rest of the way and ran off. Crap, Dream thought, crap, crap, crap, crap. He was losing power. Eret looked in the direction Techno was running. He grabbed Karl’s arm and attempted to lead him in the same direction. Karl shook his head and gestured towards Sapnap and George. Eret nodded in understanding and ran as best he could after Techno. Sapnap had pulled out his axe and stood in front of George. The Badlanders simply stared at the chaos before them. “Michael, retreat!” Dream instructed, “Wilbur, assist the citizens out of here! Schlatt, get off my land!” Dream did something similar to what Techno did and ran towards Sapnap and George to help the two into his castle. Schlatt smirked at what the group had caused and beckoned the others to follow him back to Manburg. Dream turned back before he shut the castle doors, “This is war Schlatt! Tomorrow evening! Here! War!”

Part 54 - I Won't Be Having a Revolution in My Country:
Trigger Warning: Trauma, Mentions of Manipulation, Mentions of Death

Eret was wheezing and could barely breathe, but he didn’t stop running. Eventually he came to Purpled’s UFO and soon found a small hole in the ground. He jumped down it to find a large quartz room with fountains along the edges. Techno was pointing his sword at him, but lowered it when he saw that it was Eret. “It’s just you,” Techno sighed with relief as he sheathed his sword, “Here come sit down.” Techno beckoned Eret over to the area the others had set up their bedding. “Tommy? You’re alive?” Eret questioned in shock. “I’m here too,” Philza mumbled. “Were you dead?” Eret asked. Philza nodded in response. “Who’s this?” Eret gestured towards Michael. “Who’s this?” Michael asked. “Michael, Tubbo and Ranboo’s son. ''Eret. Don’t worry, he’s a friend. I’m going to keep him safe just like I did you, Tommy, and Philza,''” Techno responded to both of them. “Can you talk to him?” Eret interrogated curiously. Techno only shrugged. Eret sat down next to Philza on the blankets. “Dream declared war on Schlatt. They’re fighting tomorrow evening,” Eret explained. Tommy perked up with interest, “Aren’t there only five people in Manburg? How will they take on everyone else?” Eret shrugged, “I doubt Karl’s fighting, and the old Badlanders are unpredictable. George probably can’t fight and I don’t know if Sapnap would without him. Ranboo also seemed pretty reluctant to be on Dream’s side last I talked to him, but that was a while ago. They might not be as outnumbered as it seems.” “Philza remembers Ghostza hearing that Dream would put Ranboo in his enderwalk thing, which is basically where he will listen to whatever Dream tells him to do,” Techno explained, “He’s probably fighting with him.” Tommy shuddered at the last time he had seen Ranboo, but at the same time he wanted to see him again. He had mentioned the enderwalk to him and Tubbo before he left, but didn’t explain what it was. Could Dream really control him? “We have to help Ranboo,” Tommy mumbled to himself. “What’d you say?” Techno questioned. “We need to help Ranboo. We can’t just leave him like that, not being able to control what he does.” “Tommy,” Techno rubbed his face in frustration, “We already have to go find Tubbo. We’ve already got us two, and Philza, and Michael, and Eret. Most of us aren’t in the best shape and likely aren’t getting better anytime soon. Plus if we find Tubbo, I’m not sure who else is going to want to come with us that’s with him. What we need to do is leave.” “Why are you guys talking about my Daddys?” Michael questioned, recognizing their names amongst the jumble of words. “It’s nothing,” Techno reassured. “Are you going to keep my daddys safe like the rest of us?” Techno hesitated. What was he supposed to say to this? “What are you guys talking about?” Eret asked. “Nothing,” Techno responded. “You can’t leave Michael without a parent,” Tommy stated, gesturing towards the piglin child. “''You guys are talking about me. What’s going to happen to my daddys?''” Techno sighed. Sometimes he wished he was the heartless weapon people thought he was. “I’ll do my best to keep your dads safe. We can help out Ranboo. Looks like we’re fighting in the war. Eret, what do you want to do? No offense, but you're not exactly in the state for fighting. I’ve at least been training Tommy and Philza.” “If you know where they are, I can take Michael and get in contact with Tubbo and the other refugees. Let them know what’s happening,” Eret offered. Techno nodded, “Sounds good.”

Eret squeezed Michael tightly into his coat in the freezing snow. Techno said there was an entrance somewhere around here. Eret soon found the igloo Techno was talking about and carefully made his way down the ladder with only one hand. He quickly found the meeting room once he was in the basement of the igloo and was greeted with multiple weapons pointed to his throat. This kept happening. “Eret?” Niki’s voice was shaky. Foolish and Hannah stood beside her along with another girl he had never seen before, while Tubbo and Fundy were behind the other four towards the back of the room. “Michael?” Tubbo’s eyes widened with glee as he peeked over the shoulders of his comrades. Eret set the piglin child down and Michael squealed something he didn’t understand as he ran between the legs of the armed refugees and got wrapped in a hug. “Hey Michael,” Fundy greeted awkwardly. “What are you doing here, Eret? How did you know where we were?” Niki interrogated, not putting her weapon down nor allowing her voice to shake anymore. “I came here to bring Michael, and to tell you that there is a war going on tomorrow. Dream declared war on Schlatt and his men, Quackity, Charlie, Purpled, and Connor,” Eret explained. “Quackity’s alive?” Foolish questioned with surprise. Fundy had told them otherwise. “I’m not sure how, but Schlatt knows how to resurrect people, doesn’t he? That’s what Dream said at the Disc Confrontation,” Eret guessed. No one dropped their weapon. “You guys have to trust me. The declaration of war allowed me to escape,” Eret begged. “We have to go and help Tommy!” Fundy blurted out. He couldn’t hold it in anymore. “Fundy, Tommy’s dead,” Hannah stated softly. Michael spoke something in Piglinish. “The piglin says otherwise,” Drista announced. “You can understand him?” Foolish questioned. “Of course I can,” Drista replied as if it was obvious. “Who is this?” Eret asked. “Drista,” Niki responded. “How did you know that Tommy was alive?” Hannah demanded. “Drista told me and Niki,” Fundy explained. Michael started saying something and the group heard a thump. They all turned around to see Tubbo sitting on the ground with Michael tugging his shirt. Fundy bent down next to him, but Tubbo shoved him away, “You didn’t tell me?” Fundy stood up awkwardly, “I’m sorry-” “It was my fault,” Niki interrupted, “I told Drista and Fundy not to. Don’t blame them. I just didn’t want you to act irrationally.” Tubbo stood up, which pushed Micheal to the side a bit, “I’m going to fight. I have to help him. You all can come with me, not that you care.” He glared at Niki. “Tubbo!” Niki called as he shoved passed them and walked out the door. He turned around, “What?” “Let's get some weapons and armor first.”

Part 55 - Another Solution to the Problem:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Violence

Wilbur and Michael led the old Badlanders away from where the battle had taken place. “Michael, take Bad and Skeppy home. I’ll take Puffy and Ant,” Wilbur commanded. Ant nudged Bad and made symbols with his hands behind his back. Bad nodded in understanding. Ant and Bad had both learned sign language and morse code back when they were under the possession of the Egg to communicate with each other when Puffy was around. They didn’t use it much after the Egg was destroyed, but it still was often useful these days. They later taught Puffy, Skeppy, and Hannah. Sapnap, George, and Karl also learned some of the basics. As the group split up, Bad passed the message onto Skeppy and Ant did the same to Puffy. Once Ant got back to his house, he waited patiently for his guests to arrive. Puffy arrived first, with Bad coming soon after and Skeppy making his appearance last. Skeppy sat on the ground by the coffee table while Ant and Bad occupied the couch and Puffy sat in the chair across the table from Skeppy. “Dream’s going to want us to fight for him,” Bad announced when everyone was settled. “What’s making us? He doesn’t have Techno anymore and if he loses then we can bring the Badlands back,” Ant pointed out. “So are you suggesting we fight for Schlatt?” Skeppy questioned. “There is no way I’m fighting for that man. You guys saw how he was during Manburg times. He’ll be just like Dream,” Puffy shook her head. “So should we just run away? Not fight for either side?” Skeppy suggested. “And lose the Badlands forever?” Ant argued. “So we can’t leave, but we also can’t fight for either side. Great,” Puffy said sarcastically. “Then we make our own side,” Bad spoke up, “If Dream SMP or Manburg can rule, then what's stopping the Badlands? We have some of the best fighters around the server in this room. We can win.”

Part 56 - Not Just a Nightmare:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Mentions of Death

59 Days After the Escape

Fundy was surrounded by chaos. Surrounded by fighting, by war. He was surrounded by destruction, death, and blood. He was in a desert. He was in Las Nevadas. He was in a fight with the Blood God. He was in a fight with Badboyhalo. Arrows scraped his back. Ranboo was shooting him. Fundy tried to remember everything about his dream, but most things were a blur. He couldn’t remember the details. He repeated everything in his mind once more, and then grabbed a book and quill from the table next to his bed and wrote everything down in an empty page before shutting it and stumbling out the door. It felt so real. Quackity didn’t understand his dreams. Quackity didn’t believe him. He still had to tell him though, or at least find Sam or Foolish or somebody. Anybody. He jogged into the casino to find Charlie at one of the machines. “Where is Quackity?” Fundy asked the slime. “Good morning Fundy from L’Manburg! Quackity from Las Nevadas is at the needle with Sam from Pandora’s Vault!” Fundy nodded in gratitude and ran out of the casino. He had gotten used to Charlie’s speech patterns in his time in Las Nevadas. He was difficult to hold a conversation with, but he could always bring some amusement when Fundy was bored or upset. Fundy shot up the bubble elevator to find Quackity, Sam, and Purpled looking over a map. “We’ve yet to check south of L’Manburg, near the beach. We can also check Rutabagville,” Purpled suggested. “Kinoko wouldn’t be a bad place to recheck since they could’ve easily hidden there and it’s huge,” Sam stated. “Fundy! Hey buddy! I’m a bit busy right now. Can we talk later?” Quackity greeted. “This is important. You know those weird dreams I have,” Fundy started, holding up his book to show the group, “I just had one.” “The ones that tell the future?” Sam questioned, “What was it?” “Fundy, I’m sure it was nothing,” Quackity shook his head. “Quackity, please just listen to me. I know these future-telling dreams are real, and this was one of them,” Fundy begged. He placed the book on the table with a thump and opened it up to his most recently written page, “Read it.” The three leaned over the book and looked over the sloppily written descriptions Fundy had put earlier that morning. “You’re saying there is going to be a war?” Quackity interrogated when they were done. “It’s going to be soon. And it’s going to be here! They’re going to attack us!” Fundy urged. “We don’t know that,” Sam reassured. “Why would we lead them here to fight?” Fundy demanded. “You really can tell the future?” Purpled asked. Fundy nodded with certainty. “I think we should listen to him then. We should prepare for battle,” Purpled announced. “I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad idea,” Quackity mumbled. “We should try and recruit the Badlanders again, since last time didn’t go so well,” Sam suggested as he rubbed the large scar on the side of his head. “He was fighting Bad in his dream though,” Purpled pointed out. “Well then we won’t send him,” Quackity stated, “We’ll try and prevent his dream from happening.” “Who should go to the Badlands?” Purpled asked. “I should go since I know them well. We can hope that at least some of them might join me after what happened last time,” Sam announced. “Someone else should go with you,” Fundy spoke up. Quackity nodded, “Foolish and Punz can go with you. They’re good fighters and have good relationships with the Badlanders.” Sam stood up, “We’ll leave tomorrow that way we can figure out what we are going to say.”

Part 57 - Las Nevadas Lost:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Death, Gore, Trauma, Manipulation

Two Months After the Escape

Sam, Foolish, and Punz made the long trek to the Badlands. If they could get them on their side, then they would have a huge advantage over Dream and Techno in both supplies and numbers. They soon reached the Badlands only to find the Badlanders speaking with Dream, Wilbur, Michael, and Puffy. Dream whispered something in Michael’s ear before turning towards them and taking a step forward. “What are you doing here Dream?” Sam demanded, unsheathing his sword. “I’d imagine the same thing you guys are,” Dream smirked and pulled out his axe. The Badlanders backed up and watched the two sides charge at each other. “We should get inside,” Sapnap suggested. “I want to see what happens,” Bad argued. Dream immediately attacked Sam while Wilbur and Puffy attacked Foolish and Michael fought Punz. However, Dream quickly turned his focus to Punz, allowing Michael to run off and Puffy to find herself in combat with Sam. Michael made a dash for the docks, constantly checking behind him to make sure no one followed him. “Techno!” He called out as he ran across the docks. Techno hurried down the stairs of one of the houses and almost ran into Michael. “What is it? Where are the others?” Techno demanded. “Sam was there. Foolish and Punz too. They’re fighting them now. He told me to tell you that we need to go to Las Nevadas while they have little men,” Michael managed to get out in between breaths. “Now? We’re not even prepared!” “He said to go to Las Nevadas,” Michael repeated. “I know! Go get Jack and Ranboo in the other building! I’m going to gather up supplies,” Techno commanded. Techno ran back upstairs and started digging through their stash of food, weapons, and other supplies.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

His voices raged in his head, giving him a massive headache, but he ignored them. It will all be over soon. If they’re fighting at the Badlands and he was going to go fight at Las Nevadas, then he would’ve taken care of all the countries. He doesn’t have to abide by Dream's favor anymore. They just had to win, which he knew he could do.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

He prayed for the voices to shut up, but he knew they wouldn’t. Why couldn’t they just shut up for once?

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

Philza wouldn’t be here when he left. He’d have to leave this place without him. He’d have to live without him.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

“Are you ready?” Michael stood in the doorway with Jack and Ranboo standing behind him. Techno stood up and handed some supplies to his comrades. “Let’s go.”

Dream’s and Punz’s axes were in constant motion, each repeatedly swinging at the other. Most of the time it would hit a shield, sometimes it would hit nothing, every once in a while it would make contact with flesh. Sam’s sword hit Puffy’s, leaving a ringing sound in the air. Puffy’s sword grazed Sam’s cheek. “Why are you doing this Puffy?” Sam asked, making a swinging motion and watching his sword cut Puffy’s shoulder. “You’ve changed, Sam. I don’t know if it was the prison or Quackity, but you’ve changed.” Puffy ducked under one of Sam’s blows and managed to slice at his calf, though his armor protected him for the most part. “I’ve changed for the better.” A gash formed in Puffy’s belly. “Torturing Philza is for the better? Killing Ponk is for the better?” Sam swung his sword at her head, but when she ducked under it he kicked her over and knocked her sword out of her hand. His sword was pointing at her chest. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sam stated. “Word gets around Sam. You killed him and chopped off his arm.” Clearly word didn’t get around too much. His sword plunged into her chest and her body disappeared. Maybe he had changed, but sometimes you had to change if you wanted to live. Sam turned towards Dream and Punz. Dream’s back was facing him. Just before he was about to go in for the kill, Bad lunged at him. Sam managed to quickly get to his feet and engage in battle before Bad could pin him. “What happened to staying neutral?” Sapnap called out angrily. “Sorry!” Bad responded simply. Dream turned around and quickly nodded in gratitude. Skeppy went in to help Dream out with Punz and Ant went to help Wilbur with Foolish. Puffy arrived soon to jump back into battle and was surprised to see Bad, Ant, and Skeppy fighting on their side. Hannah watched as her fellow Badlanders fought the people of Las Nevadas. She wanted to join them. Sam started faltering in his fight with Bad. He was going to lose. Sam only had two lives left. Hannah blocked Bad’s next blow. “I can’t let you do this,”she stated as she joined Sam in his fight. “Your loss,” Bad shrugged. The old Kinokos watched the battle rage on in fear. “We need to leave,” Karl announced. Sapnap and George nodded and the group started sneaking away from the battle. Wilbur pulled out his bow while Ant was in hand-to-hand combat with Foolish. He aimed and shot. It hit Sapnap right in the back and his body quickly disappeared. Ant quickly killed Foolish while he was off guard and turned to face Wilbur. “I swear that was an accident,” Wilbur stated quickly. “Put your bow down,” Ant said, rolling his eyes. Sapnap angrily got up from his bed and ran outside, this time going a back way to meet up with Karl and George. He soon reached his two friends and he quickly started pushing George’s wheelchair towards the Prime Path. “Are you alright?” Karl asked with concern in his voice. “I’m fine. I don’t know who did it though,” Sapnap reassured. “Hey guys,” HBomb greeted cheerfully as he walked past the trio. “Wait!” Karl called after him. HBomb turned around, “What is it?” “War broke out that way, at the Badlands. We’re fleeing it now,” Karl quickly explained. A serious look went over HBomb, “You guys better come with me. Don’t worry, I’m taking you to a place of refuge.” The trio looked at each other before nodding in agreement and swiftly started following HBomb towards what used to be Kinoko Kingdom.

“What’s that noise?” Tubbo pondered. “Somethings wrong,” Tommy mumbled. Tommy opened his door to find Foolish rushing past him in the direction of the Badlands. “Should we follow him?” Tubbo asked. “I can’t see that ending well,” Tommy shook his head. “Something could be happening,” Tubbo pointed out. “That’s why we shouldn’t go,” Tommy responded. “What if someone’s hurt?” Tubbo interrogated. Tommy sighed, “You want to follow him, don’t you?” Tubbo nodded. “What about Michael?” Tommy asked, looking at the small piglin playing on the floor. “He’ll be fine for a little bit,” Tubbo shrugged. Tubbo went and crouched next to his son and gestured towards the door and went to show that he and Tommy were leaving. Michael nodded and went back to his playing. “See, he’s fine with it,” Tubbo stated. “Fine,” Tommy mumbled and opened the door. Tommy and Tubbo stepped outside and started running in the direction Foolish had gone. They were surprised to find a battle raging before their very eyes. “I told you we shouldn’t have gone,” Tommy said, eyes wide with fear. Skeppy killed Punz with a deep slice to the belly and turned towards the two boys. Thinking that they were for the other side, Skeppy went to attack them. Tubbo and Tommy quickly pulled out their weapons to defend themselves.

“Quackity,” Fundy called, “Quackity!” “I see them, Fundy! C’mon! Grab some gear! Find Charlie and Purpled!” Quackity shouted as he jumped down the needle. Techno, Michael, Ranboo, and Jack had arrived at Las Nevadas. Fundy ran to follow him and made way for the casino where he found Purpled and Charlie. “They’re here! Techno and some of the others! Get weapons and armor!” Fundy commanded quickly and ran back out the door to get his own supplies. “Charlie, follow me,” Purpled urged. “Of course Purpled from UFO!” Purpled led Charlie to go get their weapons and other supplies. Fundy put on his own armor and rummaged through his chests to find gapples and arrows, which he only had a few of. He did find a notch apple though, which could come in handy. He ran out to find Quackity already confronting the group. Fundy dashed over to be next to Quackity. “You’re trespassing Techno,” Quackity accused. Purpled and Charlie ran up to join them. “Let's skip the speech. I have a headache and want to get this over with,” Techno sighed. Techno swiftly attacked Quackity. Fundy and Charlie ganged up on Jack while Purpled went into combat with Michael while Ranboo rained arrows on him. Charlie was quickly killed by Jack, but whilst this happened Fundy managed to kill Jack. Fundy turned his attention to Techno and started assisting Quackity in his fight against him. Purpled grunted as an arrow hit his shoulder. Michael took the chance to attempt a death blow, but Purpled managed to block it with his shield, which was in his other hand. Purpled raised his shield up and swung a hard blow at Michael, knocking him down. Purpled hit him three more times in the head and his body disappeared. Purpled pulled out his bow and started shooting at Ranboo as best he could. Jack, Michael, and Charlie quickly came back and Jack and Michael teamed up against Charlie.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

Technoblade killed Fundy. Technoblade killed Purpled. Technoblade killed Quackity.

HBomb led the old Kinokos into Niki’s base. “Niki, Eret!” He called out. The two walked in to find HBomb with George, Karl, and Sapnap. “What is it? What are they doing here?” Niki interrogated. “There’s a battle at the Badlands. We need to help,” HBomb quickly explained. “Battle?” Eret’s eyes widened. “Help?” Niki questioned, “Help who? We’re staying neutral, remember?” “Help the injured. Help the people who have to become refugees. I don’t want people to die,” HBomb begged. “That’s not a bad idea. This is a place for refugees, isn’t it?” Eret asked. Niki nodded. “You three stay here,” she commanded the old Kinokos. The three ran outside and HBomb led the way to the Badlands.

Dream smirked as he saw Wilbur lead Schlatt into battle. Minutes later Philza flew down to fight. They outnumbered them now. He frowned when he saw Purpled and Fundy join. Did Techno lose? Surely not. Dream saw Tommy alone across the battlefield. He’s wanted to do this for so long. If exile wasn’t an option, if prison wasn’t an option, then he’d have to go with death. Dream darted towards Tommy. Poor little helpless Tommy. Tommy quickly raised his sword and blocked Dream’s attack. He started shaking. It was Dream. It was Dream. It was Dream. Dream. Dream. Dream. Dream. Dream pinned Tommy. Dream raised his sword. Dream started laughing.

Part 58 - The Finale:
Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Gore, Manipulation, Trauma, Mentions of Torture, Mentions of Drinking

WARNING: YOU’RE GOING TO WANT AN ENDERMAN TRANSLATOR IN AN ALT TAB.

“Are we sure they’re coming?” Wilbur asked impatiently. “They’ll come,” Dream reassured. “I mean, we saw what he did back during the Manburg vs Pogtopia War,” Wilbur went on. Dream sighed, “If they don’t show up then we’ll just attack their base directly.” “I feel like there could be a better tactic than just standing out in the open,” Sapnap stated. “Don’t question Dream’s tactics!” Michael yelled in defence. “It shows our dominance and that we aren’t afraid. Besides, most of them are poor fighters,” Dream explained. “⍙⟒ ⌇⏁⟟⌰⌰ ⊑⏃⎐⟒ ⏁⍜ ⎅⟒⏃⌰ ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏁⊑⟒ ⏚⏃⎅⌰⏃⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇.” “What was that?” Sapnap questioned Ranboo. “⋏⟒⎐⟒⍀ ⋔⟟⋏⎅. ⊬⍜⎍ ☊⏃⋏'⏁ ⎍⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇⏁⏃⋏⎅ ⟒⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇⌿⟒⏃☍.” “Just ignore him,” Dream shrugged. “⟟ ☍⋏⍜⍙ ⊬⍜⎍ ☊⏃⋏ ⎍⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇⏁⏃⋏⎅ ⋔⟒, ⎅⍀⟒⏃⋔.” “Hello Dream,” Schlatt greeted as he walked into the clearing, “Can’t we talk this out like real men?” “☍⟟⌰⌰ ⊑⟟⋔ ⏚⟒⎎⍜⍀⟒ ⊑⟟⌇ ⏁⍀⍜⍜⌿⌇ ⍀⟒⎐⟒⏃⌰ ⏁⊑⟒⋔⌇⟒⌰⎐⟒⌇.” “Shut up for a minute, will you Ranboo?” Wilbur nudged him. “⟟⎎ ⊬⍜⎍'⎅ ⏚⍜⏁⊑⟒⍀ ⏁⍜ ⌰⟒⏃⍀⋏ ⟒⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇⌿⟒⏃☍, ⊬⍜⎍ ⍙⍜⎍⌰⎅⋏'⏁ ⍙⏃⋏⏁ ⋔⟒ ⏁⍜ ⌇⊑⎍⏁ ⎍⌿. ⊬⍜⎍'⍀⟒ ☌⍜⟟⋏☌ ⏁⍜ ⎅⟟⟒ ⟟⋏ ⏁⊑⟟⌇ ⍙⏃⍀ ⍙⟟⏁⊑⍜⎍⏁ ⋔⊬ ⊑⟒⌰⌿ ⊬⍜⎍ ⎎⍜⍜⌰.” “Nice army you got there,” Schlatt said sarcastically. “Where’s yours?” Dream interrogated. “Behind you.” Dream quickly turned around only to find nobody there. Schlatt started cackling, “You really think I’d tell you where they are? That defeats the point, you idiot!” “Dream’s not an idiot!” Michael called out. “Suck up,” Wilbur mumbled under his breath. “⏃⋏⎅ ⊬⍜⎍ ⏁⊑⟟⋏☍ ⟟ ⋏⟒⟒⎅ ⏁⍜ ⌇⊑⎍⏁ ⎍⌿.” “Are we going to do something?” Sapnap asked impatiently. “⌇⍜⋔⟒⍜⋏⟒'⌇ ☊⍜⋔⟟⋏☌ ⎎⍀⍜⋔ ⏚⟒⊑⟟⋏⎅ ⎍⌇.” Dream and Ranboo both turned around and managed to put their shields up to protect themselves and the others just before the Badlanders attacked. Schlatt raised his hand and all the sudden arrows started raining from the top of the castle onto both the Badlanders and the members of the Dream SMP. Now everyone was putting up their shields. The arrows stopped just as quickly as they had come. Everyone looked up to find the refugees in battle with the Manburgians. The Badlanders and the Dream SMP engaged in battle once more. Dream lunged at Bad while Skeppy swerved around Wilbur and attacked him from the side. Michael swung his sword at Puffy with Ant fighting both Sapnap and Ranboo. Dream knocked Bad backwards and turned to face Ranboo for a second, “☌⍜ ⌇⟒⟒ ⍙⊑⏃⏁'⌇ ☌⍜⟟⋏☌ ⍜⋏ ⏃⏁ ⏁⊑⟒ ⏁⍜⌿ ⍜⎎ ⏁⊑⟒ ☊⏃⌇⏁⌰⟒!” “⌇⍜ ⋏⍜⍙ ⊬⍜⎍ ⏁⏃⌰☍ ⏁⍜ ⋔⟒.” Ranboo backed off and allowed Sapnap to keep Ant’s focus on him as he ran around the back where he found a ladder someone had placed that led to the top. He swiftly climbed it, skipping every other step, and reached the top where he found a second battle going on. The refugees were constantly moving around and fighting different people to confuse the Manburgians, and it seemed to be working. Plus the refugees had a two person advantage with Schlatt still being in the clearing. Tubbo froze when he saw Ranboo. Drista ran over to defend him, “Tubbo, be careful! This guy isn’t what he seems. ⟟ ☍⋏⍜⍙ ⍙⊑⏃⏁ ⊬⍜⎍ ⏃⍀⟒.” “⏁⊑⟒⋏ ⊬⍜⎍ ☍⋏⍜⍙ ⟟ ⎅⍜⋏'⏁ ☊⏃⍀⟒ ⏃⏚⍜⎍⏁ ⎅⍜⟟⋏☌ ⏁⊑⟟⌇.” Ranboo sprung at Drista and Tubbo. Drista put her sword up and blocked the attack. Tubbo backed up a few steps, “Ranboo, what are you doing?” He was acting odd. What was the weird gibberish he was saying? He moved differently, too. His movements were smoother and his eyes were a little duller than normal. Niki backed up a few steps towards Tubbo as she fought with Connor. “Tubbo, I’m going to need you to snap out of it. We can’t protect you the entire time. You told me before this that you would be fine,” Niki commanded softly. Connor attempted to go around NIki to attack Tubbo, but Niki stopped him. Tubbo didn’t move. Niki cursed under her breath. “⊬⍜⎍ ☊⏃⋏'⏁ ⎎⟟☌⊑⏁ ⎎⍜⍀⟒⎐⟒⍀,” Ranboo taunted. “⟟'⋔ ⏃ ☌⍜⎅. ⟟ ☊⏃⋏ ⎎⟟☌⊑⏁ ⎎⍜⍀ ⟒⏁⟒⍀⋏⟟⏁⟟⟒⌇,” Drista responded. Ranboo cut a gash into Drista’s bicep, “⎅⍜⋏'⏁ ⌰⟟⟒ ⏁⍜ ⋔⟒.”

An arrow flew just over Schlatt’s head. “You still can’t aim?” Ant taunted, who was still in a fight with Sapnap. Wilbur had just watched Skeppy’s body disappear. Bad seemed worried. He backed up towards Ant and the two started fighting back to back. Bad released his left hand from his sword and continued to fight off Dream with one arm. He rested his left hand against Ant’s leg, “.--. .-. --- - . -.-. - / ... -.- . .--. .--. -.-- / .- - / .- .-.. .-.. / -.-. --- ... - ..." Protect Skeppy at all costs. Ant nodded in understanding and the two separated and went back to their fights.

Angrily, Wilbur ran over to fight Schlatt in hand-to-hand combat. The duel that never was. It was almost poetic. “Do you really want to kill me?” Schlatt interrogated, pulling out his sword, “C’mon, we were buddies!” “You’re alcohol was my buddy,” Wilbur scoffed. “Then why didn’t you tell Dream that I was rebelling?” “I thought you were drunk!” Schlatt laughed, “I know you know that it takes a lot more than what we drank.” Wilbur swung his sword at Schlatt.

An arrow whizzed over Alyssa’s head. “Holy crap!” Alyssa shouted as she ducked. “Somebody has terrible aim,” Lazar said sarcastically. “I knew we shouldn’t have come here,” she mumbled as they continued walking. They walked right into a large battle, partially on the top of the castle and partially in the clearing they had just entered. “What the-” Ponk was interrupted by Techno landing right on top of him and Tommy landing on top of Callahan. The group quickly got out their weapons to fend off the two warriors.

Philza shot up into the after having dropped Tommy and Techno into battle and dived straight into Ranboo, causing them to skid across the castle roof. Ranboo swiftly got to his feet, “⍙⏃⌇ ⏁⊑⏃⏁ ⍀⟒⏃⌰⌰⊬ ⋏⟒☊⟒⌇⌇⏃⍀⊬?” “So you are in your enderwalk,” Philza mumbled. “⟟ ☊⏃⋏ ⌇⌿⟒⏃☍ ⟒⋏⎅⟒⍀ ⟟⋏ ⏚⍜⏁⊑ ⌇⏁⏃⏁⟒⌇. ⊬⍜⎍ ⋏⟒⟒⎅ ⏁⍜ ⎎⟟⋏⎅ ⏃ ⏚⟒⏁⏁⟒⍀ ⏁⟒⌰⌰⟒⍀.” “You’re alive?” Drista asked in shock. Philza nodded. Ranboo swung his sword at Philza, but Philza quickly blocked it with his shield. Ranboo continued to attack while Philza just kept dodging and blocking his attacks, not wanting to hurt Ranboo. “I know you’re in there. Stop it, Ranboo,” Philza begged. “⎎⟟☌⊑⏁ ⋔⟒, ⍜⌰⎅ ⋔⏃⋏.”

Eret felt around the cold walls and floor. They always disappeared around here. He caught himself just before he tripped over the edge of a rug, flipping the rug up a bit and revealing the corner of a trapdoor. Eret kicked it back a bit more before pulling the trapdoor open and dropping down into a thin stairway. He rubbed his hands against the blackstone walls as he slowly walked down the stairs. “Dream was looking for you,” George sat on the opposite end of the hallway lined with cells, pointing an axe as Eret. Karl jumped up and ran to look out his cell, “Eret? What are you doing here?” “He locked you up?” Eret questioned, eyes wide, staring at Karl. Eret didn’t know if he was referring to Dream or George. “George, I don’t want to fight you,” Eret put his hands up. “Then I’d appreciate it if you make it easy on me and get in a cell till Dream gets back.”

“I can’t do that. These are innocent people.”

“So were the L’Manburgians.”

Eret pulled out his sword, “Don’t fucking bring that up.”

“What makes this any different? At least they’re not dead.”

“Eret, please,” Karl begged. He didn’t want George to get hurt.

Eret took a deep breath and sheathed his sword, “Dream’s manipulating you. This isn’t right. Look at what he’s having you do to Karl.”

“All Dream’s done is show me who my friends are.”

“This is exactly what he did to Tommy in exile. He tricked him into thinking he was his only friend despite all the terrible things he’d done.”

“Don’t compare me to that brat.”

“George, you-” Eret was interrupted by the thump of George’s wheelchair falling backwards, leaving George facing upwards at Michael’s beady eye. “I told you to wait upstairs,” Eret laughed. He couldn’t help it. That piglin was cute. “Let me up!” George demanded. Eret ignored him and pulled out his pickaxe. He smashed Karl’s lock. He smashed Gunz’s lock. Ghost Manifold’s. Ghostdude’s. He came to the last cell. HBomb sat limp against the wall, eyes glazed over and skin pale. He was covered in burns, scars, and bruises and most of his bones appeared to be broken. If you couldn’t see his chest slowly rise and fall then you would assume he was dead. Eret heaved HBomb over his shoulder, who had lost a ton of weight and was easy to pick up. HBomb groaned from the pain of being moved. Karl went and knelt next to George, “Are you going to be alright?” “Get out of my sight,” George commanded through gritted teeth. Karl glumly got up and followed Eret, the ghosts, and Michael out of the dungeon.

Philza winced as Ranboo’s sword scraped his wing. Defence and dodging was difficult for him because of them, so he had to heavily rely on his shield to keep him from being injured. “⎎⟟☌⊑⏁ ⋔⟒!” Ranboo speedily pulled out his axe and swung it at Philza’s shield. Philza stumbled back a few steps, but quickly regained his balance. Ranboo took another swing at the shield, but this time Philza had braced himself and managed to keep steady. Ranboo swung again. He swung again. Again. Again. Again. He swept Philza’s leg out from under him, causing Philza to fall backwards. Philza grunted as his back slammed against the blackstone. Ranboo raised his axe into the air. He started bringing the axe down. The blade sliced through the air, aiming at Philza’s head. It made contact. Blood splattered all over the ground, all over the axe, all over Ranboo. Drista left her post guarding Tubbo and charged at Ranboo. “You monster!” She screamed. She knew of the terrible things people did, but never witnessed it first hand. She understood DreamXD’s warning now. She understood why he didn’t want her to come here. She understood why he didn’t want her to befriend these creatures. She dived at Ranboo, knocking him down and causing his end to ram right into the blackstone, knocking him out. Blood started dripping from the back of his head, but he was alive. She hurried over to Philza, who was cradling Niki in his arms. The axe was still in her chest. Her eyes started to droop. “Philza,” she croaked. “What is it?” He asked softly. “I’m sorry I didn’t let you stay that night. Hannah told me what happened.” Niki started coughing up blood. “It’s fine. It’s fine, Niki. It wasn’t your fault.” “Take care of Tommy and Tubbo,” she begged. “Of course. Anything.” Niki’s eyes dulled. Her breathing stopped. She was dead for good.

Quackity pushed his sword against Hannah’s. He witnessed Niki’s death out of the corner of his eye. That was Ranboo and Niki gone, and Tubbo wasn’t fighting, but they also had Philza. Joining the chaos on the ground might be beneficial for them. “Manburgians! On the ground!” Quackity shouted. He swiftly knocked Hannah’s sword out of her hand and dived into the nearby river that separated them from the rest of the Dream SMP. Connor, Purpled, and Charlie soon followed him into the river. Foolish, Hannah, and Fundy took this time to go check on their dead leader. Tubbo slowly walked over to his grief-stricken comrades. Hannah wrapped her arm around Tubbo’s shoulders for comfort. “I saw it happen. I could’ve helped,” Tubbo said as he stared at the axe in Niki’s chest, still somewhat in his daze. “Don’t say that. This wasn’t your fault,” Hannah comforted. Tubbo turned towards her, “I never said it was my fault. Do you think that it was my fault?” “It’s nobody's fault but Ranboo’s,” Hannah reassured him. “It’s not Ranboo’s fault,” Philza shook his head, “There was nothing he could’ve done to stop it. He’s not himself right now.” Tubbo looked over at Ranboo, whose hair was matted from the blood coming from his head. Tubbo walked away from Hannah and the others and made his way towards Ranboo and crouched down next to the half-enderman. “Be careful, Tubbo,” Drista warned. “Ranboo?” Tubbo croaked. He ran his hand through Ranboo’s soft hair. His eyes slowly blinked awake. “Tubbo?” Tubbo hugged him as best he could with Ranboo’s body still being on the ground. Philza sighed with relief at the sound of English. Drista relaxed slightly, but still kept a hand on her sword. “Tubbo, where am I? What are you doing here?” He looked over slightly to see Niki’s blood stained body and the refugees standing around it. “What did I do?”

The battle was chaos now. Sure, there were sides, but wars aren’t meant to have five sides along with the mourning refugees at the top of the castle. Ponk found himself in a fight with Sapnap. “What’s going on?” Ponk asked. “Just taking care of some criminals,” Sapnap chuckled as his sword sliced through the air. “What’s happened to you? Why are we fighting?” Sapnap hesitated. “You can come with us, me, Alyssa, and Callahan. We can bring George too,” Ponk offered, raising his hands up as a sign of peace. The sharp end of a trident appeared through his chest. Ponk’s body dropped to the ground and Techno yanked his weapon out of the corpse before attacking Sapnap. “Why did you kill him?” Sapnap questioned angrily as he defended himself against the Blood God. “The voices demand it.”

Ponk woke up on a platform over a lava chasm that always seemed to be rising, but never reached him. Sam appeared in front of him.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

They never had enough, did they? He’d killed multiple people already, though only Ponk’s was his last life. Techno’s trident went right through Sapnap’s adam’s apple and watched his body disappear. He looked up at the castle. The Manburgian’s had come down, but none of the refugees had, nor Philza or Ranboo. Techno sighed. He’d be fine. He can take care of himself.

Quackity scanned the battlefield. He watched Techno kill Ponk and Sapnap. Connor started fighting Puffy. Tommy was fighting Callahan and Alyssa. Vikk and Lazar had teamed up against Ant. There were too many people to keep track of. Three words spoke out to Quackity. “It’s over, Schlatt.” Wilbur had Schlatt backed up against a tree. Schlatt’s sword lay a few feet away. “Stop!” Quackity called out. Wilbur turned to see a crossbow pointed at him. Wilbur quickly pulled out his own crossbow and pointed it at Schlatt. “You shoot and he dies, and I’m not planning on missing this shot,” Wilbur threatened. Quackity looked between Wilbur and Schlatt. He considered his options. He could put his crossbow down and Wilbur would still probably kill Schlatt, or he could shoot and Schlatt would certainly die, but so would Wilbur. Why was he even working for Schlatt? Oh right, he wanted to turn him in to Dream. But if he dies he can’t do that. Quackity shot his crossbow. Wilbur shot his. The three enemies doubled over from the pain of an arrow to the chest. The third arrow shot from Wilbur’s crossbow hit a nearby tree. “You son of a-” Quackity started before groaning from the pain and collapsing.

“Tommy.” Callahan and Alyssa started backing up from Tommy. Tommy turned around, panting from exhaustion. Dream stood a few feet in front of him. “You just won’t stay gone, will you?” Dream gave a look of a disappointed parent. “You can’t do the simple task of staying in exile. You refused to go to prison. You won’t even stay dead! So let's try something else.” Dream took a step towards him, “Have you ever been tortured? I must admit, I had little experience with it when I was dealing with HBomb, but I’d say I’ve improved! Why don’t you let me know what you think?” With lightning reflexes, Dream pulled out a crossbow and shot an arrow, just scraping against Tommy’s neck. Tommy winced with pain, but slowly raised his sword anyways, “I’m not afraid of you.” “You will be in a few days.” Tommy swung his sword at him, but Dream easily dodged it, “Surely the Blade himself would have taught you better?”

Ranboo was curled up in a ball with his hands over his head. “Tubbo, you have to lock me up. Build another prison. I don’t care how much pain I have to go through in it, but just make it secure,” Ranboo pleaded. Tubbo shook his head violently, “No. No, I just got you back. You don’t need to go in a prison.” “Tubbo, Sam wouldn’t and look what’s happened now!” Ranboo snapped. He took a deep breath, “Tubbo, I just killed someone. I’m a danger to everyone around me.” “I’m not going to lock you up,” Tubbo refused. Ranboo shakily unsheathed his blood stained sword and placed it in Tubbo’s hand, “Then kill me. I’ve got two lives. Take them both. Please.” Tubbo gripped the sword and tossed it aside, “I can’t kill you. I won’t.” “Then lock me up. It will make me feel better if you do,” Ranboo continued to beg. Tubbo hesitated, “I have an idea for a prison that everyone besides you can easily get in and out of. It won’t be a prison. I’ll make it like a home. I’ll only do it if you really want me to though.” Ranboo was about to answer when Fundy yelled, “Hey guys, you might want to see this!” Tubbo, along with everyone else besides Philza and Drista, jogged over to where Fundy was standing at the ledge. “Tommy!” Tubbo screamed. He ran across the roof and dived into the river. He wasn’t going to make it.

Dream shoved Tommy against the wall of the castle. Tommy struggled, but Dream wouldn’t let him up from against the wall and didn’t seem to be bothered by his kicks. “Say goodbye to your friends, Tommy.” Most everyone was still fighting. No one seemed to notice what Dream was saying or that Tommy was in danger. They were all focused on their own fights. All they wanted was for themselves to survive. The only person who seemed determined to help young Tommy was Tubbo. Well, there was one other person. Technoblade rammed himself into Dream, launching them across the battlefield, “GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HIM, DREAM!” Techno plunged his trident into Dream’s forehead.

Slowly, everyone on the battlefield noticed the deaths. Niki wasn’t standing on the ledge with everyone else. Ponk’s limp body laid in the midst of everything. Schlatt, Wilbur, and Quackity all shot dead. And Dream. The fighting stopped. Everyone had lost a friend, a comrade, or a leader. There were no victors. There are never victors in war.

So what happened to our beloved characters? Techno and Tommy said their goodbyes and Tommy, Tubbo, and Drista went on to build Mizu, an underwater town with the purpose of keeping Ranboo contained. Tommy, Tubbo, Drista, Ranboo, and Michael all moved into Mizu once the construction was finished. Techno and Philza retrieved the Hound Army, Carl, and Steve and traveled far away from any society to retire for real this time. Techno passed his anarchist views onto his children, but eventually his beliefs faded away and one of his descendants formed an empire called the Subben Empire. The Badlands also grew to become a global superpower with Bad, Skeppy, Ant, Puffy, and Hannah, who had been quickly welcomed back after the war, leading the country. Alyssa and Callahan stayed in the Dream SMP for a short period of time to mourn their friend, but soon moved back to the city. Vikk and Lazar attempted to settle down, but never were able to stay put. Foolish started a business for his builds and later moved to the Badlands to be with his mother and continued his business there. Connor went back to live with his friends and ran into Schlatt, or should I say Glatt, one last time. After that he never saw any of the other Dream SMP members ever again. Purpled went back to the town he lived in when Quackity wrote to him to continue his mercenary work. Fundy stayed in solitude in the Dream SMP lands, not wanting to leave the place his father died and the place he had been born. He watched the Badlands and Mizu grow from a distance, alone. Michael spent years trying to learn how to resurrect people to bring Dream back. Eventually, he gave up and moved to the same town as Purpled to start mercenary work. No one exactly knows what happened to Charlie, but historians guess that he found a damp hole somewhere and is still there. Eret lived with HBomb in Area 51 till he physically recovered and then moved with him to HBomb’s mansion to take care of him. Karl frequently visited Eret and HBomb, but over time his visits stopped. No one knows what happened to him. Over time, Sapnap and George begin to regret the things they had done to Karl and wished they could’ve said something to him. They never saw him again. As for Limbo, well Wilbur taught everyone Risk so I’m sure you can imagine how that went.

Part 1 - The Piglin:
rigger Warning: Violence, Death, Manipulation

Ponk waited near the doorway for his guards. He had just finished setting up the cell for his newest specimen. It had to be heavily altered for restraint, with bonds for seven different places and extra bolts on the door to the cell. The only other occupied cell didn’t even have restraints at all, though how much harm could a Piglin child do?

The door that led to the large, metal hallway flung open. Three struggling guards squeezed through the doorway, each holding a thick chain attached to the Angel of Death’s waist, arm, or neck. Three more guards followed after the Angel had been squeezed through the doorway. The Angel struggled and flailed. He flew a couple feet above the ground in attempts to break away from his bonds. Ponk eased backwards as the guards continued to lead the Angel to his cell.

The Piglin child stood up from his number blocks to see what was going on. After multiple failed attempts to jump up to see through the window at the top of his door, he dragged a small, wooden chair over to the door and climbed up onto it to look out, but immediately got knocked backwards onto the ground when the Angel slammed his body into the door. The Piglin wailed in pain and grabbed his still-sore, band-aid-covered arm, but quickly went silent when he saw that the force the Angel had put on it opened it a bit. He climbed to his feet and pulled the large door open. The Angel had broken free from one of his bonds, and was using his now free arm to break away from the others. Despite the chaos, Ponk noticed the Piglin child in the open doorway and made his way over to him. He heaved the Piglin into his arms, “What are you doing out of your room? No.” The Piglin understood that word. He looked down in disappointment. Ponk was about to carry the Piglin back into his cell when one of the soldiers got thrown into them, causing the Piglin to roll across the ground. Voices swarmed the piglins mind. He jumped up and ran towards the soldier who had hurt him. He climbed up onto his back and wrapped his small arms around the man's neck, pulling back in order to choke him. The man managed to throw the small Piglin off his back, but while on the ground, the Piglin threw his leg out to trip the man. The man fell backwards and the piglin quickly climbed back on to him to start choking him again. A metallic scent hit the piglins nose. He looked up to see Ponk holding a gold bar. The man gasped for air as the Piglin’s tiny hands left his neck. The Piglin made his way through all the fighting to try and get to the shiny gold bar.

Phil whipped a chain towards one of the guards, knocking them down as the metal hit his head. His crows had come and had started to peck and claw at the guards. A large, sleek crow landed on Phil’s shoulder. “Can we keep him?” It cawed as it gestured over to the Piglin. “It’s a Piglin,” Phil shook his head as he kicked one of the guards in the chest. Another crow landed on his other shoulder, “Can we keep him?” All the other crows started repeating the other two as they fought alongside the Angel of Death.

“Can we keep him?”

“Can we keep him?”

“Can we keep him?”

“Can we keep him?”

“Can we keep him?”

“Can we keep him?”

“''Dang it. Fine, I’ll take him home, but he is going back to the Nether tomorrow,''” Philza cawed back at his crows. Satisfied, the crows started nipping at the piglins clothes and pulling him backwards, however, he was determined to get to the gold ingot. Phil thrusted one of the guards into the wall so he could get to the Piglin. He placed it on top of his shoulders, ignoring it’s struggles. As he ran for the door, Phil grabbed a group of folders labeled “Piglin” and one of his crows gently took them in their beak. “Get them!” Ponk yelled, but most of the guards were severely injured, two dead, and didn’t have the strength to follow the Angel.

Phil shot into the air with his murder following him. The piglin soon stopped struggling and quietly rode on the back of the Angel of Death through the night, staring with curious eyes at the shimmering stars and the bright moon.

Phil landed gently on the soft grass. A small cottage sat amongst the endless expanse of trees. A small boy ran out the door and into Phil’s arms, with dark, curly hair and eyes the color of chocolate that were surrounded by a pair of round glasses. His large, black, feathery wings wrapped around his father, but he quickly pulled away. A serious look crossed the child's face, “What are these? Who’s that?” He gripped Phil’s wrist, which still had the metal band from the bonds. Phil lowered the Piglin off his back, “Will, we’re leaving tomorrow morning. Get some rest. I’m going to wake you and Tommy up in a few hours so you can pack.” “Dad, you’re ignoring my question,” Wilbur stated, releasing Phil’s wrist from his grasp. “Do you mind letting this Piglin sleep in your bedroom for the night? It should be alright if you don’t attack it. I’m taking him back to the Nether tomorrow.” “Why’s he here in the first place?” Wilbur demanded. “Will, go to bed. We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow.”

Phil grabbed the Piglin’s hand and led him to Wilbur’s room, with Will angrily following them. He assisted Wilbur in getting together some blankets and pillows for the Piglin to sleep on before leaving to his own room.

Wilbur stared awkwardly at the Piglin, who was sitting cross-legged on the pallet they had made for it to sleep on. After a few minutes of silence, the Piglin stood up and picked up a toy car that sat in the corner of the room with many other small toys. “No! Don’t mess with my things!” Wilbur shouted. The Piglin dropped the toy car, recognizing the first word. Wilbur tilted his head with curiosity, “Can you understand me?” The Piglin stared at him blankly. Wilbur stood up from his bed and pointed to himself, “Wilbur. I’m Wilbur.” The piglin took a few steps forwards and pressed his finger against Wilbur’s chest, where Wilbur had put his own, “Wilbur.” It was squeaky, but he definitely had said it. A toothy grin spread across Wilbur’s face. Wilbur pointed his finger at the Piglin’s chest, “What’s your name? I’m Wilbur. My name is Wilbur. What’s your name?” Though the Piglin couldn’t understand what he was saying, he had been taught Ponk’s name by him pointing a finger at his own chest, and Wilbur had done the same. The Piglin looked around the room and his eyes caught on a stack of wooden number and letter blocks, similar to the ones in his room. He grabbed a handful of them and started putting some of them into a line. Wilbur sat down and watched him work. The Piglin shoved the remaining blocks to the side when he was done. The blocks read P0134. “That’s not a name,” Wilbur shook his head. The Piglin crawled over the blocks to Wilbur’s side in order to see what he was seeing. Skipping P, the Piglin slowly started to read all the numbers out loud in his squeaky voice. Wilbur’s mouth gaped open. He’d never seen a Piglin before, but he had read about them. They’d always been described as uncivilized and incapable of doing what people can do.

Wilbur's head jerked up when he heard pecking at his door. He quickly got up and opened up the door to let three of his dad’s crows into his room. They dropped multiple folders filled with papers onto Wilbur’s desk and flew out. They were clearly meant for Phil, but the crows often ignored Phil’s command in favor of Tommy and Wilbur. Wilbur quietly shut his door before going to the desk. The Piglin looked over his shoulder as he flipped through the odd pages, all of them looking similar, until he found one that read P0134 at the top, which happened to be at the back of the folder. Wilbur then realized that all the pages in that folder had been in order, starting at P0001, then P0002, and so on.

Wilbur carefully pulled the page out of the folder and started mumbling it out loud, “P0134, Species: Piglin, Age: 4-10, Tech: no, Injections/medications: yes-” The Piglin’s squeals cut Wilbur off before he could read off the long list of injections and medications. “What is it?” Wilbur questioned. The Piglin jammed his finger against his own chest, “Techno.” Wilbur laughed, “I think it’s just saying you’re completely flesh and bones.” “Techno. Techno. Techno,” the piglin continued to chant. Wilbur continued laughing, “Alright, alright.” He pushed his finger against the Piglin’s chest, “Techno.”

Phil burst into the room with multiple squawking crows swarming around him. “What are you doing with my stuff? I told you to go to bed!” Phil demanded. “Dad, the Piglin can talk,” Wilbur stated excitedly, ignoring his father’s anger. Techno took a step towards Phil and pointed at his own chest, “Techno,” he stated before pointing at Phil’s chest and staring up at him expectantly. After a moment of doing nothing, Wilbur said, “He wants to know your name.” Phil cautiously pointed at his own chest, “Phil.” Satisfied, Techno went back to stand next to Wilbur. Wilbur flopped onto the floor and crawled over to the blocks Techno had placed, “Look, Dad, I asked him his name and he put these blocks like this even before we had gotten your papers, and when he stopped messing with my stuff when I told him too, and he can repeat my name back to me!” Wilbur rambled. Phil walked over to the desk to look at the paper Wilbur had dropped back onto the desk. “This must be why,” Phil mumbled as he scanned over the list of things that had been shoved in Techno’s body. “Why what?” Wilbur questioned, standing back up. “Why he’s not zombified. I know you’ve read about Piglins. They zombify when they come into the Overworld. He’s not zombified. They must have stopped him from doing it,” Phil explained as he continued to look over the paper, before gathering up all the folders into his arms. “Go to bed. I mean it this time. We’re leaving in the morning,” Phil commanded softly. Wilbur, disappointed, climbed into bed and under his covers. “Good night,” Wilbur whispered after Techno had gotten himself settled. Techno turned over to look at Wilbur, “Good night.”

Part 2 - The Flee:
Wilbur blinked his eyes open as he was gently shaken awake. His father stared down at him with Techno sitting up on his blankets behind him. “Get up,” Phil whispered, “Start packing. Only bring as much as you need, and don’t over do it. You have to carry your stuff.” “What about Techno?” Wilbur mumbled as he pulled himself into a sitting position. “I’m taking it back to the Nether. I need you to help Tommy pack while I’m gone,” Phil explained softly. Wilbur’s eyes shot open, “No! I want him to stay!” “Will,” Phil shook his head, “We can’t just bring a Piglin along with us.” “But he’s not just a Piglin! He can talk! He understands numbers!” Wilbur argued.

Tommy moodily got out of bed. Why were they being so loud? He reached up to open his door and toddled over to Wilbur’s room. Tommy silently stood in the doorway and stared at the pig-like boy sitting on the floor of Wilbur’s room. Tommy waved at him and the boy slowly waved back in response. Tommy grinned and sat down on his knees. The boy copied him and switched from being cross-legged. Tommy put one hand on his head and the boy followed his lead. Their opposite hands plugged their noses. Tommy rolled backwards with laughter and Wilbur and Phil sharply turned their heads towards him. The boy crawled over to Tommy after he had recovered and pointed to himself, “Techno.” Tommy jabbed his finger at his own chest, “Tommy.” He immediately burst out laughing once again.

“See? He’s friendly! Tommy’s learning his alphabet and stuff right now anyways, why not just teach him also?” Wilbur begged. Phil rubbed his face in frustration, “If you can teach him the basics, like at least to where he can hold a conversation and understand basic things, then the Piglin can stay. If it can’t comprehend these things, then I’m finding the nearest Nether portal. Now start packing.” Phil brushed past Techno and Tommy and into his own bedroom before collapsing onto his bed. He understood why Wilbur wanted Techno to stay with them so badly. He’d almost never interacted with anyone outside of him and Tommy. He was bored, and lonely. If this were normal circumstances, Phil would gladly allow Techno to stay with them, but it wasn’t. He feared the Piglin would slow them down, and the most important thing to him right now was keeping Tommy and Will safe. Phil got up to find a bag to stuff as much as he could into.

Wilbur tossed Techno one of his shirts. They were specially made by Phil, with buttons on the side so the three of them could fit their wings into them, but it would still work for Techno, and they were about the same size. While Techno changed, Wilbur dug through his closet for clothes, his bookshelf for novels, documentaries, and anything that could keep him entertained, and his small toy chest for some of his favorites. He made sure to grab extra clothes for Techno along with the number and letter blocks. Once he was done, he went into Tommy’s room with Techno following close behind him.

“Why are we leaving?” Tommy asked curiously as Wilbur started packing his stuff. “I don’t know,” Wilbur shrugged, trying not to worry his toddler brother. “Are we going to come back?” Tommy questioned as he handed Wilbur his soccer ball to pack. “I don’t know that either. This isn’t going to fit,” Wilbur handed the ball back to Tommy. “Try,” Tommy urged. Wilbur sighed and started trying to stuff the soccer ball into the bag, “It’s not going to fit. Get your small bouncy ball. You can kick that around.” “Take some stuff out,” Tommy argued. “You need all the stuff in here,” Wilbur shook his head. “I don’t need the books,” Tommy pouted, crossing his arms. “Yes you do. You need to learn how to read.” Wilbur rolled the soccer ball and went to pick up the smaller bouncy ball. “DADZA!” Tommy screamed at the top of his lungs as he started to force tears to stream down his face. Phil appeared at the doorway with exhaustion in his eyes, “What is it?” “Will won’t let me bring my soccer ball!” Tomm wailed. “It won’t fit!” Wilbur shouted. “Tommy, if it won’t fit then you can’t bring it. You have other toys you can bring,” Phil stated calmly. “But I want the soccer ball!” Tommy threw himself onto the ground. While Phil and Wilbur attempted to talk some sense into the moody toddler, Techno walked over and picked up the tossed aside soccer ball. He looked between Wilbur’s and Tommy’s bags before opening Wilbur’s up. He grabbed some of the small childrens books from Tommy’s bag and started to shove them in what little room Wilbur had left in his bag. He pushed some of Tommy’s clothes to the side before stuffing the soccer ball into Tommy’s bag and zipping the two up. He snorted a few words in Piglinish to get the others' attention, but they ignored him, so he grabbed Wilbur’s wrist. “Hey! Let go!” Wilbur pulled his wrist away from Techno’s grip. Techno gestured over to the two bags to show what he had done. Tommy hollered with excitement and pulled Techno into a hug. “Tommy! Get away from him!” Phil yelled, not wanting the Piglin to take it the wrong way. “Hug,” Tommy explained. As Techno stared down at him. “Hug,” Techno repeated before wrapping his arms around Tommy. Wilbur laughed with amazement while Phil just stared. “I’m going to go find some food real quick. Go wait on the front porch with your stuff,” Phil finally ordered. Tommy released Techno and followed Wilbur out the door, who was holding their two bags, with Techno behind them.

Once he had gotten the food, Phil walked outside and allowed Techno to climb onto his back. He took off, holding one bag in each hand. One for his own stuff and one for necessities. Wilbur and Tommy flew alongside him. Tommy turned around one last time, “Bye house!” Wilbur looked back mournfully, knowing they’d never be going back to his childhood home.

Part 3 - The Creek:
Phil soured through the night sky, pushing through his exhaustion and weariness. Tommy and Wilbur had grown tired hours ago, and now both were fast asleep, cradled in his arms. He had been flying for around twenty hours, only stopping twice to eat and four times for bathroom breaks.

Phil’s wing cramped up, causing him to falter a bit. Techno squealed with fear from atop his back. He hadn’t realized the Piglin was still awake. “It’s alright. I’ve got you,” Phil reassured him softly. Techno started to adjust himself and Phil felt one of his tiny hands leave his back. “Phil?” The Angel had never heard Techno say his name before. He turned his head to find Techno pointed up at the sky. Phil followed his finger to the large, glowing orb in the sky. “Moon,” Phil responded quietly, as to not wake up the two sleeping children in his arms. “Moon,” Techno repeated, “Moon?” His finger moved to one of the thousands of sparkling dots that scattered the sky. Phil shook his head, “Star.” Techno moved his finger to another one, “Star?” “Yes, star,” Phil replied. Techno looked over Phil’s shoulder, “Green?” Phil looked down at the endless sea of trees, “Yes, green. Green trees.” “Tree?” Techno questioned. “Tree,” Phil repeated. “Green tree. Grey moon. White star,” Techno stated, pointing at each as he said it. “Yes. That’s right,” Phil nodded. So he knew his colors also. “Phil?” Techno started to gently rub his hand across the soft feathers. “Wings,” Phil explained. “Black wings.” Phil nodded, “Yes. I have black wings.” Techno leaned over Phil’s shoulder again, “Wilbur, Tommy.” “Wilbur and Tommy have black wings too,” Phil agreed. Techno looked between the two dark wings on Phil’s back, “Two wings.” “Yes. I have two wings.” Techno went silent for a few minutes. “Wilbur and Tommy have two black wings,” he finally stated. “Yes. Good job.” Phil was impressed with the small Piglin’s progress.

The Angel flew for another hour before finally giving in to his weariness. He lowered himself to the ground in a small clearing amongst the trees and a fast creek surrounded by large stones. Techno dropped himself onto the hard ground and Phil gently laid Wilbur and Tommy down, though they immediately woke up. “How long have we been flying?” Wilbur asked with a yawn. “21 hours,” Phil answered as he dropped the four bags to the ground. “How long can we stay here?” Wilbur questioned solemnly. Phil shrugged, “Bathe and get some rest. We’ll decide later.”

Techno squealed with panic and scurried away from the cold water. “C’mon! It’s not that bad!” Wilbur called out. Tommy splashed water towards the Piglin. Techno screeched and backed up further. Phil ran over grasped Techno’s hand tightly, who kicked him in the shin in response. “No. Stop it, Techno,” Phil commanded, backing away slowly. Techno stopped, but the voices in his head raged on. He gripped his head and he started yelling in Piglinish. Wilbur dashed out of the water and pulled Techno into a hug. “Hug,” Wilbur whispered. Techno continued to shout at the blood-craving voices that screamed in his head. Tommy started to make his way over to the two, but Phil stopped him, “Stay there, Tommy. I don’t want him to hurt you.” Phil slowly walked over and knelt next to Techno and Wilbur. He gently started rubbing Techno’s back for comfort. “He’s in pain, or distress, or something,” Wilbur whispered. “I know,” Phil replied quietly, “You and Tommy can go finish washing. I’ll take care of him.” Wilbur reluctantly released his embrace and led Tommy back into the creek.

“It’s okay. You’re going to be okay,” Phil whispered. He carefully lifted him off the ground and rested the Piglin on his hip, like he did when he held Tommy, even though Techno was much bigger and heavier. Techno stopped shouting after around ten minutes of Phil comforting him in his arms. Phil adjusted and took one of his hands and pointed towards the creek, “Water.” “Water,” Techno repeated. “Water good,” Phil added. “Good?” Techno questioned. “Phil good, Wilbur good, Tommy good, trees good, moon good, stars good,” Phil attempted to explain. Phil started to walk towards the water. Techno scrambled to get out of his arms and Phil quickly dropped him. Phil continued to walk over to the water and bent over and dipped his hand in it, “Water good.” Phil beckoned Techno over. The Piglin cautiously walked over to Phil and lowered his hand into the water, but he pulled it out immediately and started to shake the water off. Phil took a step into the water, “C’mon.” Techno had heard the world multiple times from Phil and Wilbur, and was still trying to figure out what it meant. “C’mon,” Phil repeated as he motioned for him to follow him. Techno thought for a few moments before nodding in understanding. He slowly took a step into the water, but jumped back. “Does it hurt?” Phil asked. “Hurt?” Techno questioned. Phil bent over and pointed to his shin, “Hurt.” Techno shook his head in response. “C’mon then,” Phil beckoned. Techno took a step into the water once again, but this time he stayed put. “C’mon,” Phil repeated. Techno closed his eyes and started to wade to Phil. Phil smiled as the small Piglin reached him, “Yes. Good job.” Techno knew what ‘good job’ meant. Good. Water good. Water good job. “Water good,” Techno stated proudly. “Yes. Water is good,” Phil agreed. “Is good…” Techno mumbled to himself, “Water is good. Phil is good. Tommy and Wilbur is good.” “Tommy and Wilbur are good,” Phil corrected, “Two means are. One means is.” “Tommy and Wilbur are good,” Techno corrected himself, “Moon and stars and trees are good.” Phil chuckled at the curious Piglin. “Sleep,” he gestured towards where Tommy and Wilbur had laid down, both staring at the two in awe. “Sleep?” Wilbur closed his eyes to show Techno what they were talking about. Techno nodded and went to lay down next to the two boys.

Phil sighed in relief as he went to go change clothes. The Piglin was interesting to talk to, and he clearly was bright, but he had scared him there. Phil had seen the Piglin fight at the lab, or dungeon, or wherever that guy wanted to hold him. You’d think he’d just want to turn him in, Phil pondered. It would have made him rich. Anyways, that Piglin could fight. He could kill, and would do it too. He might have too. When he was grabbing his head and speaking in Piglinish, what was that? He listened when he had told him to stop, but it seemed to hurt him by doing so.

“I see you’ve gotten yourself in trouble,” a soft, yet booming voice said. Phil looked up to see Death towering over him. “Hello Kristen,” Phil smiled at the sight of his beloved. “Let’s go on a walk.” Phil followed the goddess into the woods. “Keep an eye on them,” Phil cawed a command to a few of his crows. They nodded in understanding and flew up into the trees to watch over the boys.

“You sent a couple men to me. Some others got close,” Kristen stated, “I thought you were going to retire once the boys were born, or at least till they are older.” “I had no choice. Someone caught me. I managed to escape, but there were casualties,” Phil sighed. “A little more than that. Who’s that Piglin that was with the boys?” Kristen questioned.

“Techno. The crows were fond of him. He’s smarter than normal. Not zombified either.”

“Odd.”

“He’s got bandaids all up his arms. They must have injected him with a bunch of stuff to make him more human.”

“That’s not what I was talking about.”

“Well then what are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing. I thought you liked traditional names?”

“He chose it while Wilbur was reading some documents about him I stole from the people who captured me.”

Phil stopped in his tracks and turned towards the goddess, “When are we going to tell them?”

“Tell them what?”

“You know what.”

“I want them to be able to live out their childhoods. Very few get to.”

“Few were ever children in the first place.”

“Which is why they should enjoy their gift.”

“It will only make it harder for them when they have to find out,” Phil shook his head.

“You’ve kept them distanced from society. They’ll be fine.”

“What about Techno? I don’t see him leaving anytime soon.”

“You don’t have to worry about the Piglin.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kristen hesitated, “It doesn’t matter right now.”

“Your acting weird today.”

“When am I not?” Kristen smiled softly.

A large crow glided over and perched on top of the goddess’s shoulder, “Sparklez ''needs you! Sparklez needs you!''” “I need to go. Stay safe please. Take care of the boys,” Kristen planted a kiss on Phil’s head before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Part 4 - The Soldier:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Mentions of Death, Trauma, Manipulation

“You hiding your wings?” Techno questioned. “You’re hiding your wings,” Phil corrected, “And yes. The people in town don’t like our wings.” “Can we go now?” Tommy jumped with excitement. The crows were busy, so Phil agreed to allow the boys to come into town for food this one time, on the condition that they stuck together and didn’t reveal their wings to anybody. Phil finished putting on his long cloak before nodding in agreement, “Stay with me.”

It was a short walk. They had set up camp close to the outskirts, though they’d be moving soon. Phil didn’t like being this close to people. They soon reached the road that led into the town and quickly found the bustling marketplace. The three boy's mouths gaped open. Tommy had to hold himself back from running ahead. Wilbur stared in awe at the colorful shops. Techno gripped Phil’s wrist at the sight of so many people.

People whispered and stared at the odd group, specifically Techno. Many had never seen a Piglin before. Those who had believed them to be violent creatures. The only reason people didn’t attack the Piglin was because of his grip on Phil’s wrist.

“That thing can’t come here,” a soldier had walked up to them with one hand clutching the hilt of his sword. “He’s a child,” Phil stated angrily, pulling Techno closer to him. “It’s a Piglin. He’s dangerous. Leave now,” the soldier commanded. “He’s not doing anything wrong!” Wilbur yelled. “I can leave,” Techno mumbled, heart-broken. The soldier took a step backwards in shock, “It can talk? It can understand us?” “Yes, and he has feelings you know,” Wilbur crossed his arms. “Th-that thing needs to come with me,” the soldier stuttered. He took a few steps forward and started to reach for Techno’s wrist. He tightly squeezed his wrist and yanked him forward. Techno called out from the pain. He took his free arm and aimed a hook straight at the soldier's liver. The soldier doubled over with pain. “You’ve screwed up now,” Wilbur shook his head as he went to pull Techno back. Techno kicked the soldier’s lowered head and his nose started to bleed. He jumped on top of the soldier’s back, causing his face to plant into the ground. Suddenly the ground disappeared from his feet. Phil had lifted him off the ground, but he still struggled to fight the soldier. “Right, it’s time to go. We’ll get food somewhere else,” Phil announced as he opened up his large wings from beneath his cloak. The already panicked crowd began to scream and flee. “The Angel of Death! It’s the Angel of Death!” The crowd called out. Phil shot into the air and Tommy and Wilbur followed suit.

The group landed back at their camp. Techno had calmed down and went to assist in gathering their things. “Be quick. We need to leave this place,” Phil commanded. “What were they calling you?” Tommy questioned as he shoved his few things into a bag. “That doesn’t matter,” Phil shook his head as he slinged a bag over his shoulder. “I think it does. Why were they calling you the Angel of Death? Why were they so scared of you?” Wilbur demanded. Phil stared at his boys for a few moments, deep in thought. “I’ll explain when we get into the air,” Phil decided. A crow seemingly came out of nowhere and landed on Phil’s shoulder, “Don’t tell them everything.” “It would have been nice to know that she left a few of you guys around before we went into town,” Phil rolled his eyes. “They needed some social interaction,” the crow cawed. “''You call that social interaction? They know I have children now! They know I’m still alive!''” The crow ignored him and flew off. “What was that about?” Wilbur asked. “She just wanted to see if we were all right,” Phil shrugged, “Are you guys ready?” The three boys nodded their heads. Techno climbed onto Phil’s back and the three took off.

“I really need to get you a horse or something,” Phil grunted. “What’s a horse?” Techno asked, leaning over Phil’s shoulder to look at him. “You saw some in the town. They’re big animals with four legs and people ride them. We probably have a picture of one in one of our books. I’ll show you next time we make camp,” Phil explained. “Can you tell us about the Angel of Death now?” Wilbur asked impatiently. “Give me a second to figure out what I should say,” Phil responded. “What, so you can lie to us?” Wilbur sneered. “So I don’t scare you guys,” Phil sighed. And so he doesn’t tell the entire truth. He needed to figure out what he could say.

“Philza?” Techno started. Back when Tommy was younger, he always accidently added a ‘za’ after Dad. Wilbur had started calling him Dadza and Philza as a joke and it just stuck, and they had taught Techno to say it also. “What is it?” Phil asked. They’d been flying for a bit over an hour. It was noon. Wilbur has given up on asking him about the Angel of Death. “They won’t stop,” Techno answered. “What won’t stop?” Phil questioned. “The voices.” The voices in Techno’s head, always craving violence and bloodshed, specifically when Techno, or someone he cared about, got hurt. Techno had explained to them that he had always had them, all Piglin’s did that way they knew when to help each other and who to attack, but the scientists' experiments had made them much worse, and they rarely ever stopped. “What do they want?” Phil already knew the answer. “Blood,” Techno replied, “They yelling ‘blood for the Blood God.’” Phil ignored the mistake in his speech, “Have they called you that before?” Techno shook his head. The Blood God. Oh, who was the Blood God? There was the God of War, Khinzarb. Ironically, he was the God of Pigs also. It could be where the voices got it from. “Do they want you to attack us?” “No. They like you guys,” Techno responded. That was good. “Who do they want you to attack?” “I don’t know. Anyone.” He wasn’t bringing Techno back to a town anytime soon. “Resist them. I know you can,” Phil encouraged. “It’s hard.” “I know. You have to try though.” “Would it help if I sang?” Wilbur suggested. Techno shrugged. Wilbur started singing a soft tune:

“Leaves from the vine,

Falling so slow.

Like fragile tiny shells,

Drifting in the foam.

Little soldier boy,

Come marching home.

Brave soldier boy,

Come marching home.”

Techno soon fell asleep to Wilbur’s voice. “Where’d you learn to sing like that?” Tommy asked curiously. “I don’t know. I just can,” Wilbur shrugged. Well he certainly didn’t get it from me, Phil thought. “Where’d you learn that song?” Tommy questioned. Wilbur thought for a moment, “I’m not sure. I just remember someone singing it.” Phil wasn’t surprised that he remembered, despite Kristen singing that song to him just after he’d been born.

Tommy glided himself closer to Phil, “Can you tell us about the Angel of Death now?” Wilbur turned towards him expectantly. “Alright,” Phil sighed. “A long time ago, before you boys were born, I was a very different man. I did some terrible things and caused a lot of harm.” That was an understatement. “Did you kill people?” Tommy’s eyes widened. “Yeah, I did,” Phil answered solemnly. “Is this going to put us in danger?” Wilbur asked, swallowing down his anger and fear. “They recognize me for my wings. I’m sorry,” Phil shook his head. Wilbur’s voice started shaking, “The day we left home, two years ago, why did you have chains on you? What happened? Where did you get Techno from?” Phil stared at his son for what felt like forever, “I think we should land.” “Answer the question!” Wilbur demanded furiously. “Land first. I don’t want you or Tommy flying in a bad state,” Phil commanded softly. “Where will we even land?” Wilbur questioned, frustrated at his father’s vagueness. “There’s a lake around here. We should hit it in around ten minutes.” “How do you know there’s a lake here?” Wilbur’s voice was trembling, his body quivering. His skin was white and his eyes looked like he had just seen a ghost. “Let me carry you the rest of the way,” Phil gestured him over. Wilbur shook his head, “I’m not letting you carry me.” “Please. It will make it easier for everyone. You aren’t okay to fly right now,” Phil begged. “I don’t care! Don’t touch me!” Wilbur shouted. Phil went silent. He turned to look at Tommy, “Are you alright?” “I’m okay,” Tommy nodded. He was young and naive. He didn’t understand, but that’s good, in a way, Phil thought.

Just as Phil had said, the lake came into view, and the group landed near the shore. Phil gently laid Techno down in a soft patch of grass. “Wilbur, Tommy, go wash up. I’ll forage around for some food. Wilbur froze, “You said you’d answer my questions.” “Not with you like this,” Phil shook his head, “Until you’re old enough to handle everything, that’s all you need to know.”

Part 5 - The Birthday:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Death?, Abuse, Manipulation

Tommy shook Wilbur awake. “What? Are we leaving?” Wilbur mumbled as he rubbed his eyes awake. Tommy grinned, “Happy birthday as-” “No cussing!” Phil yelled from across the clearing as he jogged over to the two. “Why not? Wilbur and Techno get to!” Tommy whined. “You’re eleven!” Phil called. “Yeah, get off me asshole,” Wilbur smiled, shoving him off. Tommy mumbled something too quiet for anyone to hear as he allowed Wilbur to get up.

“Is Techno still asleep?” Wilbur asked as he stood up. “Yeah. He had a rough night. I’ll wake him up soon,” Phil replied. “You could have woken me up to help,” Wilbur argued. “It didn’t take him too long. Besides, you were tired. We flew for a while yesterday,” Phil shrugged. “Can he see his presents?” Tommy asked excitedly. “Let's wait for Techno and eat some breakfast first,” Phil chuckled. “Can I wake Techno up then?” Tommy interrogated. “Go ahead. He needs to feed his horse.” Phil glanced at the bulky, chocolate brown horse grazing on grass across the clearing. Tommy ran over to wake Techno up, though he did this much more gently then he had Wilbur. “Happy birthday Wilbur,” Techno said with a yawn as he got to his feet. “''Will you guys shut up? Try and count to 100 or something,''” Techno groaned in Piglinish. That would keep them busy for a while. “Feed you horse and then we can eat breakfast,” Phil said as he held up a bag with some muffins he had bought from town. Tommy licked his lips and plopped himself down in the dirt with Wilbur following his lead. “You didn’t have to do this,” Wilbur stated after Phil had sat down with them. “You deserve something special for your 16th,” Phil smiled as he ruffled Wilbur’s hair. Techno soon joined them and they all enjoyed the fluffy muffins together.

“Can Will see his presents now?” Tommy asked impatiently. “Alright, he can look at them now,” Phil chuckled as he stood up to follow Tommy running into the trees. “What flavor were these?” Techno asked Wilbur as he finished. “Banana nut,” Wilbur replied. “Bananas are the yellow fruit, right? The ones that are a weird shape?” Techno questioned. “That’s the one,” Wilbur nodded his head. “How do they get them into the muffins?” Techno interrogated. “They mash them up and mix them into the batter,” Wilbur explained. “The Overworld is weird,” Techno mumbled as he adjusted his glasses. Wilbur had given him a pair of his after learning about Piglin’s naturally terrible eyesight. Techno had told them that the reason they attack people without gold is because all Piglin’s wear gold somewhere, and so they use their impeccable sense of smell to be able to tell who does, since they can barely see the difference between a Piglin and a person. When a Piglin becomes zombified, it’s sense of smell diminishes while Piglin Brutes have good eyesight and don’t need to rely on their smell.

“Wilbur!” Tommy called as he ran towards the two, “Look at what Techno and I made you!” He dropped down onto his knees and handed Wilbur a roughly made, wooden comb. “What are you trying to say here?” Wilbur asked sarcastically. “That you look disgusting. You should be glad I thought to give you this,” Tommy remarked, jumping on top of Wilbur’s back. Wilbur raised himself into the air, causing Tommy to fall back down to Earth. “Oww,” Tommy complained, rubbing his butt. “You boys stop it!” Phil called, “Wilbur, come over here so I can show you something!” Wilbur grinned and jogged over to his father with Techno and Tommy following close behind him. “Go look behind that tree,” Phil smiled, gesturing towards a nearby oak. Wilbur peered behind the rough wood, “Holy s-” “Let’s not cuss in front of Tommy. I let it slide earlier,” Phil interrupted. Wilbur pulled out a shiny guitar with a thick black strap dangling from it. “Thank you so much, Dadza,” Wilbur said as he gently placed the instrument down and pulled Phil into a hug.

“Try it out!” Tommy urged from behind him. Wilbur let go and fiddled with the velcro on the strap to get it around his wings. After some help from Phil, Wilbur sat down with his new guitar. He started to pluck at the strings, attempting to figure out what note each played. After a few minutes of this, he started to play a slow tune with a few simple notes. “What was that called?” Tommy asked. Wilbur shrugged, “Just made it up.” “Keep practicing that. You’ve got a real talent,” Phil complimented, brushing Wilbur’s hair out of his face as he stood up, “Techno, lets go. You boys don’t get into trouble.” “We know,” Tommy rolled his eyes.

Techno stood up and followed Phil deep into the woods, ignoring his pounding headache that seemingly grew worse with each step. Finally, Phil stopped in his tracks near a fallen tree being held up by the stump and a large rock. Phil flew a few feet into the air and sat on the large tree. Techno looked between the rock and the stump and decided to climb on top of the stump to get on the large, rough tree. He slowly walked over to Phil so as to not fall. “Clear your mind,” Phil commanded. Techno nodded and closed his eyes. “I’m not going to fall,” he mumbled in Piglinish. “Don’t talk to them. Just shove them out of your mind.” The voices seemed to get louder just to defy him, taunting him to snap at them. “Ignore them,” Phil repeated, seeing the annoyance in Techno’s expression, “Stand on one foot. Focus on your balance.” Techno took a deep breath and slowly lifted his right leg and rested the bottom of his foot on the side of his knee. “How are they?” Phil asked after a few minutes. “Loud,” Techno responded, not opening his eyes. “Alright, then put your arms down. Make it harder for yourself.” Techno hadn’t realized he had outstretched his arms. He must have done it when he lifted up his foot. He carefully brought his arms to his sides. He wobbled a bit, but soon regained his balance.

Thirty minutes passed. Phil had sat down on the log a while back. “My leg hurts,” Techno announced. “Then switch legs,” Phil said as if it was obvious. “I can’t balance well on my right leg,” Techno argued. “Then learn how to.” Techno sighed in frustration and put his right leg down, carefully raising his left leg in a similar manner to the way he had placed his right leg on his knee. He quickly had to put his foot back down to steady himself. “You can put your arms out if you need to,” Phil suggested. Techno raised his arms to his side and tried again. “This isn’t helping,” Techno argued. “Did it help with the other leg?” Phil asked calmly. “I don’t know, maybe a little,” Techno shrugged. “Then go back to that leg,” Phil commanded. “That leg hurts,” Techno retorted. “The pain will distract you.” “Pain makes them louder,” Techno shook his head. Phil sighed, “Techno, I don’t care how you do it, but I need you calm before we start.” “Wilbur’s singing calms me!” Techno shouted. “Wilbur’s singing quiets the voices. It doesn’t help you ignore them. I don’t want to have to rely on that.” “I don’t want to do this anymore,” Techno stated angrily, sitting down next to Phil. “Do you want to start while your like this?” Phil interrogated. “No. I don’t want to hurt you,” Techno shook his head. “It might be good for you. When you’re going to need this you probably won’t be in a good mood,” Phil explained. “It’s a bad idea. I struggle enough when I’m calm.” “I’ll be fine,” Phil reassured him, jumping down from the tree. Techno reluctantly followed him.

Just after Techno jumped down, Phil quickly turned around and punched Techno in the stomach. Fury filled Techno’s eyes. He swiftly landed a roundhouse on Phil’s side. “Stop it,” Phil commanded through gritted teeth. Techno aimed a hook at his face, but Phil grabbed his wrist before he could hit it. He twisted Techno’s arm behind his back and pulled, “Stop it Techno. Push them out of your mind.” Techno’s breathing was heavy. “Shut up!” He shouted. “Don’t talk to them. That won’t help.” Phil used his foot to trip Techno, face planting him into the ground. Phil kneeled over and tightened his grip on Techno’s wrist. “Don’t struggle,” Phil instructed when Techno attempted to pull his wrist free. Phil pulled back his leg and booted Techno in the side. Techno gripped a handful of grass and squeezed his eyes shut. Phil kicked his side again, and again, and again. The voices in Techno’s head begged for him to fight back. Phil’s foot made contact with the back of his head. Techno called out with pain and grabbed Phil’s ankle with his free hand, catching Phil off balance. He threw up his leg and kicked Phil’s inner thigh, causing him to fall over and let go of Techno’s wrist. Techno swiftly picked up a nearby rock and chunked it at Phil’s head. He disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

Techno slowly got to his feet. The voices calmed. “I knew it,” Techno mumbled. Phil appeared in front of Techno with a tall, dark haired woman in a purple gown beside him. “Almab,” Techno greeted. “Please, call me Kristen,” the goddess requested. “I was taught to say your god names and that’s what I’ll be calling you,” Techno refused. “Are you refusing a goddess’ command?” Kristen remarked. “I listen to Khinzarb’s and Itmir’s command. Yours means nothing to me,” Techno sneered. “I see TapL has strict demands. I’m surprised he’s willing to share his followers with Preston.” “He doesn’t, but we are wise enough to listen to the god who’s realm my people live in.” “Did you kill me because you knew what I was or because of the voices?” Phil interrogated. “The voices, but the whole ‘Angel of Death’ thing did give it away,” Techno responded. “You’d be surprised about how few humans figure it out. They just believe it to be some nickname that sparks fear into the hearts of everyone. I actually came up with it myself. I didn’t expect it to catch on like this, though,” Phil explained. “Most species aren’t taught about the gods like Piglin’s are. It’s the first thing we’re taught,” Techno replied, “I’m assuming Tommy and Wilbur don’t know?” “Nope,” Phil shook his head. “The longer you wait, the harder it will hit them,” Techno warned. “Tell that to her,” Phil stated, gesturing towards Kristen. Kristen only shrugged. “I should be going,” Kristen announced, “Are you alright?” The question was towards Techno. “I’m fine,” he answered. The two stared at each other for a few seconds till Kristen disappeared into a puff of black smoke.

Part 6 - The Capital:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Violence

Techno’s horse leaped over a rotting log as they galloped through the forest. He glanced up to make sure that he was still below the others, only to find that Tommy wasn’t there. “Hello!” Tommy shouted as he appeared beside Techno and sent a gust of wind towards him with his wings, knocking Techno off his horse. Techno groaned with pain. “Don’t LMAO me,” Techno mumbled in Piglinish. A laughing Tommy held out his hand towards Techno. Techno grabbed it, but pulled Tommy down with him. Techno chuckled joyfully and stood up, dragging Tommy along with him. The voices didn’t care to hurt Tommy.

Wilbur and Phil landed beside them. “Are you two alright?” Phil asked cautiously. The voices never got angry at Tommy, or Wilbur for that matter, but it still worried him anytime Tommy rough-housed. “Yeah, we’re fine,” Tommy reassured as he lightly punched Techno’s arm. Techno flicked his forehead in response. Wilbur rolled his eyes and flew back up into the air. Tommy and Phil soon followed him.

Wilbur soared through the endless sky, trying to keep close to the treetops so Techno could see and follow them. A white dove flew next to him. It tweeted, almost as if it was saying hello, before flying back down to the trees. “How much longer are we going to be flying?” Wilbur asked, gliding closer to Phil. “We should be getting there soon,” Phil responded. “Where are we going?” Wilbur interrogated, curious at the thought of going somewhere specific. “To visit an old friend,” Phil smiled. Now Wilbur was very curious, but he knew Phil’s tendency to be vague, so he asked no further questions.

After around 45 more minutes of flying, Phil pulled ahead and swooped down, that way Techno could tell that they were going to land. Phil circled down to the ground with Wilbur following his lead while Tommy decided to dive to the ground in a free fall before pulling himself upright at the last second and lowering himself gently the last few inches. “Please be careful,” Phil begged Tommy. “I know what I’m doing,” Tommy retorted. Techno soon parked his horse near the group and climbed off it. “Alright everyone, cover up. We’re about to head into one of the busiest places in the world,” Phil commanded as he searched his bag for his oversized cloak. “Where?” Wilbur questioned. They rarely went to places that were populated at all. “The capital of The Badlands, Antopis,” Phil replied. Wilbur knew his geography. The Badlands was one of the bigger countries, with four large cities, each named after one of the members of the Council, while the country itself was named after the head of the Council, Badboyhalo. Phil wasn’t exaggerating when he said it was one of the busiest cities in the world.

Once they had covered their wings and Techno had put on his disguise, a plain black hood along with a black mask with only slits for his eyes, Phil led the way with Wilbur and Tommy following him on foot and Techno slowing his horse to a walk at the back. They soon reached the main dirt road that led to the town and it didn’t take long for them to see the huge walls that surrounded the city. Three guards stood at the gate. “Visitors or citizens?” One of them asked, eyeing Techno suspiciously. “Visitors,” Phil answered calmly. “What’s your business here?” The same guard interrogated. “I’m here to visit an old friend.”

“What’s your friend's name?”

“Puffy. I believe she has a child also. I don’t know their names, but I think they're around 25.”

“Captain Puffy?”

“Well I don’t think she’s a captain anymore, but I suppose that used to be her title, yes.”

The guard dug through his pocket and pulled out four small tickets, “Don’t lose them if you want to leave.” He handed them to Phil and yelled, “Open the gate!” The two other guards each pulled a lever and the large, metal gate slowly rose up.

“Lets hope she hasn’t moved,” Phil mumbled as they walked through the streets of Antopis. “How do you know Puffy?” Wilbur asked. “I was a stowaway on her boat,” Phil chuckled. “Was she a pirate?” Tommy asked curiously. “Only the best. Her crew would follow her lead without question. Anytime a ship saw her in the distance they would turn around.” Tommy’s eyes widened with excitement.

“Here we are!” Phil announced. They stood in front of a rundown, old shack. Tommy frowned, “This is it?” “She’s retired,” Phil shrugged. Techno hopped off his horse and tied it to a fence post and the group went to the porch. Phil knocked on the door three times and waited patiently.

“Who are you guys?” A guy with messy blonde hair and dressed in a simple green hood and jeans had opened the door. “I’m Phil. Can I see your mother?” Phil asked. “I don’t think that’s the best idea,” the boy answered cautiously. “Just tell her Phil’s here. She’ll let me in,” Phil explained. The guy reluctantly yelled, “Mom! A guy named Phil is here!” In a few moments a sheep hybrid with thick, white wooly hair appeared in the doorway. “Well if it isn’t the Angel of Death himself,” Puffy smiled, “After 25 years you finally decide to come and visit me.” “You know it’s difficult for me,” Phil chuckled. “The Angel of Death?” The boy's eyes widened, “You weren’t lying?” “Of course I wasn’t lying! Why would I lie about meeting Phil here? This is my son Dream,” Puffy introduced as she rested a hand on Dream’s shoulder, who quickly shoved it off. “Nice to meet you, Dream. These are my sons Wilbur, Tommy, and Techno,” Phil said, gesturing towards each of them as he said their names. “Did you really used to be a pirate?” Tommy asked skeptically. “Only the best! My crew would follow my lead without question. Any time a ship saw me in the distance they would turn around,” Puffy responded proudly. Wilbur eyed his father. Phil gave a sly smile. “Now why did you really come here, Phil? I know you’re not just here to look at my beautiful face one last time,” Puffy teased. “Why don’t we take this inside? I wouldn’t imagine it’s safe for you or me to stand out here,” Phil stated, rolling his eyes. “You don’t have to worry about me. I’ve got the head counselor's protection now!” Puffy responded gleefully. “His son comes over here sometimes to hang out,” Dream said, revealing her bluff. Phil laughed and pushed past Puffy and Dream and into the house. “Barging in uninvited, Phil? You haven’t changed a bit,” Puffy chaffed as she moved out of the way for the other three. Puffy shut the old wooden door and led the guests to a dusty couch and set of arm chairs.

“Why are you wearing a mask?” Dream asked after they’d all gotten settled. Puffy and Dream sat in the armchairs while Phil, Tommy, and Wilbur sat on the couch with Techno on the ground leaning up against it. “Same reason they're wearing capes,” Techno shrugged. “It looks cool,” Dream admired. “You can take it off if you want, Techno,” Phil offered. Techno nodded and pulled down his hood so he could get the mask off his face, revealing his Piglin features. Dream leaned forward with curiosity, “Can you understand English perfectly?” “Let’s not bother the boy,” Puffy warned. “Yes, I can,” Techno responded, ignoring Puffy. “Can you speak Piglinish?” Dream continued. “Of course,” Techno answered with his native tongue. “Do you attack people when they hurt you?” “Do you want to find out?” Phil grabbed Techno’s shoulder and leaned in closer to whisper in his ear, “Stop it. You don’t have to prove yourself to this boy.” Techno huffed and pulled himself away from Phil. Dream still perked with interest, but he stopped asking questions.

“So what are you here for?” Puffy interrogated after a few minutes of silence. “I was wondering if you will allow us to use your ship. I’m assuming you still have it?” Phil requested. “Of course I still have it,” Puffy rolled her eyes, “Why do you want aboard my ship?” “Why do you think? Do you know any remote locations?” Phil questioned. “I know a few,” Puffy smiled, “I need a crew, though.” “You’ve got one right here,” Phil gestured towards his three sons. “Do they know how?” Puffy raised an eyebrow. “Wilbur's knowledgeable, Techno’s strong, and Tommy has an eagerness to learn.” “I’ll take that as a no,” Puffy chuckled. “They’ll catch on,” Phil shrugged, “Does Dream?” “Do you think I would let a kid of mine not learn how to work a ship?” “No, I don’t,” Dream shook his head, revealing her bluff once again. “May I have a word with my son for a moment?” Puffy asked, standing up. “Of course,” Phil nodded. Puffy led Dream into one of the two bedrooms.

“What do you boys think?” Phil asked after they had shut the door. “If we go to a remote location, are we going to stop moving around?” Wilbur asked. “That’s the plan,” Phil replied. Wilbur let out a sigh of relief. “Why have we never visited Puffy before now?” Tommy questioned. “My goal was to keep you guys safe. Heading into Antopis is the opposite of that. When I finally decided that maybe heading across the seas was the best idea, I had to wait for the three of you to be old enough to run a ship,” Phil explained. “Do you think I’ll be fine on a ship? A compacted space?” Techno asked grimly. “You’ll be fine,” Phil reassured him, “I’ll make sure Dream doesn’t bother you.” Techno nodded reluctantly.

Puffy and Dream soon opened up the bedroom door and sat back down on their chairs. “It’s official. We will leave in the morning,” Puffy announced, “I hope you're fine with one of Dream’s friends coming with us. I’m assuming you’ve heard of Sapnap, the head councilor's son?”

Part 7 - The Ship:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Mentions of Abuse, Manipulation

Techno’s eyes shot open as he heard someone pound on the door. “It’s Sapnap!” The person yelled. Techno threw his covers off of him and pulled his mask on and raised up his hood. Phil blinked his eyes awake, but he allowed Techno to get the door.

Techno was met by a boy that looked to be around his age, but he still struggled with identifying human ages. He had jet black hair with dark brown eyes and pale skin. “You’re Techno, right? You can take off your mask if you want,” Sapnap offered. “How much did Dream tell you?” Techno questioned, ignoring the comment. “Nothing that I should be saying out in the open,” Sapnap responded. “No one’s out,” Techno stated, not moving from the doorway. Sapnap sighed, “Your father’s the Angel of Death and his name is Phil. He has two biological sons named Wilbur and Tommy who have wings also, but don’t seem like much of a threat. You are Phil’s adoptive son and a Piglin. You can speak perfect English, but I’ve been told to be careful around you because you threatened Dream. He believes that you will attack anyone who harms you still, but he hasn’t seen it happen and doesn’t think that you are much of a threat either, though I think differently. Phil wants Puffy to sail him and his sons to some secluded place in the middle of nowhere for some unknown reason, though I find it obvious that he just doesn’t want to have the risk of being captured.” Sapnap crossed his arms and waited for a response. “How am I supposed to believe that you don’t care?” Techno sneered. “What, about your father?” Sapnap chuckled, “I’d be a pretty poor ruler if I were to capture someone who’s not wanted in my own country. This is the well-known country that he’s not wanted in, and I do plan on taking my place in the Council eventually.” “Let him in, Techno.” Phil had appeared behind him, “I’m assuming you’ve got a guard around here that’s heard everything?” “Of course,” Sapnap nodded, “Don’t worry, they’ve heard a lot worse. They know when to keep their mouth shut.” “Will they be coming with us?” Phil interrogated. “Nope,” Sapnap answered, “They have their orders to discreetly hang around us until we reach the docks.” Phil nodded and gently tugged Techno to make room for Sapnap to come in.

“Why do you trust him so much?” Techno whispered angrily after Sapnap had gone into Dream’s room. “I’ve spoken to both him and his father in the past,” Phil shrugged. “What do you mean?” Techno questioned. Phil smiled and chuckled a bit. “Seriously?” Techno eyes widened under his mask as the realization hit him. “I was surprised too,” Phil said as he nodded his head in confirmation, “Everyone was.” “I don’t know if that’s genius or just plain stupid,” Techno shook his head in disbelief. “What’s stupid?” Wilbur asked with a yawn as he stretched and sat up in the armchair he had slept in. “Inviting Sapnap. He seems trustworthy though,” Phil lied.

“I’d say a favor like this at least deserves a bit of breakfast,” Puffy teased as she walked into the living room. Tommy rolled over in his sleep at the noise. “You’re getting the horse,” Phil rolled his eyes, “Shouldn’t our lovely host be making some breakfast for her guests?” “That horse is hardly worth the noble deed I’m doing for you,” Puffy remarked sarcastically. “You just don’t want to have to give the horse back after we eat your definition of food,” Phil laughed. “There are cooks on ships for a reason,” Puffy chuckled along with him. “That cook had half the crew doubled over before the end of the meal,” Phil scoffed. “That cook taught me everything I know,” Puffy stated, pretending to be offended, “But if you truly feel that way, then that just adds on to the reasons why you should be scrambling some eggs right now.” Phil shook his head in defeat and went to search the messy fridge for some eggs.

Phil handed the guard at the dock the four slips of paper that allowed them to leave while Puffy, Dream, and Sapnap showed him their certificates saying that they lived there. They didn’t give them any further questions with Sapnap being there, so the group were soon at Puffy’s ship. “I formally welcome you all to the Maiden’s Totem!” Puffy gestured towards the large, shiny ship. I had what appeared to be new sails and a deck that looked like it had been shined recently. The totem figurehead at the front of the boat shimmered proudly in the sun while the dark water slowly rocked the beast of a ship. “I see you're still spending all your money on this thing,” Phil smirked. “Should I be spending it on that dump that I live in?” Puffy chuckled, leading the group onto her pride and joy. Phil and Puffy briefly went over ship terms and what everything did before having the others assist them in pulling the ship out of the dock.

“Have you really never sailed?” Tommy questioned as he pulled on a rope. He wasn’t sure what it did, but Phil had told him to hold onto it for the time being. “Nope,” Dream shook his head as he did… something. “I’ve been on many ships in my life, so I’d say I have a pretty general idea on how to work one,” Sapnap piped in. “Pull that rope harder, Tommy!” Puffy yelled from across the ship. “Techno, go help him out!” Phil commanded. This was their home territory. No one could tell the two of them to do anything while they were on this ship.

Techno jogged over to where Tommy was, but he tripped on something on the way over there. Techno had caught himself before his head hit the ground, and keeping balance with his hands, swung his leg out, causing Dream to fall flat on his back. The voices knew what happened, even if Techno didn’t. Wilbur immediately stopped what he was doing and ran over to the two. “Don’t drop that!” Puffy called out. She mumbled some curses and left her spot at the wheel, dashing for where Wilbur was supposed to be. Dream had attempted to fight back, but had utterly failed and was pinned to the ground by the time Wilbur got to them, blood clumping on his face from the constant blow of punches delivered by Techno. Wilbur grabbed Techno by the shoulders and tried to pull him back, but Techno was a lot stronger than him. “Tommy, help me!” Wilbur called out. “Tommy, I swear if you let go of that rope!” Puffy yelled angrily. “Can I stop?” Sapnap asked. “If you’re quick!” Phil replied, “Techno, stop it! Hold them back!” Techno ignored him. The voices didn’t like Dream, and neither did Techno. Sapnap swiftly got over to the two and tackled Techno to the ground. “You’re going to get yourself hurt,” Wilbur stated. Techno switched his attention to Sapnap, who held his own much better than Dream had. “Wilbur, come here!” Phil commanded. Wilbur quickly avoided Sapnap and Techno and went over to his father. “Hold this,” Phil said as he handed Wilbur a rope, “Now pull.” Wilbur did as he said while Phil ran over to the fighting boys. He yanked Techno backward and grabbed him and wrapped his arms around him. Phil quickly shot himself into the air, holding Techno tightly to limit his struggling. He dropped Techno into the crow’s nest, “Stop it Techno. You don’t need to fight.” Techno fought against the voices. His head was pure chaos. Some of the voices demanded him to spill more of Dream’s blood, others begged him to continue his fight with Sapnap, a set few wished for him to attack Phil, but somehow this made it better. The lack of a common goal made the push for violence less, with Techno not knowing who he should be fighting. Still, he gripped his head from the headache they gave him and pulled at his hair to distract him.

Phil continued to whisper comforting words to Techno from the air until finally the voices grew bored and calmed down. “Are you done?” Phil asked. Techno nodded, still grabbing his head. “Stay up here,” Phil commanded, “I’m going to check on the others. We’re in open waters so they should’ve been able to abandon their posts, or at least some of them.”Phil glided down to the wooden surface. Tommy was waiting for him near where he landed. Sapnap and Puffy leaned over Dream’s unconscious body and Wilbur manned the wheel. “Is he alright?” Tommy urged. “Of course he’s fine. What about Dream and Sapnap?” Phil interrogated. “Sapnap’s fine. Puffy’s wrapping up Dream’s head now, and she thinks he will be fine too,” Tommy explained. Phil went over to the others with Tommy following him. Sapnap held Dream’s head up while Puffy layered his forehead with bandages. Dream’s opened his eyes a bit as Phil walked over, but soon closed them again. “Keep him awake,” Phil commanded. Tommy sent a gush of air his way by flapping his wings, causing his eyes to open again. “You idiots didn’t help me,” Dream mumbled. “You’re the idiot. I saw what you did,” Sapnap argued. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dream muttered as he started to close his eyes again. Sapnap took the liberty of waking him up this time, by releasing his head, though he caught it before it hit the wood. Dream’s eyes shot open, glaring at Sapnap, but he didn’t say anything.

“Tommy!” Wilbur called from the wheel, “Come take over for me!” Tommy sighed and jogged over to Wilbur, taking his place while Wilbur flew up into the air and hovered near the crow’s nest. Techno was on the floor, leaning up against the walls. “Are you okay?” Wilbur asked softly. “My head hurts,” Techno answered, not looking Wilbur in the eyes, “So does my stomach.” Sapnap or Dream must have landed a blow there. “And I threw up there. How’s Dream?” Techno turned to face Wilbur. “We think he has a concussion,” Wilbur explained, “Do you want to head down so you can get away from the puke?” Wilbur glanced at, the chunks on the ground, but quickly looked back at Techno. “Not really,” Techno shook his head. For a little bit, they only heard the crashing waves around them. Finally, Techno broke the silence, “I forgot the word for what I’m feeling.” “Describe it to me,” Wilbur stated. “I feel bad about attacking Dream. I think it starts with a ‘G,’” Techno described. “Guilt?” Wilbur suggested. “That’s the one,” Techno confirmed, “I didn’t start feeling this till the past few years. I used to not care if I hurt people. It sucks.” “It makes us not want to do it again,” Wilbur explained. “I can’t stop myself from doing it again. I’ve been trying,” Techno said with frustration. “Is that what you and Dadza are going off doing all the time?” Wilbur questioned. Techno nodded. “Wait, how do you train for that?” Wilbur interrogated. “He beats me till I stop fighting back. That or until he has to knock me unconscious because I won’t stop.” Or until I kill him, Techno thought to himself. “What do you mean he beats you?” Wilbur’s tone darkened. “Usually he knocks me to the ground and kicks me. Sometimes he will throw rocks at me. Once he choked me until I almost passed out. He said he wouldn’t do that again though,” Techno shrugged. Wilbur swallowed down his anger, “You leave almost every day though.” “Since I was 14.” “Techno, that’s nine years.” “I know. Why do you think I only wear long sleeves?” Techno rolled up one of his sleeves to reveal his arm being covered in bruises, “I never bathe in front of you guys either.” Wilbur shook his head, “I need to talk to Dadza.” “Don’t,” Techno stopped him, “If I wanted to quit I would. It does help, or at least when he’s around.” “Techno, I’m telling him to stop. This is terrible,” Wilbur refused. “I’ll make him continue to do it,” Techno argued.

“Wilbur! We need help down here!” Puffy called from below. “You should come down,” Wilbur stated. Techno shook his head again. Wilbur sighed and glided down to Puffy.

Part 8 - The Truth:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Mentions of Death

Techno immediately sat up as he awoke to someone grabbing his wrist. He turned to find that it was Tommy. “What is i-” Techno started, but Tommy shoved a hand over his mouth before he could finish and gestured down to the ship. Phil, Wilbur, and Sapnap were all in chains, Phil and Sapnap unconscious, and were being taken by soldiers to a second ship that had been anchored. “I thought you said there were two sons and Piglin?” One of the soldiers questioned Puffy and Dream. “The Piglin’s in the crow’s nest,” Puffy gestured to where the two hid, “The other son is around here somewhere.”

Techno swiftly grabbed Tommy by his shirt and pulled him closer so he could whisper in his ear, “You have to leave now. You can get away.” Tommy shook his head vigorously. “I’ll distract them. There is no point in both of us getting captured. Leave,” Techno instructed softly. Techno didn’t wait for an answer and jumped out of the crow’s nest, quickly making his way down the ropes. Tommy held back the tears welling up in his eyes and shot straight up into the air.

Techno was surrounded by soldiers as soon as he hit the ground, each pointing a sword at him. “Techno!” Wilbur called out, struggling against his chains, but the soldiers holding him pulled him back, “Techno, what the hell are you doing?” Techno took a deep breath and threw himself to the ground, kicking out his leg so he could trip one of the soldiers. The soldier he had tripped fell to the ground and Techno took the chance to remove himself from the circle of soldiers surrounding him. He kicked another soldier in the back and the other two started to come at him. Techno put up a good fight against the soldiers, but eventually, the four had pinned him to the ground and shoved the blade of a sword up against his neck.

“You said that the Piglin could talk, right?” The soldier with the sword asked as the others tied him up. “Just as well as I can,” Puffy confirmed. Another soldier who had been searching the ship came up to the one with the sword, who must have been the general, “We can’t find the other son. He must have flown off.” Both Techno and Wilbur let out a sigh of relief. “I’m guessing I don’t get paid for that one?” Puffy questioned. The general shook his head, “You’ll be rich from the others anyways. You’d be rich just from the Angel of Death. He’s got a bigger bounty on his head than anybody else in the SMP. I’m sure King Eret will give you a lot for his son, this Piglin, and a demon as well.” Puffy grinned and watched the soldiers take the four onto their ship, with some staying on the ship to assist Puffy and Dream in taking them to shore.

Sapnap blinked his eyes awake. He would’ve grabbed his head from the massive headache he had, but his hands were cuffed. He was in one of the wagons meant for prisoners, the ones with large metal-barred boxes on the back. Wilbur sat across from him in handcuffs like his along with his wings chained up. There was another wagon behind them that must be holding Phil. He didn’t know what happened to Techno and Tommy. “Where are we?” Sapnap whispered to Wilbur, “Why aren’t we moving?” “We’re in Antopis, at one of the councilor’s mansions. Apparently, they have to have permission to take you to the SMP, and they want to warn them about what your father is,” Wilbur replied grimly, staring at the ground. Sapnap recognized the mansion they were in front of now. It was Councilor Sam’s. Councilor Hannah’s, Ant’s, and Skeppy’s were outside it also. If the Head Councilor was under trial, then it would be the other Councilor’s would take a vote to decide on what happened to him.

“C’mon. We need to get out of here,” Sapnap commanded, standing up in their cage. “Sapnap, we’re chained up. We are surrounded by metal bars,” Wilbur shook his head. Sapnap sighed, “Just help me out. He went over to the side of the pen and grabbed one of the metal bars. Wilbur reluctantly stood up and grabbed the bar as best he could with his handcuffs and Sapnap in the way. “Alright, pull,” Sapnap commanded. Wilbur did as he was told along with Sapnap and the bar started to bend. Wilbur backed up in surprise, “What the hell was that?” “I’m a demon. I’m stronger than some measly metal,” Sapnap rolled his eyes. “Then why do you need my help?” Wilbur asked. Sapnap mumbled some curses to someone called ‘Almab,’ “I’ll tell you later. Let's just get out of here.” Wilbur grabbed the bar once again and the two pulled until the gap was big enough to allow the two to leave. Sapnap started to step out, but Wilbur grabbed his wrist, “What about my dad and Techno?” “They’ll be fine. Trust me,” Sapnap reassured. “How do you know?” Wilbur interrogated. “I’ll explain later. We have to go, though,” Sapnap urged. When Wilbur didn’t move, Sapnap dragged him out with him.

“Hey!” One of the soldier’s called out as he saw Sapnap and Wilbur running away. “Wilbur, I’m going to need you to fly us out of here!” Sapnap shouted. “My wings are chained!” Wilbur responded. “Just open them up!” Sapnap commanded with frustration. Wilbur began to open his wings up as he ran, pushing up against the chains till eventually the chains that held them down snapped and his wings flung open. Not allowing him to question it, Sapnap jumped on Wilbur’s back and Wilbur took to the skies.

“Stay away from the walls,” Sapnap ordered him, “There are archers on the top that will shoot us down.” “You mean we’re trapped in here?” Wilbur questioned angrily. “It’s a big city! We’ll be fine!” Sapnap reassured him, “If you keep going this way you’ll reach an abandoned area. There was a big fire a couple of years ago and it has yet to be rebuilt.” Wilbur continued to fly till he reached the area Sapnap had talked about, which was easily noticeable from the charred houses and the lack of people in the streets.

Wilbur landed in the abandoned area of Antopis and Sapnap dropped down from his back. “We need to stay away from the wall. This area is abandoned, but the wall isn’t. They have guards positioned everywhere around it 24/7,” Sapnap explained. Wilbur noticed that he had broken his cuffs and the chain dangled from one of his wrists, so he quickly did the same.

“Let’s get inside,” Sapnap suggested. “Will you explain everything to me?” Wilbur interrogated. Sapnap nodded and led Wilbur into one of the houses that were a bit more intact than the others. The two sat on the soot-covered floor and Wilbur waited patiently for Sapnap to explain everything. After a few minutes, Sapnap sighed, “I guess I mind as well make it brief. Your father’s a demon and so are you and Tommy.” Wilbur froze, “What do you mean a demon? Like, monsters of the Underworld or some crap? Like whatever the fuck you are?” “Surely your father’s told you about the gods?” Sapnap leaned forward. “What do you mean gods? No, he hasn’t mentioned anything about gods!” Wilbur shouted. “Right, so I’m about to change your entire view of this world.” “You already have,” Wilbur stated. Sapnap chuckled nervously, “Right. I guess I have. So we’re demons. We aren’t like what you read in books or whatever you know about us from. We are just soldiers of Kristen, or Almab. It depends on how you’re using it. She’s the Goddess of Death. And crows for that matter, but that doesn’t matter as much.” Wilbur turned towards a large crow sitting on the window sill of the house, before turning back to Sapnap, “Is that why my dad’s always talking to those things? I just always assumed we were crow hybrids or something.” “Both crows and demons speak the same language, Demonic Tongue. I’m assuming you were never taught it. Most know English also. A set few know the God’s Language, including your father. My father does too,” Sapnap explained. “I’m assuming there's more gods, right? If there's the Goddess of Death, isn’t someone the God of Life?” Wilbur asked. “That would be Grian, or Alasulf. He’s also the God of Turtles,” Sapnap confirmed. “Do all the gods rule some sort of animal?” Wilbur questioned. Sapnap nodded, “Yep. There’s a story as to why, but it’s long. Maybe I’ll explain it at a different time.” “Name me some more gods,” Wilbur urged. “Well, there’s DreamXD, or Alasad. He was the first god and the God of Gods and Lions.” “Do gods not count as creatures?” Wilbur queried. Sapnap shook his head, “Of course not. There’s also Drista, or Rajhade, and she’s the Goddess of Tricks and Men. She’s DreamXD’s sister.” “There are relationships between the gods?” “That’s the only one. Well, I guess Smallishbeans and LDShadowlady are married.” “What are they the gods of? And their other names?” Wilbur asked, full of curiosity now. “Smallishbeans is also Himtib, and they’re the God of Order and Donkeys. LDShadowlady is also known as Fasan. They are the Goddess of Chaos and Horses,” Sapnap continued. “And they're married?” “They balance each other out,” Sapnap shrugged. “Why do the gods all have two names?” Wilbur interrogated. “When you’re just talking about a god, then you use their normal name, like Kristen. When you are praying to them you will use their god name, like Almab. There are some exceptions, like when the gods are having a meeting they will use their god names. Piglin’s will always use god names too. On the contrary, demons for the most part just use their regular names.” “So Kristen rules over the demons, and Drista rules over mankind. Does anyone rule over piglins?” “That would be TapL, or Khinzarb, the God of War and Pigs. He kind of shares rule over them with Preston, or Itmir. He’s the God of Fire and Tigers. They share rule because Preston rules over the Nether and allows the piglins to stay there.” Wilbur rubbed his hands across his face, getting soot all over it, “This is a lot to process.” “You’re taking it pretty well,” Sapnap pointed out. “I knew my father was hiding something. I didn’t expect it to be this, though,” Wilbur shook his head. “Alright, well, c’mon Wilbur Soot,” Sapnap chuckled, “Let’s go look around.”

“I see the two of you got into more trouble.” Kristen appeared in front of Phil and Techno. “Are they going to kill me?” Phil asked the Goddess. “Your presence grows closer with each step these horses take,” Kristen replied softly. “And Techno?” Phil asked with more urgency than he had himself. Techno raised his head to meet Kristen’s gaze. “It’s difficult to tell with piglins,” Kristen shook her head. Techno looked back down at the floor of the caged wagon. Kristen knelt beside Phil, brushing her hand across his cheek, “Prepare yourself. You will not be coming back here for a long time.” Kristen disappeared with a puff of black smoke, heading back to the God’s Realm. “God, I hate that woman,” Techno exclaimed, leaning his head backward. “That’s my fucking wife, Techno.”

Part 9 - The Hybrid:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Trauma, Abuse, Gore

Tommy collapsed to the ground as he finally reached the shore. Tears streamed down his face, water lapped at his feet, and sand scraped at his cheek. He had no idea how long he had been flying, but it had been at least an entire day and night. An entire day and night without food, without water, without a break. Tommy’s eyes began to close.

Tommy felt someone prod at his side. “Are you dead?” The voice of a boy asked him. Tommy opened his eyes and squinted them against the sun. A boy that looked to be his age crouched next to him. He had dark brown hair with long bangs that covered his forehead and large blue eyes. “You’re not dead, right?” The boy repeated. “No, I’m not dead,” Tommy mumbled. “These are cool,” The boy lifted up one of Tommy’s wings, “Are you a hybrid or an animorph?” “I don’t know what an animorph is,” Tommy stated. “They can turn into an animal, and go half-way,” The boy explained. “Oh yeah. I know those. A hybrid, I think,” Tommy answered. He must not know who his father is. “Cool! I’m a goat hybrid.” The boy pulled back his hair to reveal small horns poking out of his head. Tommy closed his eyes again, hoping the boy would go away, but the boy started to poke at him again, “Are you alright?” Tommy opened his eyes again, “No.” “Are you hungry?” “Yeah.” “Let’s go then!” The boy grabbed Tommy’s hand and heaved him upwards.

“My names Tubbo,” The boy greeted as he helped Tommy walk along. Tommy didn’t say anything. The boy didn’t need to know his name yet. They soon came up to a cabin with a small carrot farm beside it. “Tubbo!” A woman with long red hair and sea blue eyes stood in the doorway. An angry look crossed the woman’s face, “Of course you’re here! Where the hell is your brother?” “Isn’t he in-” Tubbo started. “I’m not talking to you!” The woman snapped. “Sally?” Tommy’s eyes widened. “It’s Tommy, innit?” Sally questioned. Tommy nodded. “Where’s your brother?” Sally demanded. Tommy choked back his tears, “I don’t know.” “You two were basically inseparable four years ago. Same with the piglin,” Sally stated skeptically. “Four years is a long time,” Tommy shrugged. “Can he come inside to get some food?” Tubbo piped in. “Fine. Your dad isn't going to be happy about it,” Sally warned. Tubbo ignored her and the three walked inside.

There was a crash as soon as they had shut the door, followed by some squeals. Tubbo ran into the kitchen and Tommy jogged after him. When he got there Tubbo was holding a man with large horns back from a small fox under the table. Fallen-over chairs surrounded the table along with the pieces of a broken plate. “That thing bit me!” The man shouted, shoving Tubbo off of him. “Schlatt, we have a guest.” Sally had come up next to Tommy with her arms crossed. The fox took the opportunity to run upstairs and Tubbo swiftly dodged around the chairs to run after him. “Interesting pet,” Tommy mumbled to himself. “He’s an animorph, and our son,” Sally explained as she went to pick up the chairs. “Don’t you turn into a salmon, though?” Tommy questioned. “Unlike hybrids, animorphs don’t have specific animal genes. It’s just animorph blood. So, a salmon animorph can birth a fox animorph,” Sally elucidated. “What are you doing here?” Schlatt spoke up. “I met Tubbo near here and he said he could get me some food,” Tommy explained. “TUBBO!” Schlatt called. Tommy heard someone thumping down the stairs and Tubbo ran past him and into the kitchen. “Why are you inviting strangers into the house?” Schlatt interrogated. “He was dying on the beach,” Tubbo shrugged. “He seems fine now,” Schlatt gestured towards him. “I can leave,” Tommy offered. He wasn’t sure he wanted to be here anyway. “No. You can stay,” Tubbo told him, not allowing Schlatt to get a word in, “I promised you food.” “Get him some food then. Don’t take too much,” Schlatt commanded with frustration. “Schlatt, can I talk to you outside?” Sally asked. Schlatt mumbled something incoherently and followed Sally outside the house.

Tubbo waited a few seconds after the door had slammed shut before grabbing Tommy’s wrist and dragging him to the stairs. Tommy pulled his hand away, “What’s this about? Aren’t we getting food?” Did he know? “I have to talk to you about something. Fundy should hear it too,” Tubbo urged. “Fundy?” Tommy questioned. “The fox,” Tubbo explained quickly before pulling Tommy up the stairs.

The upstairs led directly to a single bedroom with two beds across the room from each other and small, roughly made, wooden toys scattering the floor. A little boy who must be Fundy sat on one of the beds, swinging his legs back and forth. Tubbo brought Tommy to the opposite bed and plopped him down, allowing himself to stand between the two in the gap between the beds.

“Why does Sally want to see your brother so badly?” Tubbo immediately asked. “They had a little thing around four years ago. It didn’t last long. My family moved a lot,” Tommy shrugged. A bit of an understatement. “Four years ago?” Tubbo repeated. Tommy nodded in confirmation. Tubbo walked over and rested his hand on one of Fundy’s shoulders, “Fundy just turned four years old.” “Yeah, so?” Tommy glanced at the small, brunette toddler. “Tommy, I don’t think Schlatt’s his father.” Tommy realized where Tubbo was going with this. “And why don’t you think so?” Tommy questioned, meeting the gaze of the little boy. “Because I heard Sally tell Schlatt that he’s not his father,” Tubbo admitted. “That’s a valid reason,” Tommy nodded, “So you’re saying that this is Wilbur’s son?” “If Wilbur’s your brother, then yeah. I think he is,” Tubbo said as he sat down next to Fundy. “Please tell me he already knew that Schlatt wasn’t his father and we didn’t just ruin a toddler’s last life,” Tommy questioned as he ran his hand through his hair. “I knew,” Fundy spoke up. “So where is your brother? If he’s Fundy’s dad then can’t he stay with him?” Tubbo leaned forward. So that’s what the point of this is, Tommy thought. Tubbo wanted Fundy to have a decent home. Tommy looked down in grief, “That’s not possible.” “What do you mean?” Tubbo frowned. “Look, even if I could take Fundy to Wilbur, my family’s not in a much better state. We’ve moved almost every single day since I was three years old.” “Anythings better than Schlatt. Why can’t you go to him?” Tubbo pleaded. “I’ve got another brother who’s a piglin. He’ll attack anyone who touches him,” Tommy pointed out. “You seem to not have any issues with it!” Tubbo continued to beg. “Tubbo, I can’t take him to Wilbur!” “Why not?” “CAUSE WILBUR’S DEAD!” Silence ringed in Tommy’s ears. He could tell he was about to cry. Tommy briskly got up and slammed the door that led into the room shut before storming down the stairs and walking out the door to the outside.

Somebody grabbed Tommy’s shoulder. “Where are you going?” Schlatt asked grimly. Tommy started to tremble. He didn’t say anything. “Come back inside,” Schlatt smiled. Suddenly the grip released and Schlatt let out a groan. Tubbo grabbed Tommy’s hand and the two ran for the side of the house where a tall, white horse stood. “You can fly with those, right?” Tubbo asked hurriedly as he set Fundy, who was on his shoulders, on top of the horse before climbing on with him. Tommy nodded, “Of course.” “Good. Follow me.” Tubbo kicked his horse into a gallop and Tommy took off into the air, making sure to keep pace above him. He still hadn’t eaten since his flight across the ocean, but the nap on the beach must have helped. Schlatt and Sally soon gave up on following them with there being only one horse.

“I think we’re in Kinoko Kingdom territory now!” Tubbo called from below. They’d been going for about two hours. Tubbo had asked to stop multiple times, but Tommy refused. He’d been used to flying for an entire day to get away from somebody and stopping at a time this short felt dangerous to him. “What’s Kinoko Kingdom?” Tommy asked, lowering himself a bit so he could talk to Tubbo easier. “Do you not know basic geography?” Tubbo questioned. “Wilbur tried to teach me, but I never paid attention,” Tommy chuckled, but he soon stopped at the thought of his brother. “Let's take a break and I’ll teach you a bit,” Tubbo suggested. Reluctantly, Tommy glided down to the Earth next to where Tubbo had stopped his horse. “Where are we?” Fundy asked as Tubbo lifted him from the horse. “I don’t know,” Tubbo shrugged. “Are we going home?” Fundy interrogated. “Nope,” Tubbo shook his head. “What about Mommy?” Fundy pondered. “Sally didn’t care about us,” Tubbo told the small toddler. “And her new boyfriends an asshole,” Tommy pointed out. “Can I go play?” Fundy asked, dropping the subject. “Sure. Stay around here,” Tubbo commanded. Fundy morphed into a fox and ran off.

Tubbo plopped himself down in the dirt and Tommy followed his lead. “So there are six main countries, along with many tiny ones. The biggest country is The Badlands,” Tubbo started. “I already know about The Badlands,” Tommy interrupted. “Good. There’s Kinoko Kingdom, which is where we are at, or at least near, now. They are under a monarchy and the king has an advisory made up of three people, including a head advisor. I believe the current king is King Karl and the head advisor’s name is George. Then there’s the SMP. They’re under a monarchy and the king has all the power, though a good king will still take advice from others. Last time I checked, the current king is King Eret, but that might have changed. There’s also Las Nevadas, which is under a democracy, and I know the president of that one is Quackity. The fifth one is Snowchester and it’s similar to Las Nevadas, except after electing someone, he doesn’t have a cabinet or anything. Just some specific rules that can’t be changed. I think they recently elected a guy named Jack as their president. Then the last one is Boomerville, which doesn’t actually have a government. It’s small and there’s laws, but there’s no higher power. Anytime they need to meet with other countries, everyone between the ages of 30 and 70 and who live in, or are in, the capital vote on which one of them would go. They do this to create laws and when someone is being punished too.” Tubbo paused for a moment. “I think that’s it,” he concluded.

All of the sudden, Fundy let out a shriek and ran towards them, morphing back into a human and hiding himself behind Tubbo. “What is it?” Tubbo quickly asked the small boy. “⟟⏁'⌇ ☌⍜⟟⋏☌ ⏁⍜ ⍀⏃⟟⋏. ⟟ ⋏⟒⟒⎅ ⏁⍜ ☌⟒⏁ ⏚⏃☊☍ ⏁⍜ ⋏⟟☍⟟.” Tubbo heard strange noises coming from somewhere in the woods they had landed in. “⍙⊑⍜ ⏃⍀⟒ ⊬⍜⎍?” Tommy called out. Why was Tommy making the noises too? A tall, lanky figure appeared between trees. “⊬⍜⎍ ☊⏃⋏ ⎍⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇⏁⏃⋏⎅ ⋔⟒?” The figure came forward a bit to reveal his face being half white and half black. He was clearly a hybrid of somesorts, but he didn’t look like he had any human in him. “Tommy, how can you talk to him?” Tubbo asked nervously, backing up a bit. “You guys can’t?” Tommy questioned, switching back to English. “⏃⍀⟒ ⊬⍜⎍ ⏃⋏ ⟒⋏⎅⟒⍀⋔⏃⋏ ⏁⍜⍜?” Tommy turned back towards the hybrid. He heard it now. He hadn’t realized he’d been speaking another language. What language was it, and how did he know it?

“Ranboo! It’s going to rain!” The hybrid turned towards the female’s voice. “We need to leave,” Tommy urged, gently grabbing Fundy’s hand. “⍙⏃⟟⏁!” Tommy turned back towards the hybrid. Something about him seemed familiar. The hesitation left enough time for the girl to appear beside the hybrid. She had a stern, yet gentle facial expression and light pink hair. “Who are you boys? What are you doing here?” She asked, looking between the three before resting her eyes on Tommy, but her gaze quickly switched to Tubbo as he started talking, “Do you have any food?” “Where are your boy’s parents?” She interrogated, ignoring the question. “We don’t have any,” Tubbo shook his head. Fundy turned his head towards Tubbo, surprised by the answer, but he didn’t say anything. Rain drops started falling through the leaves. The hybrid gave a worried look at the girl. “Crap,” the girl mumbled, “You boys follow me. You’ll get sick if you’re out in the rain.” Unexpectedly, the hybrid turned around and started running through the woods, with Niki following his lead. “Get Fundy,” Tubbo commanded as he ran after the two. Tommy turned towards the toddler, “Are you fine with flying?” Fundy’s eyes shined with curiosity and excitement as he nodded and allowed Tommy to lift him onto his back. Tommy opened up his wings and took off, trying to catch glimpses of Tubbo or the others through the trees.

They soon left the woods behind to reveal a small farm, holding a white cottage, a large barn, and a glimmering field of wheat, with cows, horses, and sheep scattered across a large enclosed area attached to the wooden barn. The girl and the hybrid continued to run till they reached the cottage, with Tubbo close behind Tommy and Fundy just above them. The girl opened the door and the hybrid ran inside. She quickly beckoned the three to join them inside to which Tubbo accepted as he jogged inside. Tommy swallowed down his nervousness as he landed and walked through the door.

The girl shut the door while Tommy gently set Fundy down. “Did you not get the horse?” Tubbo questioned. “I can’t ride a horse,” Tommy shrugged. “How have you never learned to ride a horse?” “Why would I need to learn to ride a horse?” Tommy flapped his wings a bit to remind Tubbo. “It will be fine,” the girl reassured, “I’ll help you boys catch him once the weather clears up.” “You’re Niki, right?” Tommy asked, “And that’s Ranboo? You guys said each other's names.” Tommy glanced at Ranboo who had red blisters on his face that he hadn’t noticed before. “Yep. May I have your names?” Niki asked politely. “I’m Tubbo, that’s Fundy, this is Tommy,” Tubbo introduced. “Nice to meet you,” Niki greeted, shaking each of the boy's hands. “Can he speak English?” Tubbo nodded towards Ranboo. “Yes, he can,” Niki responded, “He doesn’t like to though.” Ranboo nodded his head in confirmation. “So do you have any food?” Tubbo repeated. “I can’t be giving away food for free,” Niki shook her head, “If you want food then you need to pay me something, or at least work for me. That’s what Ranboo does. Food and shelter in exchange for work.” “You’re saying we could live here if we help you run this farm?” Tubbo’s eyes lit up. Niki nodded, “Of course. I'm a bit short on farmhands currently.” “Tubbo, I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Tommy stated nervously, “I’m not much of a settler.” “We don’t have to stay here for long,” Tubbo pleaded. He glanced at Fundy and Tommy understood. “Fine,” Tommy agreed. If he had to, he could go and leave Fundy and Tubbo behind. “Glad to have you!” Niki said cheerfully, “Ranboo, why don’t you show these two their room. Tommy will be staying with you, since he can speak Ender. I’ll show him his room.”

The five headed upstairs and Ranboo led Tubbo and Fundy to the closest room while Niki took Tommy further down the hall and into Ranboo’s room. Niki turned towards Tommy as she shut the door on them, “I’d heard rumors that the Angel of Death had a couple sons.” Tommy went pale and backed up towards the window, “I don’t know what you're talking about.” “Relax. I’m not going to turn you in,” Niki reassured him. Tommy shook his head, “You’re lying.” “Ask Ranboo,” Niki urged, “Tommy, this place isn’t just a farm. Everyone who works here, has ever worked here, is a wanted man. It’s a refugee camp for criminals. Most eventually go on their way, but while they have been here, no one’s ever been caught.” Tommy’s eyes widened, “Ranboo and you are criminals?” “Only by association,” Niki shrugged, “Ranboo’s here for a different reason. He’s wanted, but it’s not his fault. He’s had experiments done on him and stuff. He escaped from whatever lab they held him in and found his way here.” Memories of Techno flashed through Tommy’s mind, “Sounds like my brother.” “Tubbo?” Niki questioned. “He’s not my brother. Just a friend,” Tommy explained. “I’d heard that the Angel’s second son had wings too. It’s hard to differentiate truth from myth with these stories. Some even say that he’s got a piglin for a son,” Niki chuckled. “That’s the brother I was talking about.” Niki frowned, “You’ve actually got a piglin for a brother?” Tommy nodded. “Well where are they? Your brothers and the Angel?” Niki asked. Tommy looked down in grief, “I don’t want to talk about it.” “That’s fine,” Niki shrugged, “You don’t need to reveal anything here. Some don’t even tell me their real name. Ranboo’s the only person who’s told me anything about his past and he’s still extremely vague about it. You don’t even have to talk to me for all I care. As long as you work, I don’t question it.” Tommy met her gaze. He might like it here.

Part 10 - The Poster:
Trigger Warning: Trauma, Gore

“I need one of you boys to come with me to town,” Niki stated as she stood before all her farmhands, “Not Fundy or Ranboo.” “Ah, come on. I’m six now,” Fundy begged. “I’m not going to be your babysitter,” Niki rolled her eyes. “My bounty just went up,” Michael shook his head. “I went last time,” Purpled refused. “Valid excuses,” Niki nodded, “Which of you two is coming?” She looked at Tommy and Tubbo. “Can you Tommy? I’ve been working all day,” Tubbo pleaded. Tommy flapped his wings a bit as a reminder. “Tommy, in the two years you’ve been here, you’ve never once come. Can’t you just cover them up?” Niki exasperated. “It’s fine. I can go,” Tubbo sighed. “No. Tommy here has to do his part. You’re coming. Get ready.”

“Get Butter over there,” Niki gestured towards a tan horse in one of the stalls while she led a grey horse out of a different stall. “Why do I have to ride a horse?” Tommy questioned. “I don’t want someone to see you in the air. Tubbo taught you, right?” Niki explained. Tommy nodded in response. “Then you’ll be fine.” The two climbed on their horses and Niki led the way to the nearest town, Cogumelo, though it was still a day’s travel to get there and back.

After hours of riding in silence, small houses and shops started appearing. They had reached Cogumelo. Not many people were around and those who were hardly glanced at the two, something Tommy wasn’t used to. Niki led Tommy to a building that was a bit larger than the others and the two tied their horses to a decaying fence post in front of it. “Go check out the board to the left of you when we walk in and look at the wanted posters. I’m going to go see how much I can get for this stuff,” Niki commanded as she held up multiple sacs of food and supplies. Tommy followed her in and quickly found the board she was talking about. There was no one else in the store other than the shopkeeper. He scanned the board for Michael’s and Purpled’s faces and quickly found their posters. Tommy smiled a bit at the names. While Michael’s said his full name, Michael McChill, Purpled’s said simply that. No one knew his real name. Only the nickname he had made up for himself.

Tommy turned around as he heard the door to the shop slam shut. A casually dressed man, probably in his 30s, with bright blonde hair and blue eyes, nonchalantly walked over to the board and stood next to Tommy. He let out a low whistle as he scanned the wanted posters. “I don’t find many people hanging around the posters,” the man stated. “They look cool,” Tommy shrugged, “Why are you hanging around them?” “I’m a bounty hunter. Name’s Punz,” he greeted. “A bounty hunter?” Tommy questioned. “You know, I try to find criminals so I can turn them in and get the reward. I don’t suppose you’ve got any information about this guy,” Punz jabbed his thumb against one of the posters. That guy had actually left the farm a couple months back. He claimed he was going to get a ship out of Kinoko. “Nope,” Tommy lied. Punz looked up towards the top of the board, “Now those two would be a steal. Shame that they’re wanted in every country. Not likely to be on the island.” Tommy followed Punz’s gaze to two old and torn wanted posters. He froze as he saw the faces, their dark hair, the glasses that had been drawn across one of their eyes. Wilbur and Sapnap’s blank faces stared back at Tommy. They were alive. They were alive. They were alive. They were wanted criminals, but they were alive. Wilbur was alive. His brother was alive. One of his brothers was alive. One. Techno didn’t have a poster. Dadza didn’t have a poster. They didn’t have posters, but they were criminals. They had been caught. They had to have been caught. Dadza had to have been executed. Dadza was dead. Techno was dead. His dad was dead. He had no parents. He was an orphan. Fundy wasn’t. His dad was alive. Wilbur was alive. They were both alive. They were alive.

“Hey Kiddo, are you alright?” Tommy had forgotten Punz was there. Somebody grabbed his wrist. “Snap out of it. I’m done.” Tommy turned to see Niki. Tommy swallowed and followed Niki out the door.

Niki grabbed Tommy’s shoulders, “What was that?” She scanned Tommy’s face, “Holy- Side of the building!” She turned Tommy around and shoved him forward, watching as he gripped the wall and hurled all over the ground. Niki looked away in disgust and went to untie the horses. Tommy wiped his chin with his wrist when he had finished and wiped his arm on the rough wood of the building next to him. “You’re disgusting,” Niki shook her head. Tommy turned towards her, “My brother taught me.”

“So, what happened there at the shop?” Niki asked curiously after they had been riding for an hour. She usually was against questioning her farmhands, but whatever happened back there could have easily put her business in peril. Tommy turned towards her and stared for a few seconds before replying, “I saw an old friend’s poster on the wall.” Niki stopped her horse, “Do you really not trust me?” Tommy hadn’t expected the outburst, “What are you on about?” “I can count on one hand the amount of people that have stayed at my farm longer than you! You put me in more danger than anyone else and I sure as hell could have turned you in the day I met you, but you won’t tell me a thing about your past. Not one. Single. Thing.” “You said I didn’t have to tell you anything,” Tommy responded darkly. “Yeah, when I thought you were staying for a week!” Niki shouted. “I told you I don’t want to talk about it,” Tommy argued. “I think we’re past that!” “Look, I’m a crow hybrid with a criminal for a father. That’s it. That’s all there is to me,” Tommy stated, trying to keep calm. “Then why are you on the run? You have no poster, yet you act just like the others do. In fact, you act worse! Tubbo just seems like he’s tagging along for the ride, but you, you are hiding from someone or something and I don’t understand why.” “I don’t know! My father always insisted on it!” Tommy yelled. Niki frowned, “For your protection or his own protection?” Niki had calmed down. She seemed genuinely concerned for Tommy now. “Both,” Tommy replied. “How do you know? Why would you need protection?” Niki interrogated. “I don’t know why, I just know we did.” “Your brothers?” Niki questioned. “Hm?” “You said ‘we.’” Tommy thought for a moment before responding, “Yeah, my brothers.” Niki sighed, “Tommy, what happened at the shop?” “I saw my brother’s poster,” Tommy answered quietly. “And what, you didn’t know he was wanted?” Niki questioned. “I didn’t know he was alive.”

Niki pushed open the gate to the stable where Ranboo was shearing one of the sheep. “⊬⍜⎍ ⌇⊑⍜⎍⌰⎅⋏'⏁ ⎅⟟⌇⏁⍀⏃☊⏁ ⌇⍜⋔⟒⍜⋏⟒ ⍙⊑⟒⋏ ⏁⊑⟒⟟⍀ ⌇⊑⟒⏃⍀⟟⋏☌ ⌇⊑⟒⟒⌿.” “I’m going to need you to speak English,” Niki requested. “What is it?” Ranboo asked. “I asked him,” Niki announced. Ranboo turned towards her, “What did he say?” “Money first,” Niki shook her head. Ranboo gently put the shears on the ground and dug through his pockets for a pouch of coins. Niki peeked inside as she took it from his hands before shoving it in her own pocket, “Should I be asking where you got this from?” Ranboo only shrugged. “He claims he’s a crow hybrid, and that only his father was a criminal. He also says people are after him and his brothers, but he doesn’t know why. Apparently he believed one of his brothers to be dead until now when he saw his poster. I didn’t ask which one. If I had to guess, it would probably be the biological one if he had a poster.” “⏁⊑⏃⋏☍ ⊬⍜⎍.” “I’m assuming that was thanks. Why do you want to know about this kid?” Ranboo picked up his shears and started working again, “That doesn’t matter.” Nothing ever mattered here.

Part 11 - The Mansion:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Death

“Try it!” “It’s stupid! Why can’t you just hang on?” Sapnap shoved a bundle of leather straps and rusty metal towards Wilbur. “I fell off last time!” Sapnap argued. “I’m not putting on your harness,” Wilbur shook his head, “Quit being paranoid.” The two heard a thump outside. “Put it on. This can be our test run,” Sapnap whispered. “We don’t even know who that is,” Wilbur replied. They heard another thump. “That’s multiple people, Wilbur,” Sapnap urged. Wilbur looked between the door and Sapnap before taking the harness from Sapnap’s hands.

“Outstretch your wings,” Sapnap commanded. Wilbur did as he was told and with the assistance of Sapnap, buckled the leather straps around him. Once they were done, Sapnap climbed onto his back, putting his feet on top of two small metal platforms that cupped around his feet and grabbing onto the handles on Wilbur’s shoulders. “Comfy?” Sapnap questioned. “No,” Wilbur mumbled, trying to adjust one of the straps on his waist. The door slammed open to reveal multiple guards with their spears out. “Well too bad,” Sapnap responded, reaching towards the wall so he could smash a lantern, lighting the small house ablaze. Wilbur shot up the chimney with Sapnap hanging on tightly to the handles.

Wilbur looked down and watched the soldiers run out of the smoking house. Most of them had bows, which they quickly pulled out and aimed their arrows at the two. Wilbur swiftly dodged the arrows as he had done hundreds of times before. The arrows were soon out of reach and the soldiers ran to climb onto their steeds.

Wilbur landed softly on the roof of a large house, behind a large, brick chimney. Wilbur made sure to stay at an angle where the soldiers shouldn’t be able to see them behind the chimney.

A noise started echoing through the chimney. It was a whistle. Somebody was whistling a tune from inside the house. Not just that. They were deliberately whistling up the chimney. “Sapnap,” Wilbur whispered, “Somebody knows that we’re here.” Sapnap strained his ears. “Head down the chimney,” he commanded urgently. “Sapnap, somebody's down there,” Wilbur ridiculed him. Sapnap, tired of Wilbur’s arguing, stepped off his back, “Fine. I’ll go by myself.” The tune began whistling again. Wilbur heard the soldier’s horses' hooves stomping against the ground. “You're sure?” Wilbur questioned. Sapnap nodded with frustration before climbing back onto Wilbur’s back. Wilbur hovered up into the air and dive bombed into the stone chimney, gracefully landing on the polished floor.

Sapnap immediately let go over Wilbur and ran past him, right into the arms of a dark-haired man with bright, electric blue eyes and tanned skin. The man embraced Sapnap, pulling his own head forward to Sapnap’s shoulder, and rubbing his back as a relative would. “You have no idea how tired I am of this idiot,” Sapnap mumbled. Wilbur ignored him and continued to look the man up and down and scan his surroundings. They were in a lounge, a big one at that, with patterned furniture and a large rug that proved the man’s wealth. Long curtains draped across the tall windows that allow light to reflect across the chandelier that dangled from the ceiling just above a shiny, glass table in the center of the rug.

“You must be Wilbur.” Wilbur looked back at the two, who had stopped hugging and were now facing him. “And you are?” Wilbur questioned skeptically. “Ex-Councillor Skeppy,” he introduced, “And a friend.” “How can I trust you?” Wilbur interrogated. Sapnap rolled his eyes. “I’ve known about Bad and Sapnap for a long time. I was also thrown off the Council for being the only Council member to defend Bad and state that he should stay in the position of Head Councillor,” Skeppy explained. Sapnap nodded in confirmation. “Do you boys want some food?” Skeppy offered. “We should go. I don’t want you to get hurt,” Sapnap refused. “For once I agree,” Wilbur nodded. “Ah, come on. We’ll be fine. When was the last time you guys ate?” Skeppy urged. “I don’t know, a few days ago?” Sapnap shrugged. Skeppy’s eyes widened with concern, “You two need to eat. Callahan’s cooking something in the kitchen right now.” “Callahan?” Sapnap questioned, surprised at the mention of him. “He quit when I left. Helps me out around here now,” Skeppy explained. Sapnap noticed Wilbur looking between them with confusion, “Callahan used to be my personal guard. He knows everything about me. He wouldn’t let me go anywhere without him.” “He feels guilty for what happened,” Skeppy stated, “You going on the ship was one of the only times he ever left his post.” Sapnap shook his head, “I made him not come. I made sure of it. It’s not his fault.” “Why did you need a personal guard?” Wilbur piped in. “Mostly for show,” Sapnap shrugged. “The Head Councilor’s son is a likely target for rebels or countries trying to start war. Even though I can take care of myself, it wouldn’t make sense for a, uh, normal person to not have one. All the Councilors have one as well.” “Oh, and you should know,” Skeppy spoke up. “Callahan is a mute. He won’t say a word.” “I see why he was your personal guard,” Wilbur mumbled as Skeppy led the way to the kitchen.

Callahan was tall, with thin, light brown hair and black eyes. Small antlers peaked out of his head that showed that he was a reindeer hybrid. He wore a red mask, covering half his face, that stood out from the rest of his dull outfit. Skeppy was right, he didn’t say a word as they walked in. He acknowledged them through a look of shock on his face, the drop of a spoon, and a dash over to Sapnap, where he grabbed his shoulders and began to look over him for serious wounds. “I’m fine. I’m not hurt at all,” Sapnap reassured him. Callahan looked back up and made eye contact with Sapnap. They stared at each other for only a second before Callahan pulled Sapnap into a hug. Wilbur quickly looked down. Skeppy glanced at him, but didn’t say anything. Callahan pulled away as he heard the soup start to boil and went to stir it. Sapnap bent over and picked up the spoon Callahan had dropped to set it on the counter.

“I’ll show you boys your rooms and come and get you when dinner is ready,” Skeppy announced. “Rooms?” Sapnap questioned. “Skeppy, we can’t stay here. It’s not safe.” “You’ll be fine for one night. You need a good night's sleep,” Skeppy insisted. “I’m not worried about us,” Sapnap argued. “You don’t need to worry about us. They won't expect you to be so close to where you last were,” Skeppy argued. “Now c’mon.” Sapnap and Wilbur reluctantly followed him, knowing that he wasn’t going to allow them to leave.

Skeppy led them upstairs and down a long hallway to two doors across the hall from each other. “You can stay in these two rooms,” Skeppy offered. “And Wilbur, I’d like to speak with you for a moment.” Wilbur eyed him skeptically, but allowed Skeppy to follow him into one of the rooms.

The room was smaller than the lounge, but large nonetheless. A draped bed that could fit three people comfortably sat up against the middle of the back wall, with a intricately carved dresser near the corner of a different wall with a large silver mirror above it. A fancy rug similar to the other was rolled out in front of the bed along with a cushioned bench against the bed.

Skeppy pushed past Wilbur and went to sit on the bench. Wilbur took a couple steps forward, but stayed near the doorway. “Are you still untrustworthy of me?” Skeppy questioned. Wilbur only shrugged. Though he was close to Sapnap, Skeppy didn’t know Wilbur. He might be willing to turn him in if it meant some gold, not that he needed it. “Are you alright?” Skeppy asked. Wilbur looked up at him, “What do you mean?” Skeppy shrugged, “I’m not sure. Something just seems wrong.” “Nothing’s wrong,” Wilbur shook his head. “Are you positive? I can see you and Sapnap don’t get along too well. You’re sure you don’t want to take the chance to talk about anything?” Wilbur only looked down, not saying anything. “Your father was a good man, at least from what I heard.” Wilbur didn’t acknowledge him. “Bad and Sapnap always seemed fond of him. They worried about his safety often. I wish I could’ve met him.” “I don’t want to talk about my father. He was a liar and a killer,” Wilbur stated. His thumb popped from squeezing it in a fist. “A killer? Don’t-” And then everything went black.

Wilbur’s ears were ringing. He couldn’t hear anything. Something was on top of him. He couldn’t see either. It was hot, too hot. He couldn’t move. “Tommy?” He mumbled, or at least tried to. Where was he? He had to get him to safety. Wilbur tried to stand up, but whatever was on top of him stopped him from being able to do so. Wilbur thought back to his time with Sapnap, the abnormal strength he had shown him. Where was Sapnap? Was he alright? Wilbur tried to summon that strength and began to stand up again. He could feel it move, but not enough to do anything. He collapsed back to the ground. The ringing in his ears started to dim down. “Skeppy!” Somebody was nearby. “Callahan!” They sounded panicked. “Wilbur!” It was Sapnap. Wilbur kicked upwards with as much force as he could muster. Something moved. He did it again. Something creaked. He pushed up against the creaking area till eventually his foot broke through and sunlight shone through his compact prison. He used his foot to make the hole bigger till eventually he could fit through it. Where was everyone? Where was Sapnap? Where was Tommy? Tommy was gone. He hadn’t seen Tommy in three years.

Somebody pulled Wilbur backwards by his wings, causing him to fall back on his butt. An agonizing pain went through his wings. Wilbur tried to struggle and look back, but somebody shoved his head forward. His wrists were pulled backwards like the wings had been. He tried to flail his legs, but the pain in his wings had made him weak, and he was sore from the explosion. Something wet dripped onto his hands, but he couldn’t see what it was. He felt something tight clamp around his wrists. Chains. Handcuffs. He remembered the feeling of restraint well. He tried to struggle out of them, but the pain in his wings grew worse. Two people came around him. They were soldiers. He couldn’t tell if they were the same soldiers as before, but they were soldiers nonetheless. Wilbur realized the force on his head was no longer there, but as soon as he looked up one of the soldiers grabbed him by the hair and clamped another restraint around his neck, this one with a long chain to drag him by. The other soldier crouched down and cuffed his feet together. As Wilbur watched he noticed the dark blood covering the soldier's hands. He realized what the wet stuff on his own hands was. Wilbur looked back, and this time the soldier’s allowed him to. There were two more soldier’s behind him, each with weapons at the ready. The chains attached to his hands were tied to a metal pole that ran straight through his wings, causing him to be unable to move his wings at all, nor move his arms without feeling the wrath of the pole being shoved up against his open wounds.

The soldier pulled him upwards by the neck chain. Wilbur stood up and weakly allowed the soldiers to lead him wherever they pleased. A crowd had gathered. They’d probably heard the explosion. Most stared at him. Others stared somewhere behind him. Sapnap must be there. None moved.

Wilbur was loaded into a wagon much like the one he’d been in three years ago, however this one was only a metal box with a metal door. No bars to pull apart. There were three of them. The one behind him slammed shut. The third one was never opened.

Part 12 - The Mercenary:
Trigger Warning: Forced Labor, Gore, Violence

“You’re free to go.” Techno looked up at the SMP soldier. “I’m innocent?” Techno questioned. “Everyone knew you’d be,” the soldier shrugged. “Why?” Techno rolled his eyes as he got uncuffed. “You’ve proven that piglins are an intelligent race. Therefore, you can’t legally be arrested or executed without getting permission from your leader. There are few exceptions to this rule, none of which have to do with you.” Techno didn’t say anything else as he was led by the soldier through the castle and out the gates. “What am I supposed to do now?” Techno turned around as he asked. “That’s your job to decide.”

Techno walked through the SMP capital. People stared at him, avoided him. Things he expected. They couldn’t do anything though.

Techno didn’t know how long he walked, but the sun was setting and his legs grew weary. He didn’t have the money to rent an inn, not that they’d probably let him in anyways. He was about to sit down to rest against a small store when he heard grunting and cries for help coming from an alleyway. Techno sprinted down the road and stopped at the edge of the alleyway. The victim saw him. “Help me!” He called out. The attacker turned around, only seeing a tall shadow of a figure. “Get away from him. I don’t want to hurt you,” Techno commanded, taking a couple steps forward. He was hoping to scare the man off. “Go fight your own battles,” the man scoffed. Moonlight shone over Techno’s face, revealing his piglin features. The victim’s mouth gaped open at the sight of Techno. The attacker dropped the man and ran off. He clearly hadn’t been expecting a fight.

The man started to dig through his pockets. Techno readied himself just in case he were pulling a weapon. Maybe he’d been wrong to help this man. Much to Techno’s surprise, the man pulled out a red piece of cloth that he wrapped around his face. It was a mask that only revealed his eyes. “Ponk?” Ponk stumbled to his feet, looking Techno up and down with amazement. “I heard about your imprisonment. I came to see you,” Ponk explained softly. Of course word had traveled about the talking piglin, Techno thought. “I don’t want to see you,” Techno shook his head. He turned around to walk off, but he stopped as he caught a whiff. Gold. He hadn’t smelled it in so long, or at least this type of gold. Gold ingots. He didn’t know why they smelled different, but they always did to piglins, and he hated it so much, but he loved it at the same time. He feeded off it’s scent. He was attracted to it. Techno turned around to see Ponk holding a gold bar in his hand, eyes wide with expectation.

Present Day

Techno shoved a man into the back of a prison wagon, where three other criminals were chained to the bars. One of the Snowchester soldiers chained him to the wagon with the others before the two of them closed the door to the wagon. “You’re sure that’s all of them?” The mercenary asked. Techno nodded. One of the Snowchester generals glanced at the two, clearly listening in on their conversation. “You two go check for more of them!” The general yelled towards the two other soldiers. Techno sighed and sat down in the cold snow. Just one reason why piglins live in the Nether. The general eyed him, prepared to pull out his small bit of gold if he decided to try anything.

“Do you enjoy cold temperatures or do you just tolerate them?” the mercenary asked. His name was Eryn. He’d been on a couple of Techno’s jobs in the past. He had dark skin and hair and different colored eyes, one red and one brown. He tended to participate in the more violent jobs, which was also Techno’s specialty. That must be why they got along. “I enjoy them. Extreme temperatures relax me,” Techno replied.

“We can’t find anybody else. That should be all of them,” one of the soldiers announced when they returned. Techno glanced up at the general who refused to make eye contact with him. “Alright then. Let’s head out,” The general commanded. Eryn offered out his hand to Techno, but Techno shook his head, “Bad idea. I don’t want to risk that.” Eryn put his hand back to his side and waited for Techno to climb to his feet before the two went to their horses. Techno’s horse was one of the two pulling the prisoner’s cart, likely to limit his chances of running off. The general took the lead with one of the soldiers close behind, the other one pulling the cart, and Eryn rode near Techno.

“So, you can’t control yourself at all?” Eryn asked. The soldier next to Techno glanced at them, but soon turned back to the path ahead, though it was clear that he was listening. “I used to be able to to an extent, but I’m out of practice,” Techno responded. Eryn had been on enough jobs with Techno to know that he would not stop until his attacker was dead, one reason why all the soldiers that came were given gold. He’d seen them use it on him multiple times to make sure that he didn’t kill those that they wanted alive. However, he’d yet to see the full extent of Techno. Most criminals aim to kill him as well, but from what he could tell, he’d try and kill anyone who so much as gave him a pat on the back. “What do you mean you’re out of practice?” Eryn continued. Techno nodded his head towards the soldier, and Eryn quickly understood.

Eryn and Techno continued to chat a bit on the way back to the large mansion, mostly about meaningless things. Though he rarely got to see him, Techno liked Eryn. He was one of few who treated him like a person.

When they got back to the mansion, which housed the president of Snowchester, Techno climbed off his horse to allow the other soldier to get on so they could take the criminals away. President Manifold soon came out, with a soldier on either side of him and Ponk close behind. He thanked Eryn, handing him a bag of coins, and sent him on his way. “Are you going to be okay?” Eryn asked as he climbed onto his horse. Ponk eyed the two with curiosity. “I have been for the past three years,” Techno shrugged. Eryn nodded, “Don’t do anything you don’t want to do.” Techno didn’t respond, and Eryn knew very well that Techno almost never had a choice. Techno watched as Eryn rode off down the road, likely headed to a pub to see if he could get word of any good paying jobs.

“I presume you’re leaving?” President Manifold turned to look at Ponk. “I’m afraid so,” Ponk replied. “Unless, of course, there’s something you need us to do here.” Me, Techno thought. What you need me to do here. “Nothing my soldiers can’t handle.” The president pulled out a bag of coins that was similar to the one he had given Eryn and handed it to Ponk. “It was a pleasure seeing you again, Dr. Ponk. One of these two can lead you over to the stables where your ride awaits.” “Goodbye, Mr. President.” Techno didn’t bother to say goodbye. Nobody expected him to.

The president headed back into his mansion with one of the two soldiers while the other one led Techno and Ponk over to the stables where Ponk’s personal prisoner’s cart sat. “Are we going back to the lab?” Techno asked as Ponk began to unlock the door to the back of the cart. “Yes, but I plan on making a pit stop in The Badlands’ capital,” Ponk answered, opening up the door. Techno climbed in without another word and watched as Ponk relocked the door and walked to the horses in front.

The cart soon started shaking and the mansion began to get further away. They headed down the main road of the city, so the road quickly smoothed out. People stared at him as he rode past, though many had seen him before. “You have to ride in one of these?” Techno turned to look out the other side of the cart to see Eryn trotting along on his horse. Techno only shrugged. “What were you talking about earlier? The thing you didn't want to say in front of the soldier?” “You’re drawing attention to yourself,” Techno stated dryly, ignoring the question. “I don’t care. Answer the question.” “You remind me of my brother,” Techno mumbled. “Alright, if you really want to know. My dad used to train me to control it and it got to the point where if he was with me I could usually calm myself down.” “Why couldn’t you say that in front of the soldier?” Eryn frowned. “Because of who my father is.” “Well who’s your father? Another piglin?” “The Angel of Death.”

Techno stepped out of the cart, which had been parked in front of the Head Councillor’s mansion. In a few minutes, Head Councillor Antfrost and Councillor Sam, along with their guards, had appeared at the cart to greet Ponk.

“It’s a rare day for the Head Councillor to ask for a mercenary's help. What’s the occasion?” Ponk smiled. “A special occasion indeed. Come walk with me. Sam and Techno can meet us there.” “May I ask where we are going?” Ponk questioned. “Somewhere that shouldn’t be discussed here.” Ponk considered the offer for a moment before gesturing for Techno to get back into the cart. Techno sighed and climbed to the back of it where he could lean against the wall without bars digging into his back. Ponk locked the door once again and pocketed the key.

“You don’t talk very much, do you?” Councillor Sam called back from his place with the horses. “What would you like me to talk about?” Techno asked, annoyed with the conversation already. “How’d you meet Ponk?” Sam questioned. “He kidnapped me when I was a toddler.” Sam hesitated, “How’d you meet him the second time?” “He kidnapped me in an alleyway.” Techno hoped that that would get Sam to shut up. He didn’t feel like talking. However, Sam continued to talk. “Where did you learn to fight?” “A mix between my time in the Nether and my father.” “Your father is the Angel of Death, right?” Sam continued. “That’s the one,” Techno responded unenthusiastically. “That must have been hard. I mean, he’s the only human you ever met and he was, well, the Angel of Death.” That pissed Techno off. “There’s no father better than him. You don’t know what you’re talking about.” “I’m just saying that it sounds like it’d be hard to have to live with a murderer. Couldn’t teach you right from wrong. Maybe that’s why you’re like this.” “I don’t only attack when someone has harmed me, so I suggest you stop unless you want to end up dead, and trust me, it will be very slow and painful. I was never given a weapon to make it quick.” The threat got him to be quiet, though it put the guards on edge.

Techno reached their destination before Ponk and Ant had, so he had to sit in the cart while he waited for them to show up. When they finally arrived, Ponk asked for permission from Ant before letting him out of the cart. Techno noticed that Sam tended to stray away from him as they walked into a large, stone building that seemed to have no windows and had no other buildings around it. It was clear that it was a prison.

They winded through the prison. Most of the prisoners stayed quiet while a few yelled insults at them. Every once in a while Techno would recognize one as someone he arrested himself. They came to two sets of stairs, one going up and one going down into the basement. Ant took the set of stairs going down. That would be where the more dangerous criminals would be. Sam took the lead from here. You could tell that he knew these halls much better than Ant did. He never hesitated at a turn nor did he seem unsure of himself at any point.

The criminals on this floor were chained to the walls of their cells, rather than having free range as the other criminals did. Most of them looked tired and didn’t seem to want to acknowledge us. They knew not to draw attention to themselves.

Techno tried not to look at the prisoners. He knew how they felt and he knew that that’s what they wanted. However, one prisoner caught his eye. Rather than only being chained at the wrists or possibly the ankles, he had a large piece of metal across his stomach that kept him up against the wall, making it almost impossible for him to move. Techno ran to the bars, “Sapnap?” Sapnap didn’t open his eyes. He was asleep. “This is the demon I was talking about,” Ant explained to Ponk. Without warning, Techno started running down the hall, glancing into each cell as he passed by. Ponk reached for his gold, but Ant stopped him, “He’ll be fine. We will catch up with him in a moment.” “Make a left at the next turn!” Sam called out.

Techno soon reached the crossroads Sam was talking about. He considered ignoring Sam, who might be lying, but he didn’t see a reason as to why he would. He’d barely hesitated to make the decision and continued to sprint through the prison. The amount of filled cells became lesser and lesser as he ran on, and he was getting closer to a dead end, but he had to be somewhere around here.

Finally, he skidded to a stop in front of the last cell. “Wilbur!” Techno called, running to the door of the cell. He was in a much worse shape than Sapnap. His cell had been specially designed for him, with a metal bar attached to the wall that went straight through his wings, with his arms pulled backwards and tied to the bar. He was on his knees with his ankles chained to the ground. “Techno?” Wilbur attempted to move forward a bit, but quickly fell back to his spot from the pain. “Don’t move. Give me a second.” Techno pulled out a couple pins that he hadn’t told Ponk about and began to pick the lock. “I thought you’d died,” Wilbur said, looking the piglin up and down in shock. “I thought they killed you.” Techno swung the door open. Techno ran across the cell and dropped to his knees, embracing Wilbur, “I’ll help you. I’ll get you out. I can’t now, but I will.” “Is Tommy okay? Is he alive?” “He’s not publicly wanted in any country that I’ve seen. It seems the SMP and the Badlands didn’t want to announce that the Angel of Death has another son running around.” Techno didn’t release his grasp around Wilbur, even when he heard footsteps behind him.

“Techno, we need to talk.” It was Ponk who said it. Technor refused to release his brother. After a few seconds of silence Ponk told him, “Techno, I don’t want to have to force you to come with me.” Techno reluctantly stood up and followed Ponk out the door of the cell.

“Can I have that lockpick?” He sounded like a disappointed parent. Techno reached inside his pocket and handed him the pins. “So,” Ponk started. “While Head Councillor Antfrost and I were talking, he offered me a deal.” Ponk paused for a moment, “He says I can take Sapnap and Wilbur in exchange for you to stay here, with them.” “You’re trading me away?” Techno couldn’t help but feel a bit angry. “I wanted to make sure it was okay with you first.” Ponk pulled this stunt often. No matter what Techno said, he’d just get what he wanted. “What are you going to do with Wilbur?” Techno asked grimly. “The usual,” Ponk shrugged. Techno eyed him suspiciously. “Look, I don’t care. As long as you treat Wilbur better then they have. I know you don’t give a single fuck about what I say, but do this one thing for me. You’ve figured out by now that I’ve had hundreds of chances to escape, but I haven’t. You owe me this. I will make sure he’s good for you. Just don’t hurt him.” Ponk considered what Techno had said before nodding in agreement.

The two walked back to the others. Antfrost was staring at Techno with interest in his gaze. He’d clearly been listening to their conversation. “Head Councillor, I accept your offer.”

Part 13 - The Blizzard:
“What on Earth is that smell?” Councillor Sam exclaimed as he opened up Techno’s cell. “I threw up,” Techno mumbled dryly, gesturing towards a bucket in the corner of the room. Sam couldn’t help but stare at the area where some puke had been rubbed on the wall. “So what do you want?” Techno asked impatiently. He’d been with the Badlands for a month now. They treated him significantly worse than Ponk had. They wouldn’t let him out of his cell when he wasn’t working and didn’t give him enough food or water. They made him work when he was sick, though that hardly slowed him down. Techno had expected all this to happen when Ponk traded him away. What he hadn’t expected was the jobs he had been getting. They were all abnormally simple. Things that a few soldiers could take care of. They were always issues that took place in the capital of the Badlands, and they sent him on his own. Techno knew that he couldn’t run away within the capital, but he guessed that they were seeing if he would try.

“Head Councillor Antfrost would like to speak with you,” Councillor Sam stated, moving out of the doorway so Techno could leave the cell. “Really? Usually it’s one of the councillors,” Techno said, pretending to sound enthusiastic as he stood up to follow Sam.

The normal shouting occurred as they walked through the prison. Two horses were waiting outside. That was another thing they did differently. Techno climbed onto the black horse and galloped along the rode with Sam till they got to the Head Councillors Mansion, where one servant took their horses, probably to a stable, and a second one led the two inside and through the finely decorated house till they got to a lounge, where Head Councillor Antfrost sat in a large chair, with one soldier standing beside him and another standing by the door and a servant standing in the corner. “You’re dismissed,” Sam told the servant who led us here before sitting down in a chair opposite Ant. “Techno, I’d prefer if you sat down,” Ant said, gesturing towards the white loveseat. Techno slowly walked over to the couch before slumping himself against it. “Councillor Sam tells me that you’ve been working out a lot. Pushups and pullups on the bars and stuff.” “Not much else to do,” Techno said with his monotone voice. “Well I’m glad you’re staying in shape.” “I’m glad you're happy about it.” There was an awkward silence that followed. “You’re not one for small talk are you?” Ant finally spoke. “Nope. So why don’t you get on with what you want.” “Why did you never try to run away from Ponk?” Ant interrogated. Techno only shrugged. “I must say, you are an interesting one. I’ve yet to see you act up, and Ponk concurred, except when it comes to the Angel of Death and his sons.” “He has a name,” Techno mumbled. “Excuse me?” Ant leaned in a bit. “Everyone calls him the Angel of Death. He has a name.” “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” Ant went back to sitting up straight. “He was a person, just like you. Why wouldn’t he have one?” “May I have his name?” Ant asked politely. “Phil.” “How old fashioned.” Ant almost sounded surprised. “And you’re only proving my point here. This has been one of the few times you’ve spoken up about anything. So how would you feel to help your brother out?” Techno raised his eyebrow, “Wilbur?” “The other one,” Ant shook his head. “Why would you want to help Tommy?” “I have found drawings of the Ang- of Phil from hundreds of years ago. Tales of him from even longer before. He’s not human, though nobody seems to know exactly what he is.” Techno struggled to hold back a laugh at the idiocy of this man. Had he really still not figured it out? “One thing that almost all the tales describe is his incredible strength and speed, and in hearing my soldiers' descriptions of Wilbur, I can see that it has passed down between generations. Techno, Wilbur has to be locked away. He’s killed my soldiers. He refused to go on trial. But Tommy, he’s done nothing. We could easily say he’s innocent. You two can work together. You can fight. I’ll even let the two of you sleep in the soldier’s barracks if you wish.” He sounded as if it was a crazy thing to allow us to do that. “Techno, nobody knows your brother more than you do. So find him for me.” “You expect me to find my brother so he can be in your hands? I’ve seen what you’ve done to Wilbur. I’d be either crazy or a fool to go find my brother for you,” Techno ridiculed him. “Honest to God, I don’t want to harm your brother. I simply wish to have him as a soldier. Would you rather him have to stay on the run forever?” “Better than taking him to you.” Ant sighed, “I didn’t want to do this, but I suppose I can give you a choice. Either you go and find Tommy, or I’ll kill Wilbur.” Techno had no doubt that he knew where the lab was. Killing Wilbur could have drastic consequences from what Techno had heard from Phil. Consequences that he didn’t want to have to make Wilbur go through. So it was either Wilbur 100% going through torture, or Tommy possibly having to go through that. “Fine. I’ll leave now,” Techno gave in. “And don’t try to run off. I’ll know if you do.”

Techno swung open the door of the pub, tracking snow in. Techno nonchalantly made his way to the bar, ignoring the stares and whispers around him. Like always, everyone soon went back to their conversations and drinks. Drunk people didn’t question what they saw. “What would you like, my good sir?” The cheerful bartender asked. “I don’t drink,” Techno responded as he scanned the bar. “I’m afraid you’re in the wrong place then,” the bartender chuckled. “Do you get mercenaries here often?” Techno questioned. “Oh, all the time. This is the only bar in Hazelville.” “What jobs do they usually try for?” Techno went on. “Usually some of the easier ones. Thievery or perhaps they want a tracking job.” “Anybody come in here recently that wanted some of the more violent jobs? The ones that require fighting or even killing?” The bartender let out a low whistle, “Those ones usually end up being bounty hunters. Now let me see… I believe somebody like that was in here earlier today. Nobody seemed to know of anything for him though.” “Dark hair? One eye brown, one red?” Techno urged. “Yes, that sounds like him. May I ask why you’re looking for this fellow?” The bartender questioned. “He’s an old friend. I need his help with something. Did he say where he was going?” “He may have mentioned something about heading to Fré. If you head down the road it’s a straight shot from there. It’s only a few hours on horseback.” Techno nodded and gratitude and briskly walked out of the bar, untying his horse so he could climb on it’s back as soon as he got outside before galloping off down the road.

Techno raced down the road. It was snowing heavily now. Lighting flashed in the distance. He could barely see anything and was relying on his sense of smell to tell him where he was. His horse was slowing down drastically from the wind and the thick layer of snow beneath their feet. All of a sudden an odd stench hit his nose. He slowed his horse to a stop and led it on foot towards the smell. He could tell now that it was a person, however the person wasn’t moving. He soon found someone lying unconscious in the snow, his dark hair standing out amongst everything. Despite the blizzard, Techno recognized it as Eryn. Techno felt his pulse. He was alive, though he didn’t know for how much longer. Techno quickly stripped himself of his coat and wrapped it around Eryn. He’d be fine without it for a bit. He quickly heaved Eryn into his arms and leaned him up against the horse's neck and climbed on after him.

They managed to reach Fré in a bit over thirty minutes. Techno quickly found an inn and parked his horse in the stable next to it before running Eryn inside. “Rooms are full,” the lady working the desk stated, not even looking up. They were multiple travelers trying to warm themselves up in the lobby of the inn. They’d been out of rooms for a while. Techno didn’t bother to stop at the desk and instead ran for the fireplace across the room, where he pushed past multiple people to lay Eryn down in front of it. Not wanting to mess with a piglin, most of them backed away.

“Techno?” Techno had fallen asleep hours ago, leaning up against the wall next to the fireplace. Techno blinked his eyes awake. Most of the other travelers had fallen asleep too. “Where the hell am I?” Techno looked at Eryn, who was now sitting up in his spot just in front of the fireplace. “I found you unconscious in the blizzard last night. Took you here as fast as I could,” Techno explained with a yawn. “My horse got spooked from the lightning and bucked me off. Where’s Dr. Ponk?” Eryn questioned. “I don’t work for him anymore,” Techno shrugged. Eryn’s eyes lit with curiosity, “How did you manage that?” “He traded me off to the Badlands. I work for the Council now.” Eryn frowned, “Well where are they?” “This isn’t the best place to explain it. Get some sleep and I’ll tell you everything when the blizzard has cleared up.”

Part 13.5 - The Mourning:
Trigger Warning: Trauma, Mentions of Death

Tommy sat quivering on the couch in Niki’s living room. Tubbo had his arms wrapped around him for comfort. Niki was sitting on the armrest telling him words of encouragement, but Tommy wasn’t listening. Fundy walked in the door dragging along a pail of water from the well. He stuck it near the table since it was too heavy for him to lift up and ran to grab a cup, which he filled up and handed to Tommy. “Are you okay?” Fundy asked as Tommy took the cup from him. Tommy gave no acknowledgement that he heard him. “Fundy, why don’t you see if Ranboo or someone needs help?” Tubbo suggested. Without arguing, Fundy quickly ran out the door and turned into his fox form to search for anybody. “Tommy, they might be innocent. You said yourself that you and your brother did nothing,” Niki said unconvincingly. Tommy remained, silent, gripping the cup of water without bothering to take a sip.

Fundy scurried through the golden wheat towards where he had seen Ranboo towering above the field. Fundy transformed himself back into a boy when he stood in front of Ranboo. “Hello,” Fundy greeted. “Hello. How’s it going?” Ranboo responded. He was always kind to Fundy. “Tommy’s sad, so Tubbo sent me to help you while he and Niki comfort him,” Fundy explained. “Why is Tommy sad?” Ranboo frowned. “He says that his brother is dead, but Niki says that he might not be.” “His brother’s dead?” Ranboo paused for a moment, “Have you ever used a scythe?” “Yeah, Niki showed me once, but Tubbo was mad.” Ranboo considered Fundy’s words before telling him, “Go find one of the farmhands and tell them to finish collecting this row of wheat. I’ve got to go see Tommy.”

Part 14 - The Hunt:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Mentions of Death, Drinking

“I’ve only got enough for a one way trip,” Techno announced. “Same here,” Eryn mumbled. “So if we go then we’re going to be stuck there for a while.” Techno nodded. Techno had been searching for Tommy for over two years now, not counting the month he spent looking for Eryn. They’d quickly decided to rule out Snowchester since the two had been all over it without even a rumor of Tommy. They would have checked Boomerville next except for it being furthest away, so they decided to head back to the Badlands and see if they could find anything. Naturally, they heard from people who claimed Tommy did exist, though they never got any leads. Same with the SMP and later Las Nevadas. When they finally reached Boomerville, they learned that them and the Badlands were currently at war, and Boomerville was clearly losing. Things were rough there so they didn’t stay too long. They wished to check Kinoko Kingdom next, however due to it being on an island, they’d have to buy a trip over there, which was not cheap.

“We’d have to stay there for at least six months doing mercenary jobs and maybe bounty hunting, and we don’t even know what the pay is like there,” Techno sighed. “Well, it’s our best shot right now, unless we want to go back to Boomerville,” Eryn stated.

Eryn bought the tickets for them. It was only a 30 minute wait till the next boat ride. Most people strayed from the two while on the ship, which Techno was perfectly fine with. He’d rather not have an accident on a boat again. Though he wanted people to avoid him now, he planned on putting his mask and hood on when they reached the island. He didn’t know what people thought of him there and he needed to get information.

It was evening when they reached the island. They had docked in a large city called Kabute, a popular port, making Kinoko Kingdom one of the richest countries from it’s trade, though they had little land. Techno dug through his bag for his mask and slipped it over his face before pulling his hood up, covering his entire head. “Should we head to a pub or rent a room?” Eryn asked. “Pub. They usually have food. Besides, maybe we can also get word of some jobs we can do while we’re here.”

The two climbed on their horses, which the ship had allowed to board, and began to trot through the streets of Kabute, looking for a relatively busy bar. It didn’t take long for them to find one called Shroom Head. They tied up their horses to a post out front and headed into the pub.

The two made a beeline for the bar where Eryn ordered himself a beer and Techno got some food. The two sat in the corner where Techno could eat, but not draw attention to himself, though of course people still noticed the piglin. “Hey pig guy, come fight me!” It was some drunk guy who had made a bet with his friends. Techno simply looked down and ignored him. The man went in for a sloppy punch, but Eryn grabbed his fist before he touched Techno, “That’s a bad idea. If you don’t want to die, then I suggest you head back over to your friends.” One of the guys he was sitting with got up from his chair with annoyance and pulled his friend away. He looked Eryn and Techno up and down and scanned their faces, taking in every detail. “There's no bounty on us. We can’t give you any money,” Techno mumbled, going back to his food. “You two must get around a lot if you can recognize a bounty hunter on sight,” the man chuckled as he shoved his friend back to the table. “You two are offley quiet for mercenaries.” Eryn smiled, “You know of any jobs?” “Not around here. Kabute’s a pretty quiet town for its size,” the man responded. “What are your names?” “I’m Eryn and this is Techno,” Eryn gestured towards his friend. “Punz,” the bounty hunter greeted. “Where are you from? Haven’t seen you around Kinoko before, and we don’t have many other mercenaries and bounty hunters here.” “The Badlands,” Techno replied, looking up. Yes, it was a lie, but Techno didn’t know what else to say. “I’m from Snowchester,” Eryn answered. “That’s a long way just to find some jobs in Kinoko Kingdom,” Punz raised his eyebrow. “I don’t suppose you know about the Angel of Death?” Techno questioned. There was no harm in asking. “Of course I know the Angel of Death. He was caught five years ago. His son was caught almost three years ago too. You two aren’t some of those conspirists who think the Angel is still alive, right?” Punz asked skeptically. Techno shook his head, “No, he’s most definitely gone. We’re wondering if you’ve heard word of a second son.” They piqued Punz’s interest, “Of course I’ve heard theories over that. I’m not sure what they trace from, and I’m not sure if I believe them, but I suppose it’s possible.” “You’ve seen any suspicious characters around the island? Young, blonde hair, and blue eyes seem to be common factors,” Eryn interrogated. “Well your description isn’t exactly helpful, but I suppose I have some information.” “Can we hear it?” Eryn tried to hide his excitement. “You got anything worth the information?” “We only have enough money for a room,” Techno refused. “How about you tell me a bit about the Nether? I know for a fact you weren’t born in the Badlands.” “Not sure what you want to know. It’s hot. Fire and lava everywhere the eye can see. Humans can’t last very long there without dying of a heat stroke or being killed.” “Killed by what?” “Hoglins, wither skeletons, ghasts. There’s a few more.” He wouldn’t mention piglins. “I suppose nothing there is nothing of use to me then. Alright, I’ll tell you,” Punz decided. Techno leaned forward. “I met this kid a couple years back. Blonde hair and blue eyes, like you said. He was in a shop in this town called Cogumelo with this older girl, late 20s probably. Long brown hair and dark eyes. Beautiful girl. I’d seen her around that area a couple times. I believe she owns a farm. She was selling her goods to the shopkeeper and he was looking at the bounty posters. Said they were cool looking. I pointed out the cash prize for the Angel’s son and that demon. He went all pale and looked sick. The girl dragged him out and I’m pretty sure he puked outside. He could’ve just been sick for all I know.” “What was he wearing?” Techno questioned. “Cheap, handmade clothes. A long cloak too, which was odd considering that it wasn’t cold. It looked like he had a couple of layers on. Like I said, he may have just been sick.” “Where is Cogumelo?” Eryn spoke up. “Down south. Kind of out of the way. It’s difficult to give directions. Just head south for a couple days and you should hit a town called Jamuran. You could probably get better directions from there.” “Thank you,” Techno nodded. “Eryn, are you done with your beer?” Eryn gulped down the last bit before standing up with Techno and heading out the door.

“Do you think it’s Tommy?” Eryn questioned from his bed. Techno opened one of his eyes from his meditation, “Not sure. The guy seemed to think that it was just a sick kid, but this is the biggest lead we’ve gotten.” “I think it’s him,” Eryn announced. “That’s too many coincidences for it not to be.” Techno opened his other eye and laid down, “I don’t want to get my hopes up.” “Wouldn’t it be better for it not to be him though? I mean, the Head Councillor can’t do anything if you just can’t find him.” “I guess so. I just want to know that he’s okay.” “Do you think he’ll willingly come with us?” Techno pondered the question, “I’m not sure. I haven’t seen him in five years. Who knows what life has done to him. Before we split apart, absolutely. Tommy, Wilbur, and I would have followed each other to the end of the world.” “We’re not going to be able to rent an inn unless we do a job on the way,” Eryn changed the subject. “I want to check this out first. We can sleep outside.” “We ought to get some rest then,” Eryn decided. Techno agreed and pulled the covers over himself.

“Head west until you hit Madarch, then continue heading south until you hit the forest. Go left to go around it and you’ll hit Cogumelo soon after that. Should only take a day and a half.” “Thank you,” Eryn nodded. The two had reached Jamuran in the evening of the third day of traveling. “Are there any mercenary jobs around here?” Techno asked. They had decided to try and get some money before they continued to Cogumelo. They’d run out of food the day before and scavenging proved difficult. They hoped for a quick job that could get them back on track soon. “There’s a girl near the edge of town. Take a left at the second turn down the road. Neat looking house with flowers out front. Her chicken’s are disappearing. She claims it’s wolves. If you boys are up for hunting then I’d imagine she pays well. House doesn’t look like it, but the girl’s loaded. Her older brother inherited the house when their old man died, but she got her 50%.” Techno nodded in gratitude and climbed back onto his horse. The two trotted down the road till they reached the second left.

It didn’t take long to get to the house. They recognized it by the colorful flower bed out front, which none of the other houses had. Eryn went and knocked on the door while Techno hung back with the horses. “Hello? Can I help you?” A young, blonde girl answered the door. “Yes. My friend and I are mercenaries and we hear you have a wolf problem?” It wasn’t the typical job Eryn and Techno would have chosen, but it would be easy. They just had to at least scare the wolves off. “Finally someone comes. I’ve been telling my brother about it, but he’s done nothing. He just sits on his lazy butt all day. You said you’re mercenaries? I assume that means you came for the payment.” Eryn only smiled. “Well I’m Alyssa. My chickens out back have been disappearing, and I’ve seen blood and feathers around. I also swear I saw a wolf out the window one night. If you get rid of them, I’ll pay the two of you well.” “Thank you. I’m Eryn, and that’s Techno,” Eryn gestured towards the masked piglin. “Can we go out back?” “Of course.”

Alyssa waited for Techno to tie the horses up before leading the two around the house where there was a small fenced in area that held a chicken coop and a small clearing for the chickens to walk around in. “How many are in there?” Techno asked. “Six. There should be eleven,” Alyssa replied. “How many disappear at a time?” Techno continued. “Only one. Usually every few days.” “It doesn’t sound like a pack, which is good. Besides, I don’t think a pack would hang around this close to civilization.” Eryn nodded in agreement. “We should wait till night when it’s more active,” Eryn suggested. “Good idea. What do you want to do until then?” Techno asked. “Get a beer,” Eryn chuckled. “Of course you do,” Techno stated sarcastically. “We’ll be back in a few hours.” “I’ll see you then,” Alyssa smiled.

“How do you expect to pay for this beer?” Techno asked as they walked into a bar. This one was cleaner than most. Eryn shook his pocket so Techno could hear the jingling of coins. “You’ve been holding out on me, have you?” “Revenge for Las Nevadas,” Eryn smirked. “Yeah, but that was revenge for what happened in the SMP. So this means we are no longer even.” “Oh, come on. It’s just a bit of extra change.” “I threw up from those berries we found.” “You throw up from everything,” Eryn rolled his eyes.

Eryn ordered a beer and Techno scanned the bar. “How old is he?” Techno turned towards Eryn. “Who?” “Tommy. Who else?” The bartender handed Eryn his beer. “23 in a few weeks,” Techno responded, realizing Tommy could very well be in any of the bars they hang out in. “Older than I imagined,” Eryn stated. “I hadn’t realized how much he would have aged. He was sixteen last time I saw him.” “Do you think he’s been on his own for over six years?” Eryn questioned as he took a sip. “If the guy that bounty hunter mentioned is Tommy, then it doesn’t sound like it. He said a girl was with him. He must have made some friends who don’t want to turn him in for some reason. Maybe they don’t know who he is.” “Or they’re a criminal too,” Eryn suggested. “If the girl had a bounty on her head, the guy would have known. Bounty hunters know those boards like the back of their hands.” “That’s a fair point. I guess if the farmer knew that Wilbur had been caught, she’d have no reason to think Tommy was related to him, unless she believes or has heard the rumors.” “The bounty hunter didn’t say exactly when he saw the two together. It could have been after,” Techno agreed. “How obvious are the wings?” Eryn changed the subject as he scanned the bar with Techno. “When they’re out in the open it’s the first thing you see. They’re huge. His height, if not longer. When he hides them, you can tell something’s off, but it looks like he’s just wearing multiple layers.” Eryn nodded in response before finishing off his drink.

“We should get going. It’s going to be dark soon,” Techno announced. The two headed out of the saloon and rode down the road back to Alyssa’s house.

“I’ll be inside if you need anything. If I had to guess, the wolf is coming again tonight.” Alyssa shut the door, leaving Techno and Eryn alone outside her house. “We should wait a bit to see if it comes for the chickens again,” Techno suggested. Eryn agreed and the two waited on opposite sides of the house, scanning the backyard for signs of the wolf. The stood there for an hour before they saw anything. Well, heard anything. The shriek of the chickens alerted the two mercenaries that something was there. Techno snuck to the coop while Eryn hung back with a bow. They didn’t see anything come out of the chicken coop, other than a few panicked chickens. An arrow whizzed past Techno. Something let out a squeak and Techno quickly turned his head. The arrow had hit an already dead chicken that was being dragged by a small fox. The fox quickly dropped the chicken and dashed off. Techno and Eryn began the chase. “I thought it was a wolf!” Eryn called out. “That’s what Alyssa said!” Techno yelled back. Eryn loaded his bow as he ran and shot another arrow at the fox, but it barely missed. “You’re a terrible shot!” Techno joked. “You try using a bow while running!” Techno swerved to the right to try and cut the fox off. Eryn did the same but to the left. Techno dived and landed right in front of the fox. Eryn shot an arrow behind the fox, giving Techno time to grab it by the scruff. Techno stood up, but suddenly dropped the fox as it seemed to immediately gain heavier. “It’s an animorph?” Eryn’s eyes widened at the small boy on the ground. “I’m sorry! I won’t steal the chickens again!” The boy scooted away from Techno. Techno moved his mask to the side of his head, revealing his face, “How old are you?” “Nine.” The boy didn’t seem that surprised by the piglin. “Do you have parents?” Techno asked softly. He was good with kids. “My dad’s dead,” the boy shook his head. “And your mom?” “My brother and uncle took me away from her when I was little.” “Where are you brother and uncle?” “My brother sent me away because he was scared of my uncle.” Eryn perked up with interest, but Techno kept a straight face for the child. “What are your brother and uncle’s names?” The boy hesitated, “I’m not allowed to say.” “Are they criminals?” Eryn spoke up. “Nope,” the boy shook his head. He seemed sure about that. “Then why can’t you say their names?” Eryn interrogated. “I don’t know,” he responded. “Tubbo says that we’re accomplices, but I don’t know what that means. He says it doesn’t matter for me though because I’m a kid.” “Who’s Tubbo?” Techno jumped in. The boy kicked at the dirt, “Nobody.” “Is it your brother or your uncle?” Eryn questioned. “I can’t say!” The boy was a lot more on edge than he was before. Techno crouched down next to the kid, “When was the last time you ate?” “Two days ago.” That was not enough for a kid his age. “How about you come with us and we’ll get you some food, but in return you have to tell us about your uncle, brother, and these accomplices of yours.” The boy quickly nodded. Either he was desperate for food or he hoped to lie to them.

They’d told Alyssa that the boy had helped them catch the wolf. The man was right about her paying a lot. They bought the kid some sardines, rolls, and an apple which he began devouring as soon as the three had sat down on an old bench.

“We never got your name,” Techno pointed out as the kid took a bite into a roll. “Fundy,” he mumbled through a full mouth. That name sounded familiar to Techno, but he didn’t know where from. “Well I’m Techno, and this is Eryn. Do you mind explaining to me again why you’re on your own?” Fundy swallowed his mouthful, “My brother sent me away a while ago. He was scared about me being around my uncle, but he said that my uncle needed him more than I needed him.” “And Tubbo’s your brother?” “How did you know?” Fundy questioned before taking another bite of the roll. Techno had guessed. “So now that I know your brother’s name, can I know your uncle’s?” “Nope.” “But you said you’d tell us if we got you food.” “I lied.” Techno began to grow frustrated, “What do I have to do to get you to tell us about your uncle?” “Can I  “have all your money you got from the chicken lady?” Fundy looked up at Techno. “Holy shit,” Eryn exasperated. He shoved Fundy’s chest up against the back of the bench and held a knife against his throat, “What’s your uncle’s name?” “Tommy!” The boy shouted, eyes wide with fear. “Does he have big wings?” “Yes! Please let me go!” “Does he live on a farm with a girl?” “Yes! And Tubbo and Ranboo and a bunch of other people that come and go!” “And the girl’s name?” “Niki!” “Your father’s Wilbur?” “And my mother’s Sally! Let me go!” Realization hit Techno. “Anything you want to add?” Eryn asked Techno. “When did your brother make you leave?” Techno questioned. “Like two years ago!” “Alright, let the boy go.” Eryn put his knife away and Fundy immediately grabbed his food and ran off. “Was that necessary?” Techno crossed his arms. Eryn only shrugged.

Part 15 - The Qualities:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Mentions of Death, Mentions of Abuse, Mentions of Trauma

“Hello! How may I help you boys?” Niki smiled at the two men who had appeared at her doorstep. The shorter of the two had dark brown hair and different colored eyes, one red and one grey, and the larger one wore a black mask and hood that made it impossible to see his features. Some may assume that one who would hide his face must be a criminal, but Niki knew better. A criminal on the run would never draw that much attention to himself. He would only wear a mask like that if he was currently stealing or killing people, and, well, most criminals would not go out of their way to rob a small farm. No, based on the two’s weapons, they were either mercenaries or bounty hunters, none of which Niki wanted at her farm. Of course, they had seen the two before Niki allowed herself to speak with them. All the farmhands had gone into a hidden basement in the barn, which used a trapdoor in the floor as an entrance. The only one who remained working in the field was Tubbo, so as to not draw suspicion. Niki could easily claim that she had a few others who went to town. This wasn’t the first time people had come here, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. She knew what she was doing.

“Are you the owner of this farm?” Eryn questioned. “Yes, I am. Do you need anything?” Niki continued to smile cheerfully. “One of your farmhands has been stealing chickens from a lady in Jamuran. Young fox animorph. He claimed he used to live here with his uncle and brother,” Eryn explained. Niki hadn’t wanted to send Fundy off. Not because she’d be missing a farmhand, people came and went all the time after all. She didn’t want to for precisely the thing they had just said. She was worried he’d give away information, whether he meant to or not.

Niki frowned, “That boy doesn’t work for me anymore. His endeavors are not my problem.” Mercenaries and bounty hunters wouldn’t care about some kid stealing chickens. They knew about someone here, maybe multiple people, but who? And why were there two of them? Bounty hunters never came in pairs. Neither did mercenaries, though she had started to assume that this wasn’t the case.

“The lady insisted that we come and inform you,” Eryn lied. Techno scanned the area, looking for any signs of life other than the cows and sheep in the distance, “This is a nice farm you have here. May I ask where the farmhands are?” “I don’t have very many. It’s a small farm. One of them is feeding the horses, but the others have gone out to buy a couple of things.” Niki hesitated, “I don’t believe I got your names.” “We didn’t give them,” Techno shrugged. Niki took a small step backwards, “I think it’s time you boys leave. You’ve gotten what you wanted.” “Can I do it the impatient way?” Eryn asked Techno sarcastically. He had not been happy with him after what he did to Fundy. “Yeah, go on,” Techno shrugged. Eryn swiftly pulled Niki’s arms behind her back and put a knife to her throat, “Where’s Tom-” Niki threw her leg backwards into Eryn’s shin and ripped the knife out of his hand. She rushed for Techno, but he quickly jumped to the side. The knife managed to graze his shoulder. “Shit,” Eryn mumbled, backing away. Techno landed a roundhouse on Niki’s side, causing her to lose her balance. He punched her face. She grunted and attempted to jab the knife into his chest, but Techno grabbed the knife by the blade before it hit him. Blood dripped to the floor. “TUBBO!” Niki screamed. Eryn watched as a boy with long dark hair ran out of the barn. “Stop!” Eryn warned him. “You can’t win. You’ve already angered him. Tubbo didn’t listen to him. Eryn rolled his eyes and jumped in front of Tubbo, stopping him in his tracks, “Stay back or he’ll kill both of you! He can’t stop himself!” “What the hell does that mean?” Tubbo shouted angrily, attempting to shove Eryn out of the way. Eryn held his ground, “Biology and crap. I don’t know! Just if someone hurts him, he kills them.” Tubbo looked over Eryn’s shoulder. Part of Techno’s mask had fallen a bit. “Holy-” Tubbo ran off. Eryn turned back around. Niki was bleeding. She was no longer trying to fight back, just avoiding Techno’s attacks.

Niki held her own for a while. Eryn sighed when Techno had finally pinned her. He held up the knife, but it never came down. It actually went up, Techno going with it. A winged boy was holding Techno by the armpits up in the air. Techno struggled to get back to Niki, but to no avail. He didn’t seem to have any intentions of hurting the boy. “Tommy?” Eryn called out in question. “Techno, stop it!” The boy commanded. It was definitely Tommy. Tommy shot himself higher into the air. Techno had told Eryn that Phil had done that to get him to calm down. It apparently tended to work.

Tubbo was at Niki’s side, and so was another man. Tall, with half white skin and half black. He was a hybrid of somesorts, but Eryn couldn’t tell what.

Eryn walked over to the three. Niki was conscious. She had a stab wound in her left shoulder and cuts and bruises in multiple other places on her body. “I’ll go get some bandages,” the hybrid announced, standing to his feet and jogging for the house. “Would he really not have stopped until I was dead?” Niki mumbled. “Nope,” Eryn shook his head. “He would kill someone who so much as bumped into him, and there’s not much you can do about it.” “I still never got your name.” Eryn smiled, “It’s Eryn. That piglin up there is Techno. I’m assuming you two are Niki and Tubbo? Fundy mentioned you guys.” Tubbo’s eyes lit up, “Is he alright?” “Yeah, he seems fine. He’s certainly something. Likes to take advantage of his fox form.” “What’s that mean?” Tubbo questioned. “He’s a bit of a thief. Liar too.” Tubbo frowned, but Niki chuckled, “What else would you expect from a kid growing up here?” “Well as long as he doesn’t turn out like his father then it’s fine by me,” Tubbo decided. “Wilbur?” Eryn asked. “Stepfather,” Tubbo corrected himself. “My father.” “This is a weird family tree,” Eryn mumbled.

Ranboo and Tommy arrived at the same time. Ranboo swiftly began to wrap the stab wound to stop the bleeding along with any of the other worse parts. Tommy dropped Techno, who took off his mask. The two faced each other. “How are you alive?” Tommy’s voice trembled. “I’m an innocent man,” Techno shrugged. “Right, you three help me inside and give them a moment alone,” Niki commanded. Ranboo and Tubbo helped Niki to her feet while Eryn held the door open for them before going inside.

“It’s really you? You are Techno, right? This isn’t some prank?” Tommy reached to touch Techno, but stopped himself. “Yeah, it’s me,” Techno replied softly. “How long have you been here?” “I came here only a couple days after we split up.” Tommy choked on his words. Tears began to form in his eyes. He wouldn’t make eye contact with Techno. “Oh Tommy,” Techno squeezed Tommy into a hug. Tommy cried into Techno’s shoulder, muffling his quiet wails of both grief and joy. Techno slowly lowered himself to his knees, with Tommy following his every move. Tommy soon cried himself to sleep.

Techno kicked at the door until Tubbo finally opened it, allowing him to carry Tommy inside. He laid him gently on the armchair before plopping himself on the ground. “Techno, this is Niki, Tubbo, and Ranboo. There are a couple other people around here, but they aren’t very social,” Eryn explained. “Right. Sorry about earlier,” Techno turned to Niki. “You’re fine. I’ve had worse injuries,” Niki reassured him. “How long do you plan on staying?” Tubbo asked. “The three of us are leaving as soon as Tommy wakes up. We wouldn’t want to be a bother,” Techno responded. “Three?” Tubbo interrogated. “Me, Eryn, and Tommy.” “Who said Tommy’s going with you? What if he wants to stay here?” Tubbo sounded angry. It was clear that he didn’t want Tommy to leave. “Because I’m his brother, and he belongs with me. Not some rundown farm in the middle of nowhere.” Techno knew at the mention of Wilbur’s life, Tommy would easily join them. It was just getting Tubbo to allow him to go. “You abandoned him for five years while I’ve been here taking care of him and making sure he doesn’t do anything irrational. Why would he go with you?” Tubbo raised his voice. Niki and Ranboo said nothing. They had no opinion on the matter. They never expected Tommy to stay forever, and recently he was becoming more trouble than it was worth to keep it around.

“Abandoned? You think I fucking abandoned him? I sacrificed my life to make sure he stayed alive. I became a slave to make sure he could get away. I don’t know what the hell you think happened, but I did not abandon my brother.” “We don’t know what happened. Tommy hardly ever even mentioned you guys, and he gets upset anytime one of us brings it up,” Ranboo spoke up. “The only person he ever brought up was Wilbur. He used to go to town every time Niki went to make sure his poster was still up.” “He was upset because he thought something happened to me. Not because I treated him poorly,” Techno shook his head with frustration. Everyone sat in an awkward silence. It didn’t take long for Tubbo to storm out of the house with no warning. Eryn soon followed after him.

“Why are you following me?” Tubbo turned around when he reached the barn. “Fundy said that you were scared of Tommy. Why?” All Eryn had heard about Tommy were things from Techno’s childhood, and he didn’t sound like the type of person that would make you send a child to go live on his own. “I wouldn’t have sent him away if I didn’t have to,” Tubbo responded vaguely. “Why don’t you like your father?” Eryn questioned. “Why is that any of your business?” Tubbo asked impatiently. “Most people I come across are easy to read. They’re mundane. I’ve met two interesting people in my life. One is Techno. That’s why I originally got close to him. He was different. I wanted to talk to him and learn more about him. You, my friend, are the second.” “You must not get out much.” “Quite the opposite. I get out too much. I’ve been a mercenary since I was ten. My father dragged me into the job after my mother died. I’ve met enough people to realize they’re all the same. They just want money. Love. Fame. Humanity sucks, and that’s the gist of it.” Eryn crossed his arms, staring at Tubbo, who refused to make eye contact. Tubbo let out a sigh and lifted up his bangs, revealing multiple scars on his head. “Ah, abuse. I see.” “So what about your father? When’d you leave him?” Tubbo put his arm down. “He didn’t work for the right people. Ended up with a decent sized bounty on his head, that fool,” Eryn explained. “So he got caught?” Tubbo looked up at Eryn. Eryn chuckled, “I turned that idiot in.” “You turned your own father in?” “I didn’t care about him and he didn’t care about me. That money was the most use he ever brought me,” Eryn shrugged. “Oh.” Tubbo looked back down. “Oh, don’t be so down in the dumps. We just had a really bonding moment there! Both our fathers suck!” Tubbo couldn’t help but smile a bit. “Do you mind telling me what’s up with Tommy now?” “Right,” Tubbo sighed. “So for a bit over two years now, Tommy’s been showing some abnormal qualities that he didn’t have before.” “Qualities?” Eryn questioned. “Yeah. An increased amount of strength and speed. Even his senses seem heightened,” Tubbo went on. “Are you sure you aren’t imagining this?” Eryn asked skeptically. Tubbo shook his head, “I thought so originally too, until I realized that he hasn’t eaten since the abilities showed up and he doesn’t seem bothered by it at all. And the only other person other than himself who doesn’t seem concerned about it is Ranboo.”

Part 16 - The Head Councillor:
Trigger Warning: Drinking, Mentions of Death, Violence

“Three tickets.” Eryn took the slips of paper and headed back to Tommy and Techno. Niki had given the three the money they needed to get back. Apparently she’d saved up a lot since she didn’t have to pay her farmhands. They didn’t tell Niki and Tubbo where they were going. For all they knew, Eryn and Techno had a house somewhere off the island. Like Techno had thought, Tommy was willing to go for Wilbur, especially after he found out that he was alive. “I’m going to go to the bathroom before we get on,” Tommy announced. “Be careful,” Techno nodded.

“Techno, Tubbo told me something back at the farm,” Eryn said quietly after Tommy had left. “What was it?” Techno replied. “He said that Tommy hasn’t eaten in years, and that he’s gotten abnormal amounts of strength when he thought Wilbur died. He doesn’t think he’s human,” Eryn explained. “Of course he’s not human. I wonder if that means he’s found out for himself yet,” Techno pondered. “What?” “He’s not human. I’ve known this most of my life, but Wilbur and Tommy don’t. Phil kept it a secret. If he hasn’t been eating then he might know.” “Well then what is he?” Eryn demanded. “Can’t say. I really hope he doesn’t know. That could cause a lot of problems.”

“Excuse me, sir?” A young lady walked up to Eryn and Techno. “A young man told me to tell you two that he’s off to find his brother, and that he’s sorry.” Techno immediately ran for the building Tommy had gone in. He wasn’t there. He searched around the building, specifically in the air, but he couldn’t find him.

“I had her describe the boy. It was Tommy,” Eryn walked up to Techno. “Thank you boys for your assistance, but I’m afraid we no longer need your help, now that we know where Tommy is going.” Techno and Eryn turned around to see Head Councillor Antfrost. “I honestly didn’t think you’d look for him, especially for this long. I mean, you had no idea that I was following you.” “How?” Techno stood in shock. “There’s no way you could’ve been following me for this long.” “I admit, I briefly lost you back in Snowchester. Those blizzards are very difficult to travel in.” “Who’s this?” Eryn whispered. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Head Councillor Antfrost. And you’re Eryn,” Ant introduced himself. “You’re an animorph, aren’t you? That’s how you’ve been following us, right?” Techno questioned. There was no harm in guessing. Ant briefly transformed into a siamese cat before going into his half form, “I hope you don’t mind me staying like this. I prefer it, but many dislike my tendency to shed.” He had hands and feet like a normal human, and was still his normal height, but he was a cat. Sally had shown Techno that years ago, except hers was a salmon.

“You’re not using Tommy as a soldier, are you?” Techno glared at Antfrost with a mixture of fear and anger. “I’m afraid not. The people call for a public execution of both Wilbur and Sapnap, but Ponk still needs someone to help me learn more about the Angel. So, while Ponk is at his lab experimenting on Wilbur and Sapnap, Tommy and some poor inmate are going to be executed in their place.” “You bastard,” Techno quickly pulled out his sword, but Antfrost reacted quickly and turned into a cat. “Techno, stop,” Eryn stood back. He didn’t dare touch him. “Let's go grab a couple shots from a bar and then we can go to the Badlands. Killing the Head Councillor will cause more problems then it will solve.” Ant turned back into a cat-man, “I suggest you listen to your friend.” Techno slowly sheathed his sword, “Remember this, Antfrost. I don’t give a damn about my own life or wellbeing. There are few people I care about in this godforsaken world and Eryn is one of them. That is the only reason you don’t have a sword through your chest. I’d watch your back from now on. Your death is inevitable.”

“I didn’t think you’d stop,” Eryn admitted as he took a sip from a beer. “You said shots, not beer. I’ve always followed the codeword when I can,” Techno shrugged. “So why’d you stop me?” “Like I said, killing him will cause a lot of trouble.” “So you expect me to just let Tommy die?” “Of course not. The Head Councillor still has to go back to the Badlands to alert the soldiers about where Tommy is going. We simply have to get there before them,” Eryn explained. “But Tommy doesn’t know where the lab is. Even if we get there before the Badlands, what happens if we both get there before Tommy?” “We’ll work it out when it comes to that. For now, we need to get to the lab.” Eryn threw his head back to chug the rest of his drink, “The ship is about to arrive. We should go.”

Part 17 - The Real Truth:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Gore, Death

''I would like to clarify that though it may seem like it, this story is not based on real events, specifically this chapter. If you catch it, it was a pure accident. I came up with this story before that happened and I didn’t realize the implications till after I was already in the middle of this story and had hinted at it multiple times. Again, this is not meant to be a reference to any real life situations.''

“Your city gave me asthma

So that's why I'm fucking leaving

And your water gave me cancer

And the pavement hurt my feelings.”

Wilbur stopped as a loud noise from outside rang through the building. He laid his guitar down before standing up and walking to the metal door of his cell. The chain around his ankle pulled on him when he was about a foot away from it. He could have probably ripped away from the wall, but Techno had told him to not struggle, so he didn’t. And it seemingly worked. Originally all his limbs were chained. Ponk had also given him a guitar per request.

“Ponk! What’s going on?” Wilbur pounded on the metal door to get his attention. After a few minutes of no answer, Wilbur hit the door a few more times. He soon heard footsteps heading down the hallway. Multiple sets. It was probably a councillor or something. Councillor Dream visited often. Same with Councillor Sam. The lock clicked and the door opened to reveal the masked scientist with a man, who looked a bit younger than Wilbur, holding a knife to his throat. “Techno?” Wilbur stared at his piglin brother who had pushed past Ponk and Eryn. “I told you I’d get you out,” Techno smiled. “Ponk, do you mind getting that chain off?” Eryn pushed Ponk forward and he reluctantly unlocked the bond on Wilbur’s ankle. “We need to get Sapnap too,” Wilbur stated. “Can you go while I speak with Wilbur for a moment?” Techno asked Eryn, who nodded before leading Ponk out of the room.

“Do you have a bucket or something?” Techno groaned. Wilbur gestured to the corner of the room and watched Techno throw up in the large bucket in the corner of the room. “Why haven’t you had that cleaned out yet?” Techno mumbled when he was done. “Are you alright?” Wilbur questioned. “Must’ve eaten something bad.” Techno stood back up, “Follow me.” Techno jogged up to the roof of the lab with Wilbur close behind. “Why are we up here? What are you doing?” Wilbur interrogated after they stopped. Techno began digging through his bag before pulling a cylinder out, “Do you know what a firework is?” “I’ve seen them in books. How’d you get your hands on one? Aren’t they expensive?” “Eryn has very sticky fingers,” Techno smiled. “Alright, we’re gonna pray this doesn’t cause too big of a surge.” Techno lit the firework and backed away. The two watched the firework shoot into the sky and explode into sparks. “What did you mean surge?” Wilbur asked. Techno put a finger up, telling Wilbur to be quiet as he stared at the sky. “Techno, wha-” “Be quiet,” Techno whispered. Techno saw something move out of the corner of his eye, “Tommy! Come over here so your brother can get a good look at you!” Tommy stared at his two brothers, hovering in the air. The three hadn’t been together in five years. He’d thought both of them had been dead for so long. He lowered himself to the ground and allowed Wilbur to pull him into a hug. “How-” Wilbur was interrupted by Techno, who was throwing up again. Techno collapsed to his knees and began to cough up blood. “Techno!” Wilbur and Tommy ran to his side. “Take me to the portal,” Techno mumbled before hacking up blood again. “What are you talking about?” Tommy looked at his brother in fear. “There’s a Nether portal in the basement. Please, help me get to it.” Wilbur and Tommy got on each side of him and quickly began to lead him downstairs, stopping every couple minutes to allow him to throw up or spit up blood until they eventually reached the portal.

“Help me through it,” Techno mumbled. “Techno, what’s wrong?” Wilbur asked as the three walked through the obsidian frame. “It’s a soul valley,” Techno said with relief. He collapsed to the ground. “I need you two to listen to me,” Techno stared up at his brothers who had crouched over him. “Stay away from Itmir. He can sense your presence here. You need to go back to the Overworld and stay as far away from the portal as possible. You’ll just have to pray that Tommy didn’t cause a big enough surge for Tajiyaab to see.” “Techno, those are gods. What are you on about? What’s happening to you?” Wilbur panicked. “Piglins can’t stay in the Overworld,” Techno gave a weak smile. “How long have you known?” Tommy whispered. “That depends on what you’re talking about. I’ve known I was dying since I was fourteen. I’ve known the other thing since I was eleven.” “Why didn’t you go back?” Tears began to stream down Wilbur’s face. He didn’t want to worry about what he and Tommy were talking about. At that moment, he just wanted to be with his brother. “I had to keep you two safe.” Wilbur’s sobs continued coming as he began to sing to his dying brother.

“Leaves from the vine

Falling so slow

Like fragile tiny shells

Drifting in the foam

Little soldier boy

Come marching home

Brave soldier boy

Come marching home.”

“Wilbur,” Techno rasped.

“Ash in the snow

Falling so slow

Like fragile broken hearts with no place to go

Little soldier boy

Taken from home

Forced to fight a war

That was not his own.”

“Wilbur,” he said a little louder.

“Little soldier boy

Cold and alone

Brave soldier boy

Never made it home.”

“Wilbur. Let me die.” Wilbur stopped. He didn’t know why he had to, but he’d listen to his brother's dying words.

Techno began hacking up more blood until his body went limp. “Techno!” Wilbur shook his brother. His body seemed to glow blue for a second, but then the blue aura seeped into the ground.

Wilbur and Tommy cried out in pain at the sudden burning around their body. A guy with pale skin and dark brown hair stood in front of them. He looked young, but the two knew he was older than time itself. Chains wrapped around the two brothers, except they weren’t made of metal but lava. The lava chains held the two to the ground and made their arms, legs, and wings immobile. “Interesting decision to go into another gods realm without permission,” the God of Fire grinned. “Stop right there!” A large group of Badland soldiers appeared through the portal, but they immediately turned to ash. Itmir let out a booming laugh.

“Tommy,” Wilbur gasped. He was in so much pain. “What the hell is going on?” “It doesn’t hurt as much as you think it does. Tell yourself that it doesn’t hurt, Wilbur.” “Oh, I see. So this one doesn’t know. Did that demon never tell you?” The god chuckled. “Will, we’re not human,” Tommy whispered. “I know that. Sapnap told me. We’re demons. Servants of Kristen.” The fire god began laughing again, “They really did their best to make sure you didn’t cause a big surge, didn’t they?” “Wha-” Wilbur started. The two brothers each felt a hand on their shoulder, “Kristen offers you travel to the Underworld.” “I accept,” Wilbur quickly replied. “I accept,” Tommy copied.

The burning sensation stopped. The two were in a large room decorated in black and purple. Huge pillars held up the towering ceiling with the only piece of furniture being a throne. Sitting in the throne was a tall woman with a black and purple dress and a brimmed hat. Two men stood on either side of her. One wore a black and red hood that made it difficult to see his face, and the other was Phil. The man in the hood gestured to the other side of him and Sapnap came out from behind the two and went to stand next to him.

“Very few gods have my permission to come here. You’ll be safe for now,” the woman smiled. “When Sapnap appeared saying that you two had gone to the Nether, I knew I’d have to bring you here. Luckily, he had claimed to have taught you, Wilbur, about gods travel between realms. Preston’s one of the worst gods that could find you. Of course, TapL or DreamXD would have been worse.” Wilbur and Tommy just stood in shock, hardly listening to the goddess ramble on. “I think you ought to give the boys a bit more of an explanation,” Phil interrupted. “Of course,” Kristen chuckled. “Sapnap told me about what he told you, Wilbur. I, of course, didn’t approve of his decision, but there was nothing I could do. The truth is that you boys are gods.”

Phil quietly shut the door before heading to sit on a bed beside Wilbur. The bedroom looked nothing like any other room in the castle. Rustic, wood flooring with white walls. A simple bed with yellow blankets and a matching dresser and end table. It was also smaller than any other room. It was exactly how Wilbur would have decorated a bedroom.

“Tommy told me what happened. I honestly didn’t know that Techno was dying,” Phil told him softly. “But you did know that we’d outlive him by millions of years,” Wilbur mumbled, scooting away from Phil. “I tried to take him back to the Nether. You refused.” “Because you decided to not tell us that we were fucking gods.” Phil sighed, “Sapnap explained demons to you. He told us everything he told you. Kristen told me not to tell you, so I didn’t. I will follow my goddess to the end of time, no matter what.” Phil went to put his hand on Wilbur’s shoulder, but he flinched away. “You can fix the holes in your wings,” Phil looked at where the Badland soldiers had stabbed through them. “Just focus on that part of the body. Tell it that you want it to heal. It’s a mortal wound. It can easily be fixed.” Wilbur didn’t say anything. Phil just watched as the wings seemed to fill in the holes.

“Phil.” The demon with the hood over his face appeared in the doorway. “Wilbur, this is Badboyhalo. Sapnap’s father,” Phil told him as he stood up and walked to him. “You can call me Bad. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” the demon smiled, though it was difficult to tell. “You were the other demon with Kristen when I came here,” Wilbur pointed out. “Phil and I are two of the oldest demons there are and two of Kristen’s most trusted. Sapnap, of course, is one of the oldest too, being my son and all. He’s actually older than me, but, though he doesn’t necessarily disobey Kristen, he certainly makes some decisions that she wouldn’t make.” “He was your son before you became demons?” Wilbur questioned in surprise. “Of course. Demons can’t have children. We are dead after all.” Phil tensed up. “You’re not my dad?” Wilbur stared at Phil. Phil hesitated, “Biologically, no-” “HOLY FUCKING HELL, HAVE YOU TOLD A SINGLE TRUTH IN YOUR ENTIRE FUCKING LIFE?” Wilbur shoved past the two demons and stormed through the corridors of the large castle.

“Where is the fucking exit?” Wilbur mumbled to himself. “I’m afraid there is no physical exit.” Wilbur turned to see someone leaning up against the wall. He was tall, with short dark hair and a thick mustache. “I’ve roamed this castle for centuries. It defies all logic. It never ends. The rooms themselves don’t even have logic to them. You open a door and it’s the exact room you're looking for. Sadly, Kristen refuses to share her secret with me.” “Are you a demon?” Wilbur asked. The man chuckled, “No. I’m Mumbo.” “The God of Wisdom,” Wilbur mumbled. “Correct. And you’re Wilbur. Possibly the biggest criminal ever to exist. Wanted in three different realms. Impressive. May I ask why you wish to leave this place? The Underworld is the only realm you can roam freely in.” “I don’t want to leave the Underworld. I just want to leave this castle,” Wilbur shook his head. “The Underworld is this castle. Well, I suppose there is more to it, but nowhere that Kristen would allow anyone to go.” “Of course it is. So I can’t get away from anyone. They can just walk through one of the stupid doors with the hopes of finding me,” Wilbur kicked at the ground and gripped his hands into fists. “You’re frustrated and confused. Understandable. How about you ask me one question? Any question you want and I will answer it as truthfully as I can. Kristen wishes to explain things to you her way so depending on what you ask, it could be worth a lot.” Wilbur pondered on the offer. He wanted to ask so many things, but what was the most important? “What are Tommy and I the gods of?” “That’s two questions. You’re asking for both of you.” “If I asked you the definition of question, would that count?” Wilbur queeried. “I suppose I’ll allow it. The definition of question is ‘a sentence worded or expressed so as to elicit information.’” “I said one sentence. What are Tommy and I the gods of? Therefore you can tell me both.” Mumbo smiled, “I like you. Very well. Tommy is the God of the Sky and you, my friend, are the God of Music.”

Part 18 - The Explanation:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Death, Mentions of Violence

“Leaves from the vine

Changing so slow

Like empty fallen souls

Looking for a home.”

Wilbur mumbled the lyrics as he laid in his bed. So many things made sense now. Why Techno never attacked him and why his singing had calmed him. Why Sapnap often needed his help with strength related things when Wilbur could do them on his own. Why the SMP soldiers were able to knock Phil and Sapnap out but not him. What Techno meant when he said “let me die.” Wilbur could keep people alive. What were the limits of his voice?

“I sang that song to you the day I created you.” Kristen stood in the doorway. “I remember.” Wilbur refused to look the goddess in the eyes. “Do you know any other songs?” “I mostly make them up.” “Wilbur?” “What?” He responded coldly. “You and Tommy deserve an explanation for everything. A couple other gods and I would like you to come to the meeting room so we can talk to you.” “Is Phil going to be there?” Wilbur looked up at Kristen. “No. This meeting is for gods only.” “Good.” Wilbur stood up and followed Kristen out the door.

It took merely seconds to get to the meeting room since Kristen simply opened the door across the hall and it led them to it. Tommy was already there, with an open seat next to him. Mumbo was there too. A man who looked about the same age as Mumbo, though of course they didn’t look their age, sat next to him. He had dirty blonde hair and dark brown eyes, similar to Wilbur’s. The other person at the table was a girl slumped back against her chair. She had large blue eyes and long brown hair ran across her pale face. “Wilbur, this is Grian and Minx, and you’ve met Mumbo.” “Hello!” Minx sat up a bit. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Grian smiled. “I’m assuming you know what they’re the god of?” Kristen questioned. “The God of Life and the Goddess of Love,” Wilbur responded before going to sit by Tommy, which was across from Grian, Mumbo, and Minx. Kristen sat between Minx and Tommy at the head of the table. “We need to talk after this,” Tommy whispered to Wilbur. Wilbur nodded slightly. None of the other gods seemed to notice.

“I suppose I should start with why you two exist. The simple answer is that I love Phil. I have for centuries. To me, you two were the product of that love. In a sentimental way, not in the way mortals do it. Creating you boys drained most of my power. That’s why you are a few years apart. I’m still trying to build it up. I relied heavily on my crows to tell me what you two were up to. Well, them and Sapnap. He’s been a lot of help.” “When was Sapnap talking to you?” Wilbur questioned. “Mainly through the crows, but he’d contact me in person whenever he died,” Kristen replied. “What do you mean died?” “When demons die of mortal wounds, their bodies disappear and they return to the Underworld. Usually I keep them here for many years so people will forget they ever existed, but in some circumstances I’ll send them back, usually when little to nobody saw them die. Sapnap died multiple times. He typically tried to take blows for you so you wouldn’t find out. Like at the explosion. Nobody could have survived that. Phil died a lot too. It was mostly from accidents with Techno.” “I think I ought to take it from here,” Grian interrupted. “Ever since Minx became a god, it’s been banned to create new gods. Everything was under control, so there was no point. We believed it would cause unbalance in the world. So when Kristen decided to create two new gods, we were, of course, not happy about it. That’s why you two stayed in the Overworld with Phil. They didn’t realize till after Tommy had been created, which is why there are two of you. DreamXD, the God of Gods, demanded for your deaths. Most of the gods sided with him, while some of us sided with Kristen. We joined her for different reasons, but the main reason is that we believed killing you would cause imbalance. Nothing seemed to happen when Minx became a god, so why would you two being created cause more imbalance?” “So we’re wanted dead by almost every god because we exist?” Wilbur demanded. “Are you guys the only people on our side?” Tommy’s eyes widened. “Yes and no,” Mumbo responded to both of them. “LDShadowlady, the Goddess of Chaos, Fruitberries, the God of Light, and Sparklez, the God of Time, believe that you should join us in the God’s Realm as well. We also have better armies on this side, thanks to Grian and Kristen.” “Armies?” Tommy questioned. “Some of the gods have decided to create armies for themselves, most of them being from the Second Immortal War. This one is the fourth by the way. Kristen has her demons, Grian has his totem soldiers, Sparklez created time travelers, TapL has the piglins, Preston has his many Nether creatures, Illumina commands his phantoms, and Smajor has an army of drowneds.” “What are totem soldiers and time travelers?” Wilbur asked. “The totem soldiers are humans that used a totem of undying at one point in their life and later died,” Grian explained. “They’re over twenty feet tall and are made of gold. The time travelers are alive humans that Sparklez grants the ability to travel through time. When they are between the present and the time they traveled to, Sparklez steals their bodies and uses them to help us fight. If the body isn’t destroyed or would cause the human to die if he’s returned to it, then the spirit returns to the body and they go back to the Overworld till they travel again.” “That’s a bit inhumane,” Wilbur stated. “You’ll learn soon that the Overworld means little to us. It’s more of a hobby. A side project,” Minx spoke up. “Surely you care about the humans a little bit,” Kristen smiled at Minx. “They’re all idiots. The God’s Realm is much better,” Minx shrugged. “Did you used to be human?” Tommy queeried. “Yep. Tricked ol’ DreamXD into turning me into a god.” “She seduced him,” Mumbo informed them. Grian snorted with laughter and Kristen chuckled to herself. “Give me a bit more credit than that! I dated the guy for three years!” Minx argued. “Is that why you're also the Goddess of Snakes?” Wilbur asked. “Well, Goddess of Reptiles. Besides alligators, turtles, and crocodiles. That’d be too long a name though, so I’m more well known for snakes. Fruitberries started it. He found it funny so he let me watch over all the reptiles besides alligators and crocodiles. And turtles, of course. Those are Grian’s.” “Do all animals have a god to rule over them?” Tommy asked. “All except for the dragons,” Kristen responded. “They went extinct before we began to watch over all the mortals and they don’t fall in any of our categories. I suppose in a way I rule over them since they are all dead and live in my realm, but that’s not official.” “So we have to fight in a stupid war now?” Wilbur slumped back in his chair. “Well not for a century or two,” Mumbo replied. “We have to train you first, after all.”

“Mumbo told me that I’m the God of Music,” Wilbur stated, kicking his legs back and forth against his bed. “Kristen told me that I was the God of the Sky since Mumbo had told you, but I already knew,” Tommy responded. “How did you know? Did Techno tell you? Or Phil?” Wilbur questioned. “Ranboo did,” Tommy answered. “Who?” “A friend I met in our time apart.” “Why did you never come looking for me?” Wilbur asked. “I thought you were dead. I thought Techno and Phil were too.” “What about after you found out you were a god? You would have known that we were immortal.” “Ranboo told me not long after your poster disappeared. Your wanted poster. I figured if you really were a god, then word would spread quickly about you not being able to die. When it didn’t, I just assumed you were Phil’s son and I wasn’t. I thought maybe Puffy was your mom.” “I thought she might be one of ours too after we met her,” Wilbur smiled. “I’d always assumed we were half-brothers.” “So did I.” There was a pause. “Wilbur, I met somebody that I feel like you should know about.” “Who? Another god?” Wilbur questioned. “No. Somebody I met a few years ago. Do you remember Sally?” “Of course I remember Sally. What about her?” Wilbur stopped kicking his feet. “Well, she had a son. His name is Fundy.” “Good for her,” Wilbur shrugged. “Wilbur.” “What are you trying to say?” Wilbur leaned forward. “Wilbur, you’re a father.”

Part 19 - The Music:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Mentions of Death

“And what was your thought when you realised

You'll never feel naïve love again?

Was it pain or was it sickness?

Were you proud of who you'd been?”

“You’re really good.” Tommy was laying on a leather couch that had appeared in Wilbur’s room the other day. “Yeah, that’s my thing. I don’t think I can not be good,” Wilbur stated as he tuned his guitar. “Do you have a name for that song?” Tommy asked. “It’s All Futile, It’s All Pointless.” “Cool.” Wilbur continued where he left off.

“Have you, like, tried to play the violin or something?” Tommy suggested. “I mean, I can,” Wilbur shrugged. A violin case appeared in the corner of the room, near where his guitar case was. “Thank you castle,” Wilbur mumbled as he stood up and messed with the strings of the violin.

“Eleanor Rigby

Picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been

Lives in a dream

Waits at the window

Wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door

Who is it for?

All the lonely people

Where do they all come from?

All the lonely people

Where do they all belong?”

“Did you just make that up?” Tommy questioned. “I heard it once a couple years back,” Wilbur shrugged. “And you just copied it?” “I don’t know why you’re so amazed.” “What do you mean?” Wilbur set his violin on his bed next to the guitar, “Kristen says you can summon lighting. Techno shot a firework from miles away and you immediately came to us. I just make music. I don’t know what the gods expect me to do in this war.” “You managed to keep Techno alive longer than he should’ve. That’s a lot cooler than lightning,” Tommy pointed out. “Still not helpful in our situation. We’re fighting with gods. We don’t have to keep them alive.” “Your powers are actually going to be some of the most important in this battle.” “Hi Mumbo,” Tommy greeted from the couch. “Hello Tommy. Kristen says that your powers could make the voices in a piglins head go away. Is this correct?” Mumbo asked. “Yeah. It always made Techno’s stop,” Wilbur replied. “What’s this have to do with anything?” “Well, when a person dies, their spirit goes to the Underworld. To Kristen. It is like this for every species except piglins. Well, and Preston’s Nether creatures, but that’s something else entirely. Piglin’s spirits go into this special soil in the Nether and then TapL retrieves them and uses piglin souls to fight for him. The voices in a piglins head remain with them and they use them to communicate with each other in battle. TapL is difficult enough to fight in a war, with him being the God of War and all, but his piglins give him a huge advantage. Their entire lives are used to train so they can fight for him. So if we can get the voices to go away, then they would be significantly weaker than they normally would be. We just have to find a way to broadcast your voice across the battlefield.” “Wait, back up,” Tommy interrupted. “So when a piglin dies they go to fight for TapL?” “If they die near soul sand, yes,” Mumbo nodded. “Mumbo, we can’t fight in this war,” Wilbur shook his head. “I’m afraid you have no choice. This war will continue until one of the sides surrenders.” “Then surrender!” Wilbur shouted. “That would cause your deaths.” “We can’t fight in this,” Tommy agreed. “You have to,” Mumbo argued. Wilbur stood up in frustration, “Mumbo, our fucking brother is fighting for the other side.”

“It’s called The Other Side. It’s the complete opp-” Mumbo stormed in though the large entrance of the throne room. Phil stared at him with caution. He knew that he wouldn’t try anything, but his duty was to defend Kristen, so he always had to be ready. Bad, who was on the other side of Kristen’s throne, did the same. “We have a problem,” Mumbo stated angrily. “I’m dealing with something,” Kristen gestured towards Fruitberries and Sparklez. “This is important,” Mumbo urged. “So is this,” Fruitberries argued. “Tommy and Wilbur refuse to fight in the war,” Mumbo ignored the other god. “Why?” Kristen leaned forward. “They realized Techno would be on the other side and don’t want to be against him,” Mumbo explained. Kristen commanded something to one of the crows on her chair and it quickly flew out of the doorway. It soon came back with Sapnap, Grian, and Minx. “Grian, Minx, Mumbo, I have a proposal I need to run by you that has to do with something Fruitberries and Sparklez have said. Sapnap, can you please go convince Wilbur and Tommy to fight in the war?” “Of course,” Sapnap nodded before running back into the endless hallways. He opened up the nearest door to him and it immediately led him into Wilbur’s bedroom.

“One day, I know that you will be there

One day, I'll focus on the future, maybe

One day, oh, baby, isn't life so fucking inconsistent?”

“Wilbur, Tommy,” Sapnap interrupted, shutting the door behind him. Wilbur stopped playing and looked up from his guitar. Tommy tilted his head up a bit, but didn’t bother to sit up.

“Come to hear a song?” Wilbur asked sarcastically. “She said, ‘Let's talk about-” “Please shut up,” Sapnap commanded. Wilbur rolled his eyes and set his guitar down. “Sorry. I’m just not sure what you’re exactly capable of and I might react to your music very differently than Tommy.” Wilbur grinned and slowly picked his guitar back up. “Wilbur, stop it.”

“You got the same eyes as your father

And you carry the same kind of temper too

But what a shame for the people of the community.”

“Stop it!”

“Favorite things, fight and a lager

Name a better way to spin out a jar or two

He's a model citizen through and through, you know.”

“Wilbur, shut up!” Sapnap stormed out of the room. “I made him angry,” Wilbur smiled. “Was that the music?” Tommy asked. “Wish I could tell you.”

“But I quite like your girlfriend

How the fuck did she end up with you

You know we talk about all the dumb shit you do

In the back room of the bar

In the backseat of my car

I'm the ending, she's the start.”

“Wilbur.” Kristen stood by the door now. Wilbur ignored her and began to sing louder than before.

“Well, now, now, you need to calm down

What good's this energy

When you devote it to me?

Why not be a little bit more friendly?”

The guitar was pulled from Wilbur’s grasp and tossed on the ground. “Hey!” Wilbur looked up at Kristen. “You two are fighting in the war. It’s not something you can just skip.” “You can’t make me!” Wilbur shouted, falling backwards onto the bed.

“Now, now you need to calm down

Does she still think of me?

Say my name in her sleep?

I thought you knew her better than me!”

“I can and will!” Kristen yelled over him. “I’d like to see you try!”

“You don't give me that face

You know that the chase is through

And, well, she's still running away from you!”

“I’ll ban you from the Underworld, Wilbur! Aphmau will find you both in the Overworld now that you know about your powers!”

“You got the same eyes as your father

And you carry the same kind of temper too

And then she told me that she fucking hates you!”

“Oh, shut up, will you?” Tommy jumped on top of his brother. Wilbur shoved Tommy off of him and quickly sat on his back.

“Now, now, you need to calm down

What good's this energy

When you devote it to me?

Why not be a little more friendly?”

“You’re acting like a child, Wilbur!” Kristen yelled. “Oh, am I? I’m sorry, I never got the experience of being one of those!

Now, now, you need to calm down

Does she still think of me?

Say my name in her sleep?

I thought you knew her better than me!”

Tommy shoved Wilbur down with his wing, causing him to hit his head against the frame of the bed. Tommy quickly got out from under him and stood up. Wilbur stood up on his mattress and Tommy raised himself above the ground before tackling him off the bed. “Let's give her a chance to speak,” Tommy stated, pinning Wilbur to the ground. “NO!” Wilbur screamed.

“Well, now, now, you need to calm down

What good's this energy

When you devote it to me?

Why not be a little more friendly?”

Tommy got pulled up off Wilbur and a shoe pressed against Wilbur’s mouth. “Will you two stop it and listen to your fucking mother? I raised you guys better than this!” Phil was holding Tommy up by his shirt. Silence rang in the air. It was broken by Wilbur’s muffled laughter. Tommy soon joined in. “What are you two on about?” Phil looked between them. Wilbur pushed Phil’s foot to the side, “It’s nothing. I just missed this.”

Part 20 - The Proposal:
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Death

“Lizzie, thank you for joining us. Tommy, Wilbur, this is Lizzie, Fruitberries, and Sparklez,” Kristen introduced the other gods. They all sat in the same meeting room as before, except this time the other gods on their side had joined them. “My apologies for being gone for so long. I’ve been having fun in Boomerville,” Lizzie smiled. “Fruitberries, do you mind explaining what you and Sparklez saw the other day?” Kristen gestured towards the God of Light. “Right,” Fruitberries leaned forward. “So the two of us were roaming around the Inbetween. Just making sure that everything was going smoothly. We realized that there were significantly less spirits there than normal and Sparklez ended up finding some books that had been scattered around the Inbetween that talked about a place called The Other Side. The two of us decided to go to the Overworld to pretend to be humans and possibly learn some information from some of the time travelers. Based on what we heard, Illumina made another dimension and is leading the time travelers in the Inbetween there instead. Now this means two things. One, Sparklez is losing soldiers. Two, Illumina is weak and likely won’t be able to do much for a long time.” “How do you know that Illumina made the dimension?” Minx interrogated. “Well, it’s the complete opposite of the Inbetween, and I made the Inbetween,” Fruitberries responded. “Who’s Illumina?” Tommy questioned. “The God of Darkness,” Kristen answered. “Thank you, Fruitberries. I’ll take it from here. I proposed this idea to most of you guys. Just not Tommy, Wilbur, and Lizzie. The rest of us couldn’t make a decision anyways. With Illumina weak and Sparklez slowly losing his army, I think now is the best time to attack.” “I like it,” Lizzie quickly stated. “We knew you would,” Grian smiled. “What happened to centuries of training?” Tommy demanded. “And we still haven’t decided if we want to fight,” Wilbur spoke up. “You two don’t need to actually fight the piglins if everything goes to plan,” Kristen explained. “That will likely be left to the demons, totem soldiers, and time travelers anyways.” “I still think it’s a bad idea,” Minx shook her head. “So do I,” Grian agreed. “Sure, Illumina can’t fight, but Kristen is still weak as well. And like Tommy said, they still don’t know how to use their powers properly.” “What do you think, Mumbo?” Tommy asked. “Well, statistically, they are at their weakest. They have the fewest time travelers then they will ever have from here on out. If Illumina isn’t there then that means the phantoms won’t be and if Wilbur can weaken the piglins and Tommy can take out the Drowned, then that takes care of all the armies, meaning many of the totem soldiers and demons can focus on weakening gods. And we won’t get to the strength we want for centuries, and by then Illumina and the phantoms will likely be able to fight and Sparklez may not have any time travelers.” “What do you mean ‘take out the Drowned?’” Tommy questioned. “A Drowned’s body is mostly water, so a lighting bolt will instantly kill them. And if you can strike a few large ones down in the ocean before most of them leave, then you can wipe out almost all of them,” Kristen replied. “That’s assuming I can actually summon lightning.” “Right.” “Before we decide if we are fighting, we need to know if you two are actually going to join us. We can’t win without you,” Sparklez spoke up. “I mean, I suppose if we aren’t fighting the piglins it won’t make much difference, will it?” Tommy shrugged. Wilbur sighed, “I’ll join in if Tommy does.” “I guess we’ll fight then.” “So what are your guys' opinions on when we should do it?” Kristen asked. “I don’t really care. Seems most of you want to do it soon, so I guess that works,” Wilbur shrugged. “Tommy?” Kristen turned towards her other son. “I don’t know. What you all say makes sense. I’m just worried about our lack of training.” “That’s understandable. You boys will mostly be attacking from a distance so you should be alright,” Kristen stated. “I guess we can attack soon then.” Tommy was clearly unsure about his answer, but the gods who had voted for attacking didn’t care. “Good. We’ll attack tomorrow. Let's go over battle strategies.”

“Little soldier boy

Thought he could soar

Brave soldier boy

Fallen in the war.”

“I’m not sure that’s the best song to be singing thirty minutes before we go to battle.” Phil walked over to the bed and sat next to his son.

“The squids are completely useless

Just be glad it's them, not wolves

Spare a thought for the squids

When you build your waterfalls

You drown them, stab them, watch them die

What did they do to you?

Spread the message around the world

Squids are people too

Squids are people too.”

“That was one of the first songs you made up when I got you that guitar,” Phil chuckled. “Yeah,” Wilbur forced a smile. “Are you actually alright with fighting?” Wilbur took a deep breath, “No, but I’m not exactly alright with any of this.” Wilbur began to mumble The Squid Song again. “You don’t hate me, do you?” Phil looked expectantly at his son. “Of course not. I hate some of the things you’ve said, and some of the shit you’ve done, but I don’t hate you. You’re still my dad.” Phil gave a soft smile and wrapped his arm around Wilbur, who scooted closer and leaned his head on Phil’s shoulder. “I’m sorry,” Phil whispered. “It’s not your fault,” Wilbur mumbled. “I love you.” “I love you too, Dadza.”

Part 21 - The Battle:
Trigger Warning: Violence, Death, Gore, Trauma

Tommy and Wilbur stood side by side on one of the uppermost terraces of Lizzie’s large, pink castle. They could see both the battlefield and the ocean from where they were at. “You’re the only person in existence who brings a guitar to a war.” Wilbur shrugged as he tuned his instrument. “What do you think is happening?” Wilbur asked. “Well, they’re all there besides Illumina and Kristen. Just like they had said. Grian and Mumbo appear to be arguing with DreamXD.” “What about the armies?” “Sparklez hasn’t brought in the time travelers yet, but the totem soldiers and demons are standing ready behind everyone. I think I can see Phil.” “The other sides’?” “None. I’m keeping an eye on the ocean, though. Oh, Preston just lit himself on fire.” A few minutes passed. “Are they still just arguing?” Wilbur asked impatiently. “Ye- wait the piglins just appeared. Holy crap that’s a lot.” Wilbur scrambled to his feet and leaned up against the railing, “Keep an eye on an ocean so I can look for the signal.” Preston launched a fireball at Mumbo, who quickly deflected it with his shield. Fruitberries began to glow brightly. “He’s glowing! Broadcast my music through the sky.” “Right.” Tommy began concentrating on the air around them, though he still stared at the ocean.

“I think this time I'm dying

I'm not melodramatic

I'm just pragmatic beyond any

Reasoning for thinking I've got fucking rabies or something.”

Wilbur’s music broadcasted across the battlefield. Everybody could hear it, but nobody could tell where it was coming from. It was working. All the piglins were confused. They weren’t attacking as one mind like they normally would. “Wilbur, I’m tired,” Tommy gripped onto the railing tighter for balance. Wilbur mouthed ‘what do you mean?’ when he reached a guitar solo. “I’m not sure. I’ve never felt something like this.” ‘Well, figure it out. The drowned are coming.’ Wilbur started singing again. The battle below raged on. Most of the field was one fire. The only area that stayed under control was the area where Smajor stood. He had surrounded himself with water in the form of a giant as tall as the totem soldiers. Anytime someone came near the water, the area they had gotten close to turned to ice.. Seapeekay had also engulfed himself in rocks, though he stayed normal size, simply punching anyone who came near. Lizzie stood atop a galloping horse shooting arrows that seemed to defy physics. Anytime a projectile of any kind came near Sparklez, it shot back to where it had come from. Fruitberries moved too fast for anybody to see. He didn’t bother focusing on one person. The drowned began to swarm into the battlefield. Mumbo looked up at the balcony with confusion, but continued to fight. Wilbur looked over at his brother who was shaking, barely keeping himself standing.

“Help!

I need somebody

Help!

Not just anybody

Help!

You know I need someone

Help!”

As the song changed, Phil could tell the piglins began to regain control. They began to fight as they had in previous wars. He soared above the heads of the piglins, slashing at anybody he could with his long sword. It was working well till a piglin thrusted their shield upwards, causing Phil to fall to the ground and get in hand-to-hand combat with them. He needed to get out of there soon. Another piglin was bound to come to help soon. The loud sound of a sword against a shield rang right behind him. The piglin he was fighting faltered with a look of surprise and Phil quickly stabbed him in the chest before turning around.

Techno was on one knee, pushing his metal shield against another piglins sword. He made eye contact with Khinzarb across the battlefield. He had most definitely heard about what he just did on the piglin network, something he didn’t have. “Techno?” “Hey Dadza.” He shoved his shield upwards and got his sword ready as he faced the other piglin. “What are you doing?” They demanded in Piglinish. “I think treason.” Phil quickly stabbed the piglin and kicked him away. Techno put his back against Phil’s, warding off any attackers. “So how did Wilbur and Tommy take everything?” “You’re really going to make small talk in the middle of a battle?” Phil smiled. “I mean, I’m probably dying after this so I figured now is a decent time,” Techno shrugged. “Tommy took it better than Wilbur. Wilbur was pissed at me for a bit.” “That sounds like him.” “Are the voices fine with piglins?” Phil questioned as he slashed at another piglin. “Well, they’re supposed to just tell me when another piglin needs help. So yeah, they’re fine with other piglins. It’s very refreshing to fight them. By the way, the thing you guys did with Wilbur was smart. Interesting use of his abilities.” “Thank you. It was Mumbo’s idea.” “Makes sense.”

Techno grunted as he and Phil skidded across the grass. Smajor’s foot turned back to water as he stared down at the two, “What kind of piglin are you?” “The kind that was raised by a demon,” Techno mumbled as he stumbled to his feet. Smajor’s foot turned to ice once again. He raised it to stomp on the two, but suddenly he froze and the water that was once in the form of a giant spilled out everywhere.

Tommy watched as a giant lightning bolt hit the water giant. He watched Smajor fall to the ground. Everything went blurry.

Wilbur dropped his guitar and ran towards his collapsed brother. “Tommy!” He shouted. He shook his shoulder, but Tommy had passed out. Wilbur quickly turned around as he heard footsteps behind him, “Techno?” His transparent brother smiled as he jumped off Phil’s back, “It’s been a while since I’ve done that.” He frowned as he saw Tommy lying on the ground. He swiftly ran over and dropped to the ground next to him. Phil did the same. “I don’t understand. This shouldn’t have happened,” Phil shook his head. “What’s wrong?” Wilbur looked up at him. “It’s like he’s used up too much of his power, but he hasn’t done that much. The broadcasting shouldn’t have taken up that much. Sure, the lightning bolt was big, but he should still be nowhere near this state.” “He was close to collapsing even before the lightning,” Wilbur stated. “Have you guys considered that maybe you two shouldn’t exist?” Techno suggested. “Techno!” Phil shouted with anger. “What do you mean?” Wilbur questioned. “Every god, besides you two, either just came into existence or were created by DreamXD, the God of Gods. Maybe something is just bound to go wrong if the Goddess of Death, or any other god, decides to create another one.” “Don’t listen to your brother,” Phil shook his head. “Dadza, he’s probably right. I mean, it makes sense. We’re defects. We probably shouldn’t exist,” Wilbur looked back at Tommy, but Phil lifted his head back up, “I said don’t listen to your fucking brother. You should exist. You deserve to exist. I don’t give a crap about what anyone else says because you’re my fucking children and I’m not going to let anyone hurt you, defects or not.” “Touching.” The Techno and Phil immediately jumped to their feet and pulled out their swords. DreamXD glanced at the guitar on the ground before picking it up and tossing it off the ledge. He looked back at the family, “Oh come on, you two really don’t think you can take me, do you?” Phil gripped his sword tighter. “Please don’t do this,” Wilbur begged. “I’m dying after this anyways,” Techno sighed. “Don’t worry about him. TapL gave me specific instructions to keep the piglin alive. The demon, however.” DreamXD lunged at Phil, but was knocked backwards in a flash of light. Fruitberries stood between Phil and the god. “You’re lucky I happened to look up at the moment he lunged at you. Kristen would have killed us all if you ended up dead.” “Thanks,” Phil nodded. “Now get them out of here,” Fruitberries commanded. “Not so fast,” DreamXD laughed as he stood back up. “This is my dimension. I control who comes and leaves, and they aren’t going anywhere.” “Wilbur, I’ll get Techno. You get Tommy.” Techno jumped onto Phil’s back. “Not so fast,” DreamXD swiftly shot an arrow at Wilbur’s wing, pinning it to the ground. “Oh, fuck this. Not again,” Wilbur mumbled as he began to try and pull the arrow free, but it wouldn’t budge. DreamXD took a step forward, but Fruitberries got in his way. All the sudden, Fruitberries almost fell over and had to grab onto the railing. Ilumina stood leaning in the doorway, shaking just as Tommy had been earlier. “Hurry up and toss him off the ledge or something before I pass out,” Illumina mumbled. DreamXD did as he said nodded in gratitude. “You guys are so loud. I can’t get any sleep,” Illumina complained. “We’re almost done here,” DreamXD smiled. “Good,” Illumina stumbled off.

Phil and Techno were attempting to pull the arrow out now, but still to no avail. “It’s not going to work,” DreamXD shook his head. “Fruitberries is right, though. Kristen would kill us all if you died.” DreamXD rapidly shot another one of the arrows, pinning Phil’s wing against the railing. He grimaced with pain. He ran for Techno, pinning him against the wall. Techno struggled, but DreamXD still managed to jab one of the arrows into Techno’s palm before crouching next to Tommy. “NO!” Wilbur screamed as DreamXD put his hand on Tommy’s head. All three family members struggled against the arrows that pinned them down. Wilbur and Phil begged DreamXD to stop. Techno attempted to throw his sword at the god, but the blade didn’t stick, causing the sword to bounce off his back, leaving only a small cut which was quickly healed. Techno began to try and pull his sword back to him with his foot, but was caught off guard by the shriek of agony Tommy let out. Wilbur and Phil only began to shout louder, tears running down both their faces. Techno managed to lift the sword up with his foot and grab it with his free hand. Rather than throwing it, he used it to chop off his pinned hand. Phil and Wilbur didn’t notice. No blood was spilt and Techno felt no pain. Techno lunged at DreamXD, knocking him to the ground, but not before Tommy’s body disappeared. DreamXD cackled as he listened to Wilbur’s cries. Techno and Phil stood in shock at what had just happened. DreamXD shoved Techno off of him and stabbed him with another one of the arrows, this time in the thigh. He stood up and walked over to face Wilbur. “DreamXD. Please. Please. Please. Don’t kill him. I’ll do anything. Keep Wilbur alive,” Phil begged. “You can kill me. I don’t care. Keep Will alive. Please.” Wilbur’s screams became quiet sobs as Phil continued to plead. “He’s unnatural. The boy can’t live,” DreamXD shook his head. “PLEASE! NO!” Phil screamed as DreamXD went to grab Wilbur’s head. However, something stopped him. Like an invisible force field. Phil stopped screaming. The quiet sobs that had been muffled by Phil’s screams had been Wilbur singing.

“Leaves from the vine

Changing so slow

Like empty fallen souls

Looking for a home.”

“Why won’t it let me near him?” DreamXD shouted angrily.

“Little soldier boy

Thought he could soar

Brave soldier boy

Fallen in the war.”

Phil recognized the lyrics that he had caught Wilbur singing earlier.

“My little soldier boy

I need you home

Brave soldier boy

Come marching home.”

Though the song was over, Wilbur continued to hum the tune, keeping DreamXD at bay. “You can’t hide forever. I will kill you. Whether it’s today or in a million years, I will,” DreamXD backed away. “Then make him mortal.” DreamXD turned towards Techno, “What was that?” “Make him mortal. You don’t have to worry about your stupid balance or why ever you want to kill him. Just make him mortal. Then at least Phil and Kristen can keep their son.” DreamXD looked back at Wilbur, who was still humming. “It would be easier for you, anyways. You wouldn’t have to worry about killing him in a million years.” “I’d have to be able to touch him to do that,” DreamXD stated. “Then take this stupid arrow out of me so I can make sure you don’t try anything.” DreamXD hesitated before going to pull the arrow out of Techno’s thigh. Wilbur glanced up at the two, but continued to hum. “Wilbur, are you willing to become mortal so you don’t die? I’m sure Kristen will make you a demon or something,” Techno knelt next to his brother. “Don’t worry. I won’t let him hurt you.” Wilbur stopped humming. DreamXD cautiously stuck his hand out. There was no force field. “Wait!” DreamXD turned to look at Phil. “Wilbur, how long has it been since you last ate?” “Since I went to the Underworld,” Wilbur mumbled quietly. “So a few years. He’ll die immediately from lack of nutrition. I’ll be right back. Don’t try anything.” Phil disappeared. “What’s he on about?” DreamXD questioned. “He’s making sure Kristen makes him a demon when he dies,” Techno responded.

Phil reappeared a bit later. He knelt down next to his son, on the other side of Techno. “Can I go now?” DreamXD asked impatiently. Phil nodded and reached out to hold Wilbur’s hand while Techno kept a grip on his sword. Wilbur closed his eyes to brace himself as DreamXD rested his hand on his head.

A Dead Man's Last Thoughts:
Fire surrounds me, yet I feel nothing but the cold presence of the void enveloping me

The steel of my ancestor plunges through my chest

My own flesh and blood

My own father

Cries of anger and grief spill out of his mouth as if he didn’t have a choice

But he had a choice

I gaze across the destruction

Once a glorious nation turned to rubble by my own accord

My brother meets my eyes

My brother of different blood

He calls my name, but I say nothing

I say nothing and I hear nothing

I only feel

And I feel everything

My only ally charges at my descendant

My own flesh and blood

My own son

The word of his once glorious father turned to dust will soon reach his ears

I will not be there to comfort him

I was never there to comfort him

And they won’t be either

They will have each other

The others will have each other

But he will learn the hard way

They both will learn the hard way

My descendant

And the one blinded by lies

Blinded by his morals

He is trapped in his own world

But he will find the key

Sooner or later

I found the key

It is dragging me away from everyone I love

But it’s a sacrifice I will make

Have made

So I can finally escape

Which One Was Better?:
Which one was better?

The one who stands before you today?

The one who was lost to the green man?

Or was it the one who lost to the green man?

One was innocent

One was wise

And one was me

Which one was better?

The last one got a stone

I got a crater

It may be grander

But does grander mean anything

If I had to carve it myself?

Which one was better?

He was a leader

A father

A friend

But I was a villain

Stricken down by my father

Ignored by my son

Hated by my friend

Which one was better?

Should I not be myself

If that’s not what they want me to be?

Should I not do what I believe is right

If they think it’s wrong?

Should I not be alive

If they liked the other me better?

The one stained in blue

The one who couldn’t think

Which one was better?

Perhaps it was the me that wasn’t here

The me who never ruled

The me who never died

The me who never existed

Part 1:
Sapnap stared at the empty piece of paper, quill in hand. He knew that he was putting too much thought into this, but it was difficult to write a letter to someone when the last thing you said to them was a murder threat.

Dear Dream, Sapnap crumpled up the paper and tossed it in the trashcan near him. He wasn’t going to do that ‘dear diary’ crap. Dream, Well that just looked stupid. He threw the paper into the trash can. He couldn’t even get past the introduction.

How are you doing? He’s in prison. Stupid question. The paper soared into the trash can. I’m sorry I haven’t visited you since last time. He should add back in the introduction. The paper flung into the trash can. Dream, Yeah, that was a better start. I’m sorry I haven’t visited you since last time. That works. I hope you are doing well. Well that’s a lie. The paper was trashed. He wrote the first two things again before adding, Sam hasn’t been allowing visitors ever since the accident. Maybe it was okay to lie a little bit. I hope you are doing well. No. The paper landed softly in the trash can. He gripped another piece of paper and began to scribble down the words he had decided on. But what if Dream didn’t know Sam wasn’t allowing visitors? The paper hit the edge and ended up on the floor.

Sapnap threw back his head in frustration and yelled out as it hit the back of his chair too hard. “Are you alright?” George leaned against the doorway. “I’m fine,” Sapnap mumbled. “Whatcha doing?” George asked as he walked over to Sapnap, peering over his shoulder at the blank piece of paper in front of him. “Writing a letter,” Sapnap replied. “You haven’t gotten very far. Who’s it for?” “Dream.” “Cool,” George stated as if the name had no significance. “Tell him I said hi.” Sapnap nodded and George left the room, making sure to shut the door on his way out.

Sapnap sighed. He’d just write whatever came to mind. It was just Dream. Think of him the way George thinks of him. He’s just an old friend. He’s just Dream.

Dream,

I’m sorry I haven’t visited you since last time. George told me to tell you that he says ‘hi.’ The two of us are going to shoot some hoops later. Remember when the three of us would always play basketball outside the Community House? George hasn’t gotten any better. He needs you on his team like old times. Karl used to play on George’s team, but I still beat the two of them most of the time. I guess Karl’s lost interest in that stuff, though. We need to find another player so the game will last longer.

I went and visited the Community House the other day. It’s very different then it was. It looks nicer after the rebuilding, but I almost miss the original Community House. Even the one before you redesigned it.

I was going to see Spirit’s grave while I was there, but it wasn’t there anymore. I never told you this, but I accidentally used Spirit’s leather for the item frame, so the leather inside the frame wasn’t even theirs. I’d already felt bad about killing Spirit. I didn’t have the heart to tell you that I mixed them up.

I don’t understand why you did what you did. I don’t know what reason had to have been good enough. I’ll visit you again. Just don’t try anything. Remember what I said last time. I don’t want to have to kill you.

-Sapnap

Sapnap licked the envelope and sealed it shut. He sighed as he stared at it. “Sapnap, you ready to go shoot hoops?” George yelled through the house. “Yeah!” Sapnap responded. The envelope landed neatly amongst the balls of crumpled paper.

Part 2:
“What should I say this time?” Wilbur tapped his quill on the hard, rocky ground as he carefully thought up his words. What had he told him last time? He talked about Techno coming in the last one. He updated him on Fundy. Oh yeah, he wrote about how strong Pogtopia had become. He ought to make something up about Tommy and Tubbo in this one so he doesn’t get worried about them. He should mention how great of a president Tubbo is and that L’Manburg is thriving. Maybe something should go wrong so it seems more believable. Wilbur chuckled as he dipped his quill in ink and began to write.

Dear Dadza,

I received your last letter. I don’t understand why you trouble yourself with such a large farm for one person. Don’t bother to use your crows as an excuse. I know that they care little for carrots and potatoes.

Fundy has reached five feet. He won’t stop bragging about it, despite Tommy’s annoyance. He desperately wishes to see you, but I’ve insisted that I must stay with Pogtopia for the time being. Hopefully we may see you once again sometime soon.

Pogtopia is doing well. Techno disapproves of it, of course, along with L’Manburg. He is keeping a close eye on both countries to make sure neither Tubbo nor I try anything that would make us ‘tyrants.’ L’Manburg is also thriving. Tubbo is a wonderful president and Quackity is a great vice-president. He will listen to anything Tubbo says. Tommy is a great vice-president too, as always.

I mentioned last time that Niki and Jack were debating over staying in L’Manburg or joining Pogtopia. Both decided to remain in L’Manburg for now, which I am fine with. I can tell Fundy misses living in L’Manburg so I’ll take him over there to play with Tubbo often.

I almost forgot to tell you, Tubbo threw a festival for L’Manburg! Everyone from L’Manburg and Pogtopia came and even a couple people from the Dream SMP made an appearance. Dream didn’t show up, thank goodness, but Sapnap and George did. Techno even stopped by for a bit to say hello. It went wonderfully. Everyone played these games that Tubbo had set up and Tubbo gave a lovely speech at the end. I’m pretty sure Fundy tried to drown Techno at some point, but no real harm was done.

I miss you. Tommy, Tubbo, and Techno all do too. We hope to see you again soon. I can’t wait for your next letter, and I’m sure Fundy can’t wait either. He gets so excited every time a crow comes by with one. I will write again when I find the time.

Sincerely,

Wilbur

Wilbur rolled up the letter and smiled as he handed it to the crow. It quickly took off into the sky, gripping the paper with its claws.

The crow tilted it’s head with curiosity as it heard someone calling for it. He glided down to the ground to find Techno next to a small lake. “What do you have there?” Techno mumbled as he took the paper from the crows' claws. He quickly skimmed through the letter and looked back at the crow in surprise. “Stay here,” he commanded. Techno shoved the letter in his pocket and ran back to Pogtopia.

He came back in a few minutes with a sloppily written note that read: You need to come ASAP -Techno. He handed it to the patient crow and watched as it soared away.

Part 3:
“Hey Karl! Have you invited Quackity to Kinoko Kingdom yet?” Sapnap questioned as he jogged up to his friend. “No, not yet. I can go write a letter now, though,” Karl suggested. “Yeah, you should go do that. You know how he gets when he feels left out,” Sapnap chuckled. Karl smiled, “Right.” He waved goodbye to his friend before jogging to his library.

The posters from his adventures hung high on the walls with the dust covered books laying under them. He grabbed a small sheet of paper and a quill and ink. He happily put his supplies on the ground and began to write.

Dear Quackity,

''It’s been so long! What have you been up to? I’m guessing you’ve seen the posters we’ve put around the SMP. Sapnap, George, and I were hoping that you’d join our new country! It’s called Kinoko Kingdom. I was rooting for Pulupulu, but I got out voted. It’s mushroom themed and we’d love to have you. Maybe you can come visit so we can give you the grand tour. I’d love to see you again and so would Sapnap and George. We miss you! Write back soon!''

Love,

Karl Ja

Karl awoke back in his library. He quickly grabbed the poster that read ‘The Wild West’ and began to write in the book that would sit under it. He tripped over an ink pot on the ground, causing it to spill over a small piece of paper. He kicked the two, along with a quill, to the side so they would be out of the way before hanging up the large poster and gently placing the book on a table under it.

Pyromaniac:
Sapnap slowly turned the page of his book as he read the last few words. He moved his feet through the blankets that he had shoved to the end of the bed. He didn’t like to sit still. He kicked his left foot up, causing one of the blankets to fall off the bed. He looked up from his book to see where it had landed but didn’t bother to pick it up. He flipped to the next page.

“Sapnap!” George’s voice made its way through the house. Sapnap quickly shut his book, not bothering to finish his sentence, and shoved it underneath his bed. He sighed, knowing what was coming.

The door to Sapnap’s room was pushed open. George threw a pair of jeans at Sapnap’s face, though he caught them before they made contact. “I told you to stop using your lighters and matches on my things,” George stated angrily. Sapnap sat up so he could hold out the jeans only to find them covered in burn marks and holes. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again,” Sapnap half-heartedly promised as he tossed the jeans back. George grabbed the pants from the air, “That’s what you said last time.” “Look, it was just an accident from when I borrowed your jeans.” “This many burn marks is not an accident,” George argued, holding up the jeans to remind him. “I’ll buy you new jeans,” Sapnap offered, tired of the conversation. “What about all the rest of the crap you destroyed?” Sapnap didn’t want to have to deal with this right now. “I’m sorry, alright? I’m kind of tired right now so can you just leave me alone?” “I’m not the only one who thinks this. Karl agrees with me,” George continued, ignoring him. Sapnap tensed up a bit, “When were you talking to Karl?” George frowned, realizing he’d hit a sensitive subject, “I just heard him complaining about some of his books being singed a few days ago.” Sapnap sighed, “He hasn’t talked to you?” “He’s distancing himself from everyone,” George shook his head. “Look,” he quieted his voice, “I don’t want to fight with you. I know everything with Karl, and Quackity, and Dream is hard for you, but please stop letting your anger out through burning crap.” Sapnap laid back down, “Bad habits are hard to get rid of.” “You’re struggling to stop lighting stuff up?” George’s voice had grown angry again. “You never get out of bed.” “That’s a normal coping method!” George shouted. “Yeah, well have you ever thought about how your coping method might be one of the causes for mine?” Sapnap just wanted George to leave. George shoved his hands in his pockets. He didn’t have a rebuttal. He knew that his sleeping habits caused more issues than they resolved, and he wished that he could stop, but sleep felt so nice, and dreams were always so much better than reality.

“If you promise to stop playing with fire, then I’ll promise to be around more.” George was clearly tired of fighting too. “Do you want to go watch tv or something?” Sapnap had ignored the offer. George hesitated, knowing that Sapnap had no plans to stop his pyromaniacy. Still, he nodded and waited for Sapnap to head out the bedroom door before going to follow him, but something red caught his eye. He walked over to Sapnap’s bed after he’d left and pulled out an old book. Sapnap didn’t read. Karl had always bothered him about that. The book cover read: “Pyrokinesis: Is It Real?” George crouched down lower to find stacks of other books on the same subject under the bed. “Are you coming?” George looked up to see Sapnap leaning against the doorway. “I’m sor-” “Are you coming or not?” Sapnap repeated. George nodded and followed Sapnap out the door, who quickly shut it behind them.

My Suspicions on Who's Going in Pandora's Vault:
So I’ve come up with a list of people who I think might be the one going to Pandora’s box. Most of these are on the wiki page but I’ve added a few things and how they would get captured. I’m putting reasons into two catagories, the capable factor and why Dream would want them in there.

Technoblade:

The capable factor is obvious here. He is one of the strongest people on the server. The only person I’d classify as more capable is Dream and that’s because of his manipulation skills.

The reason for Dream wanting him in there is a little more difficult. He doesn’t want him because he personally wants him or finds him a threat at the moment but Technos whole thing is he’s against the government. L’Manburg doesn’t exist anymore so there isn’t much a reason for him not to work with Tommy and Tubbo other than they hate him. But if they need him for something he might be willing to help them if they give him something in return. Dream would have to prevent this from happening in the future so he’d put Techno in the prison.

The way he’d do this Ive said before but on a different thread so I’ll say it again. Techno wouldn’t go down without a fight, and Techno doesn’t seem very threatened when he has to put his own life in danger. There are two things however that he’d risk everything for. Carl and Phil, and seeing that we don’t know where Carl is, Phil would be used as leverage. All Dream has to do is throw a poison potion at Phil and Techno is completely vulnerable.

Tubbo:

Tubbos definately not one of the most capable people on the server. He used to be politically but now his countries gone. The one thing he does have tho is allies. Literally everyone likes Tubbo besides Dream and Techno. If he were captured than he would have a lot of people wanting him out.

The reason for wanting him in there is easy. First of all we know Dream doesn’t like him. He tricked him, proceeded to call him an idiot, and then blew up his country. Also we know Dream loves having control over Tommy and what better way to do that than take control of the only thing he loves more than the discs? Plus Tubbo is starting Snowchester and if Dream didn’t like L’Manburg we can assume he won’t like Snowchester either.

The way he’d get him is pretty simple. Rather than threatening someone else’s life like Techno, he’d threaten Tubbos life. Tubbos on one life now so it wouldn’t be hard. Plus Tubbo and Tommy happen to be going after Dream soon. Let’s say they fight, Tubbos one hit away. Dream threatens Tommy to stay back and forces Tubbo to come with him. He couldn’t threaten Tommy because Tommy wouldn’t let Tubbo go.

Wilbursoot -

This is the one person on here who isn’t listed on the wiki page, and I understand why. He’s dead. But he’s coming back to life. And the capability factor is very high for Wilbur. I’d probably call him the 3rd most capable person on the server, and I’m saying Wilbur, not Ghostbur. Wilbur was one of the main causes for the two biggest wars on the server and won them both. He also blew up L’Manburg. He is also very powerful politically and has many allies, so the capability factor is definitely there.

Like Tubbos, the reasons are easy to find. Wilbur was the start of L’Manburg. He’s the most powerful person politically. The main reason though, would be that he is the only person who could really bring back L’Manburg. He’s the one who started it and even after he died, Ghostbur was the one who rebuilt it after he blew it up. Ghostbur also was the only person who had hope of rebuilding Lmaburg after its destruction.

Its hard to say how he’d get him there since we don’t know what Wilbur is going to be like when he’s resurrected. In my opinion, the best time to do it tho would be right after he comes back because he will likely be weak.

Philza? -

This one I don’t find as likely, but he does still meet the capable factor. Philza, unlike everyone else, doesn’t meet the capable factor by his skills and allies. He does because if he gets captured, then I can guarantee that Techno will try to get him out, and he definitely is capable.

The reason is actually the same reason as Technos. Dream, rather than raking Techno, takes Philza to the prison to keep Techno under control and so he doesn’t turn against him.

The way he’d get him is also the same way as Technos but obviously instead of taking Techno to the prison they take Philza.

Who Would Be Most Affected By Becoming a Ghost?:
I was watching Dream SMP theory videos and they mentioned Schlatt a few times so it got me thinking about ghosts and then I started wondering who would be most affected. I’m talking about the memory loss thing here. How they don’t remember bad things that happen. Now, since we only have one ghost in the Dream SMP it’s a bit unclarified as to whether it’s what the dead person themselves see as bad or bad things in general. For the sake of this, we are going with what the character themselves found bad because it would be odd to say things like Techno can’t remember the destruction of L’Manburg because he clearly enjoyed doing that, unlike Wilbur when he did it. I’m also not listing characters who aren’t very relevant to the story including Purpled, HBomb, and VikkStar. I’m also not including Awesamdude, Ponk, CaptainPuffy, and Skeppy as they have only become bigger characters recently as the egg has started to become more into the main plot.

Dream:

Dream would be one of the most affected people if they became a ghost. You may see the stuff he did as stuff he didn’t really see as bad, but he’s corrupted, like Wilbur. He’s not like Techno where he’s just following his belief system. Dream was a good guy at the beginning of the SMP, but as slowly become power corrupted and so most of his memories, are pretty bad ones. In fact, if he died, he would really only remember the beginning of the SMP and a bit after the L’Manburg vs Dream SMP war and maybe some during it. He wouldn’t have memories for the past few months, which is a while in SMP standards.

Skipping Callahan and Alyssa...

Punz:

Despite working with Dream all this time, he wouldn’t be overly affected. He would have most of his memories, he just wouldn’t remember that he worked with Dream during all this, which he didn’t see bad at the time, but it’s clear that when he put Dream in prison he had a change of heart about it and would now not remember that if he were to become a ghost. He also wouldn’t remember his time in the Eggpire, but at this time its not that long and he’s not actually controlling himself in a way.

Eret:

Like Punz, he wouldn’t be all that affected accept some parts of the LManburg vs Dream SMP war and the Manburg vs Pogtopia war. This is obviously due to his betrayal in the first war and how most people didn’t trust him during the second one. He would have most of his recent memories and he would still have quite a bit from that second war as he wasn’t part of Manburg or Pogtopia, just helped them in the end.

Skipping Ponk...

Quackity:

There are only 3 times that I can see Quackity having memory loss during, which might surprise you. It did me saying that Quackity is depicted as a chaotic character, but he’s not corrupted like Dream and Wilbur so a lot of the stuff he does goes more with his beliefs. The first time being his time serving under Schlatt. He liked him at first but by the end, it clearly wasn’t a good time for him so it’s likely he won’t remember doing that at all. He also might not remember what fully happened when LManburg got destroyed and he might not remember Karl dying and some of the events of when El Rapids was becoming independent. However, these were big events in his life so becoming a ghost might affect him quite a bit.

Skipping Karl...

Sapnap:

Sapnap isn’t a big character. I’m just saying that he won’t be affected by the Pet Wars really besides maybe the Burning of the Eiffel Tower because that’s not him being corrupt, he just enjoys killing peoples pets (???)

George:

George also isn’t a big character anymore, but I’m saying that he won’t be that affected and really just won’t remember his house burning and his kingship being stripped away, possibly his kingship at all, but that wasn’t a long period of time so he’s all good.

Badboyhalo:

BBH actually would be quite a bit affected because despite it seeming like it, he’s kind of corrupted also. He legit just wants chaos, so he might not remember the chaotic things he did in the Manburg vs Pogtopia War. He also wouldn’t remember the Egg at all probably which has been going on for awhile. BBH wouldn’t remember the two hugest events that he’s been apart of in his time on the SMP.

Skipping Antfrost and Awesamdude...

Skipping VikkStar, Lazar, and HBomb...

Fundy:

Despite not being that big of a character on the SMP, he would have a lot of memories forgotten also. He wouldn’t have all his memories from the LManburg vs Dream SMP war because he was so young at the time during it, so it can be assumed they weren’t very good memories. He also wouldn’t remember pretty much any of the Manburg vs Pogtopia war, tho he would remember running for president. He also starting to become corrupted right now, so he might not remmeber much of the current events, the Destruction of LManburg and his Villian Ark thing that’s going on right now.

Nihachu:

Niki’s forgotten memories are similar to Fundys. She wouldn’t remember Schlatt at all really or the war that he brought as she was highly affected by it. She also wouldn’t remember the current events really because she’s a bit corrupted.

Skipping Connor and Jack...

Technoblade:

Unlike most other people, Techno would remember the Destruction of LManburg, but he would lose other memories. He wouldn’t remember when he first spawned withers on LManburg because he felt very betrayed then, as he wouldn’t remember Tommy betraying him at the recent festival. He also probably wouldn’t remember killing Tubbo, Quackity, and Schlatt at the first festival. And last he wouldn’t remember his execution. Techno still has many of his memories, his time in Pogtopia and retirement, but he wouldn’t lose many big events.

Philza:

Philza wouldn’t actually lose that many memories if he becomes a ghost. He wouldn’t remember killing his son and the first destruction of LManburg and he wouldn’t remember Technos execution but that’s about it. Like Techno, him blowing up LManburg was part of his beliefs and just him helping a friend out.

Tubbo:

Tubbo would probably still remember the LManburg vs Dream SMP War (besides Erets betrayal) as Wilbur still does. He wouldn’t remember the destruction of LManburg (both), the first festival and at least most of the second one. He wouldn’t remember exiling Tommy and he wouldn’t remember almost dying when Dream was going to kill him, so Tubbo would lose a lot of his memories.

Skipping Foolish and Slimecicle...

Skipping CaptainPuffy, Hannah, and Purpled...

Ranboo:

Ranboo wouldn’t remember quite a bit of things, the stuff he’s going through with his own memory loss at the moment, the panic room and Dreams voice, the stuff he did in his black outs. The stuff he’s going through with his morals also. It’s unclear if he would remember the destruction of LManburg or not and same with Technos Execution, but Ranboo would actually be one of the least affected with his memory loss because he already has memory loss so he’s used to it.

Skipping Skeppy...

Tommy:

Tommy’s would seriously be the exact same as Tubbos. I’m not listing it again.

Schlatt:

Schlatt wouldn’t remember a single thing other than that he was president. He was corrupted that whole time.

So basically Schlatt would be the most affected out of everyone. Fundy would be second probably, but Dream, Tommy, Tubbo, Techno, and Niki wouldn’t remember a lot of stuff also.

Who's Harpocrates?:
Dream - Dream could join in the future but Techno hasn’t visited Dream in prison so there is no way for Harpocrates to be him.

Callahan - Callahan is the server admin and has never once been in the lore, and likely never will. Won’t be him.

Alyssa - Female and very inactive

Punz - I think Punz might join eventually but they are currently part of the Eggpire so I doubt Harpocrates is him.

Eret - Eret is a king. Doubt he will join anarchy.

Ponk - Part of the eggpire so I doubt it.

Bad - Leader of Badlands and the Eggpire. That’s like double government. Definitely not him. Plus Techno probably has a bad relationship with him after he tried to convince Techno to join the Eggpire.

Antfrost - Eggpire

Sam - I think it could be Sam. I’m actually not sure if he’s part of the Eggpire and he’s not exactly included in any huge plots. The reason they’d want to stay secret is because they are a prison guard. He doesn’t have a bad relationship with Techno either.

Vikk - He’s never been included in lore and doesn’t seem to have an interest in it.

Laser - Same as Vikk, no interest in lore.

Techno - already part of it

Phil - already part of it

Niki - already part of it

Ranboo - already part of it

Tubbo - Leader of Snowchester and was the leader of LManburg and part of the Butcher Army. Definitely not.

Jack - It could be them accept for that he’s part of Snowchester and doesn’t seem to be leaving anytime soon.

Foolish - They are part of Snowchester but don’t seem to be overly loyal. Could be them. Plus since their new this would be a great way to be included in the lore.

Slimecicle - Has mentioned that they are anti-government and Ranboo was going to see if he could live near them. Definately could be him.

Karl - I would say possibly except he is now the leader of Kinoko Kingdom so probably not.

Sapnap - Same as Karl. He just now founded Kinoko Kingdom.

George - He has never wanted to get into lore really and also is one of the founding father of Kinoko Kingdom.

Puffy - Female. Possibly will join later.

Connor - Never really been part of the lore and used to run a country. It’s not imposible but I doubt it.

Fundy - part of the butcher army so I doubt Techno would allow him to be the first one to join.

Hannah - Female

HBomb - he has said he wants to get more into the lore. Could be.

Purpled - by being a mercenary for the Eggpire he shows that he wants to be more included in the lore, but he’s not a huge part right now so could easily be him.

Quackity - leader of the Butcher Army and previous leader of El Rapids.

Skeppy - could be but I doubt it

Tommy - no way Techno would trust him. He also is very pro government.

So the most likely people are Sam, Foolish, Slimecicle, HBomb, and Purpled. It’s possible it’s Connor or Skeppy also but not likely.

Updated:

Sam - Is part of Las Nevada’s and locked Techno in the prison

Foolish - Part of Las Nevadas

Slimecicle - Part of Las Nevada’s and character wise, just wouldn’t make sense

HBomb - Still possible

Purpled - Might join Las Nevada’s making it weird if he’s in the Syndicate

Connor - Still possible

Skeppy - connected to Egg

So the most likely people are HBomb and Connor?? I’m starting to think Harpocrates hasn’t joined the server yet. Perhaps it’s Micheal. Anyways, that wasn’t a helpful conclusion. I really don’t know who else it could be tho. Maybe it’s Steve. That’d be awesome.

How Techno and Dream are Going to Escape:
I’m a bit late to this but I also posted stuff about Harpocrates like a month ago so what’s new? Basically I was thinking, there are some theories over this that people just don’t mention anymore or were never mentioned in the first place. So now I’m doing a similar thing I did when I made an analyzed who might be going in prison, if anyone even remembers that. That had to have been one of my first posts back in early January or December. Anyways let’s get started:

The Syndicate:

I’d say probably the most common theory, which actually gives it a reason for it to not be correct because Wilbur is writing now and he likes things unpredictable. But it also makes sense. First of all, Techno left Philza a book that might have a way to get him out in it. Also the Syndicate knows about the nukes so they could easily be the ones who stole one which could be used. There’s also four of them (cause Harpocrates) so they have a higher chance of being able to compared to the other options. Also The Syndicate hasn’t actually done anything yet so what a way to start it out. A big problem with this tho is that Philza’s on his last life, so would Techno really want Philza to break him out? Which would also mean that there’s nothing to help him out in the book. Over all, likely option but it just seems to obvious.

Wilbur:

Another option that just seems to obvious since Dream literally said ‘Wilbur’s going to break me out of prison.’ That’s the entire reason he resurrected him! Which I guess makes it likely but this is even more obvious than the last one. As Dream said, Wilbur’s probably the smartest man alive which would make him capable of doing it ig but if he gets caught by Sam, he’s kind of screwed cause he’s one person and not great at PvP. He thinks of Dream as his hero so that gives him a reason to. If he lets Dream out of prison, he likely would lose his friendship with Tommy which honestly just doesn’t seem right. As much as they mention it in the story, I honestly don’t think it’s this option.

Ranboo:

This one hasn’t been mentioned in a while. Of like the three main guesses people had, this one is my favorite. First of all, I wouldn’t say it’s predictable enough to make it unlikely. Also Ranboo has his Enderwalk series going on which I guess helps this theory. The main problem is a big one and that is he’s not allowed in the prison, meaning Dreams not able to get Ranboo to let him out. As much as I want it to be this one, that last thing kind of makes it not make sense. But who knows what will happen in the future. Maybe he’ll get a way to communicate with Dream. Maybe he will convince Sam to put him in prison. Not out of the question based on the last enderwalk stream.

Quackity:

This theory started during that one scene with the horses and the siren and stuff. It doesn’t make sense. He hates Dream. The only way this would ever happen is if he helps him escape for the revive book, which he has actively stated that he doesn’t care about anymore. Glatt would have to like force or trick or manipulate Quackity into keeping his side of the deal or something. I guess Glatt could easily do it but idk. Doesn’t seem likely. Especially since Quackity is trying to form a country right now.

Punz:

Imma be honest, I’ve never seen anyone say this theory. I personally just think it’s likely. It doesn’t make sense that they would do the whole spy lore and do nothing with it. Everyone’s heard the theories about how Dream wanted to be put in prison. They make sense. Dream is cunning. He says that ‘if you can’t kill someone, then you can lock them up’ or something like that. He’s not about to kill himself. And think about it, everything Dream did in prison was so calculated. Making Sam’s life terrible, killing and resurrecting Tommy. And what ruined it? Quackity. Something unexpected. Why would Dream ever think that Quackity, out of everyone on the server, would ruin his plans? Las Nevadas wasn’t a thing when he was put in prison. Only problem with the Punz theory is it’s to unpredictable. I also might be a little biased.

The Eggpire:

But Mouse, the Eggpire was defeated after the Red Banquet! Shut up, the Egg was never destroyed and the EvanMcGaming documentary said ‘The End for now’ at the end meaning mores gonna happen. Why do I think it could be the Eggpire? Because when Bad and Ant became guards they were SUS. Like, constantly running off sus. And think about it, if the Eggpire were to get Dream on their side, then they will rule the server, which is literally they’re entire goal. Only problem is the Eggpire’s disbanded… also the Egg has never had anything to do with the prison but u know, not out of the picture and makes sense.

Techno and Dream:

Based on the last stream I don’t find it likely that they are getting out on their own…

Skeppy:

FORGET EVERYTHING I SAID. CLEAR ANSWER RIGHT HERE. TECHNO’S DONE IT BEFORE HE WILL DO IT AGAIN.

The Bell:

[REDACTED]

Jokes aside, sadly the Syndicate appears to be the most likely option. The Punz thing would be awesome tho.

Which Dream SMP Character is EvanMCGaming Going to Make a Documentary Over Next:
So EvanMCGaming recently came out with one of his Legends documentaries over Philza. The other previous ones he has done are Technoblade and Dream. So I started to think, "Huh. I wonder who he'll do next." So these are who he might be doing next. They are mostly Dream SMP, but i've got a few at the end that aren't.

Tommyinnit - First of all, we'd have the basics that would easily get there own section. SMPEarth, Dream SMP, and MCC. These would fill up a lot of space, but it needs something that would make it different from all the other documentaries, and since SMPEarth and Dream SMP were mentioned in two of them, and MCC mentioned in all three of the previous ones, it wouldn't make a very good documentary. And this is where the Funny Mods series comes in. Many people have done mod showcases and series over mods on Youtube. It's nothing new. Tommy changed the way it was done though. They were about beating the game, yet it focused more on the comedy aspect and usually most of the people included weren't even trying. It was different. Also, he ya know, blew up so it wouldn't be surprising if we was talked about soon.

Wilbur Soot - Wilbur is not the first person I think of when I think 'Minecraft Youtuber.' So what makes him qualified? Well, he's one of the people who created SMPEarth, he's been in every MCC, participated in Minecraft Monday with both Philza and Technoblade, and was a part of SMPLive, which unlike the previous things I've mentioned, hasn't ever been talked about, and if I'm going to be honest, the only person I see it being talked about with anytime soon is Wilbur. It'd be different and cool. He could also talk about his music, and most importantly, how he has changed Minecraft Youtube through the Dream SMP. How he started the lore on there, inspiring many other Minecraft series and causing it to be the biggest Minecraft SMP to this day. Oh and I almost forgot, the ARG. Now that would be cool to hear Evan talk about.

Skeppy - I've seen documentaries over Skeppy related things, and it'd be really cool to see it all in one thing. First of all, has to be mentioned, Minecraft Mondays. He and Bad were a dominating force in that. Then there's also the Dream SMP, obviously. The interesting things would be him talking about the Muffin Squad, a disbanded Youtube group consisting of Skeppy, Badboyhalo, and A6D. This isn't the only Youtube group Skeppy's been a part of. How about IDOT? Another disbanded Youtube group consisting of Skeppy, Spifey, JustVurb, Zelk, and F1NN5TER. And of course, the 100 player challenges, something new, never done before in the way he had done it, and how it had went on at the best time possible.

Ranboo - So, I don't think Ranboo is going to be the next documentary. Why? Cause he's still very new to both Twitch and Youtube, meaning he hasn't done all that much. Sure, he blew up really quickly which was interesting and he has the Dream SMP, but that's really it. He's only been a part of MCC twice and didn't win either, so there's not much to talk about there. I can see Ranboo getting a documentary eventually, but not anytime soon.

Non-Dream SMP Members:

CaptainSparklez - I don't watch him, but this dude has been a part of MCYT for who knows how long. He deserves a documentary.

LDShadowlady - Like CaptainSparklez, she's been a part of the MCYT community for a long time, and there'd be so very interesting topics to talk about with her. Mainly, all the SMPs she's been a part of. Most of these SMPs lay forgotten which is kind of sad actually. She was a big part of most of them, and making a documentary over her would be a good way to give these old SMPs some recognition. These SMPs include, Crazycraft, Trollcraft, Cutecraft, Funcraft, One Life Seasons 1-3 (I think), Kingdomcraft, X-Life, and the newest, Empires. These aren't even all of them probably. And some of these like Crazycraft, Kingdomcraft, and X-Life would be really interesting to hear about. She also had her Shadowcraft series from forever ago. She was also in MCC and has had many other mini series with her husband Joel (aka Smallishbeans).

There are probably others that could be on this list, and I'd like to hear your guys opinions on the matter. I hope you enjoyed this analysis over EvanMCGaming's future Legends documentary.

Wilbur Soot: Four Character's in One:
Wilbur Soot is one of the most interesting characters on the Dream SMP because while other characters go through character development as their characters learn lessons and become more mature as they go through different wars and life changing occurrences, Wilbur managed to change his character multiple times drastically and yet it still seemed to natural in his characters story, which is something that no character has done as successfully as his.

In the beginning of the Dream SMP, Wilbur was depicted as the hero of the story along with Tommy and Tubbo. While he is definitely considered as one of the protagonists, he is far from a hero. He was greedy and didn’t care for his own or others safety. And this is what made the transition from President Wilbur to Insane Wilbur so smooth. While they seemed to be different, the Wilbur we saw in Pogtopia is just an insane version of the Wilbur we saw at the beginning of this story. Let's start at the beginning. Wilbur starts a drug van which quickly is seen as a bad thing by many and people, namely Sapnap, attempt to shut it down. In response, Wilbur turns this drug van into a country, dragging Tommy along with him, which Dream doesn’t like. Wilbur depicts Dream as a dictator. He claims that they should have the freedom to do what they want, including starting a drug van. He manipulates people into following these beliefs and Eret, Fundy, and Tubbo join him and Tommy. This starts a war between the newly made L’Manburg and the Greater Dream SMP and the L’Manburgians, three of whom were canonically children at the time, have to fight. “It was just a drug van.” A line said months later by Ranboo. It’s true. All Wilbur wanted to do was “stick it to the higher power,” in his words, because he didn’t get his way.

I briefly mentioned this version of Wilbur, but let's go on to the Wilbur we get to see in Pogtopia, someone seemingly completely different from the Wilbur we saw before, who was always calm and collected. This Wilbur was far from calm and collected. He craved destruction, but, like the old Wilbur, he was greedy. This Wilbur started showing himself after he lost an election to a fair vote and had to flee the country with Tommy after Schlatt exiled him when he gained rule. Wilbur believes that he was in the right and that Schlatt was a merciless dictator, despite Wilbur attempting to rig the votes in his favor and electing himself as President when the country first started. Even Technoblade points out during the Manburg vs Pogtopia war that at least Schlatt got voted for while after they took Schlatt down they appointed Tubbo as president without anyone else getting a say. Wilbur realizes this though, and that’s when we truly start seeing the insane Wilbur. “If I can’t have L’Manburg, no one can.” He embraces his greed, embraces this phrase, and mixed with Techno attempting to push his anarchist views on people, he decides to destroy everything. Both these Wilbur’s are one and the same.

Ghostbur is a character that we will never quite understand, and trust me, I’ve tried. He’s unlike anything else in the Dream SMP and even though he is shown so much despite Wilbur only streaming as him once, his character is a mystery. The personality of Ghostbur isn’t what I mean. We will never understand how Ghostbur truly connects to Alivebur because we don’t, and likely never will, know how ghosts and the Afterlife work and how a ghost is connected to the live version. Despite this, the transition from Wilbur to Ghostbur fits the character and still runs smoothly. They have completely different personalities though, unlike the two previous Wilbur’s I have talked about. That’s the key though, to how the transition works. See, Ghostbur isn’t just different from Wilbur, but he’s the complete opposite. Ghostbur isn’t greedy. He’s constantly trying to help others out and never actually cares about himself. In fact, the one time he did was when he yelled at Philza about destroying L’Manburg and killing Friend, and he ended up forgetting about it. He cares about others and cares about their feelings and what they are doing. He tried to help Tommy and Tubbo during the exile arc, tried to keep Philza company while he was under house arrest, and tried to help Techno just before and after he got executed, even if he failed at most of these, which is another reason. He’s clueless. He doesn’t understand himself or others. When we talked about Insane Wilbur, we talked about how he knew that he was greedy and in the wrong. Ghostbur never knows when people are in the wrong and never understands what they are going through. Ghostbur seems like a shallow side character just there for comedic relief till we get Wilbur back, but he is so much more. He’s a shell of his once alive self just wishing to feel natural again because this isn’t who he is, but everytime he shows any part of himself, learns anything about his old self, he forgets.

Revivebur is a difficult character to analyze because we’ve barely seen him. Wilbur’s only streamed as him three times and hasn’t been shown in anyone else's streams other than at the very end of Tommy’s for a split second after he was revived. On the surface, he seems a lot like what Wilbur was like before he died the first time. He’s manipulative and greedy, starting Paradise after Quackity refused to let him join his country. He goes back to his old ways, convincing Ranboo that Quackity is in the wrong and doesn’t care about the consumer and gets him to join his side. We established that Wilbur knows that he is greedy and manipulative, but the true difference between Revivebur and Wilbur is that Revivebur doesn’t want to be like this, but he’s already embraced it. It’s in his nature. He reveals to Ranboo that he doesn’t like other people being scared of him and is excited at the fact that Ranboo and Quackity see him as a person. Revivebur doesn’t know any other way to solve his problems though and he doesn’t know how to change, so he continues to do what he has always done.

Wilbur did an amazing job at writing character development, whether it was for the better or worse. The four versions of his character are seemingly so different yet they are truly one and the same character and connect to each other so smoothly as the story progresses. I hope you enjoyed this character analysis. I hope to do more of these in the future and if you have any requests, feel free to suggest them in the comments. Thanks for reading.

DSMP Factions as Flowers:
https://dreamteam.fandom.com/f/p/4400000000000059052

The Gods of the Dream SMP:
So I’ve been sitting in a car a lot lately because I’m on a weekend thing. This has brought me lots of time to think and one of the things I’ve been thinking about is the gods of the SMP. I was wondering how many there were and what gods there was. I started pairing these with some theories I’ve come up with before and I ended up coming up with a new theory also. The gods that I’ve come up with are as followed:

DreamXD

Drista

Dream

FoolishG

Unknown War God

Unknown Time God 1

Possible Unknown Time God 2

Unknown Afterlife God

Unknown Prime God

There might be more but these are the ones I’ve come up with. Now let’s get to the theory part of this post:

So the first three gods listed are all actual people on the server, DreamXD, Drista, and Dream. The theory ive come up with states that these three are siblings. DreamXD is the God of Gods. He’s the leader of the gods like Zeus or Ra. Drista is the God of the People. While her brother rules the gods she rules all the humans, or human-like, things down in the Overworld. This is why Drista has much better people skills then DreamXD and visits the Overworld more often (by the way that’s what I call ‘Earth’ in Minecraft cause that’s the dimension). Now where does Dream fall into this? Well like I said, the three of these gods are siblings. One rules gods, one rules people, and what would only make sense is that the other rules the dead. Dream is the god of the dead. And you may be thinking, how can Dream be a god when he doesn’t have creative powers or live where ever gods live at? Well, he was banished. He was stripped of his godly powers, including his infinite lives. There’s no way to tell how but we know that Dream has a big ego and a lot of greed so it could have to do with that. This explains both DreamXD’s relationship with George and Drista’s with Tommy. DreamXD sees George as the brother he never got to have and Drista, as the god of humans, pities Tommy from all the bad things her brother has done to him. This is why the three look so much alike also. And why Dream was so excited when he could revive people, even comparing himself to a God. He had the power of a god in his hand and it even had to do with the dead, who he previously ruled. But they weren’t his powers, which we will get to with the next god, Foolish.

Other than the 3 siblings, Foolish is the only other god we know the name of. He is the God of Life and Death and Oceans. (and no, that’s not the same as Dream. He’s the God of the Dead, not death). Also, if you know about my whole Foolish/Jack theory, then you know that Foolish is an exiled god, just like Dream. You may say, but he still has lightning, while Dream has nothing. The reason for this is because Foolish got exiled for his use of his Life and Death powers, while the lightning comes from his Ocean powers, so he got to keep those while his Life and Death powers and his infinite lives got stripped away from him. Why were these powers stripped away? Well some of u who have heard the theory know why, though I’ve added another reason. Foolish was very irresponsible as a god. And just one of these things would’ve been fine, but he did at least 3 things that caused him to be exiled. The first, and the newest edition to the theory, is creating the totems of undying. This is why he refers to Foolish Jr as his child. Because he actually created it. It’s also why there are so limited in the world. The second thing he did was create the Resurrection Book. This is why Dream felt like he had the power of the gods in his hands. He did. Foolish’s power. And not just because he created it, but also because he’s done it, as the the thing that finally got him exiled was resurrecting Jack, and 10 days after his sentence was given, he was sent to join the humans in the Overworld.

The next god I’m going over we don’t have the name of, but I think they exist because of a theory I’ve made. It was actually the first theory I ever made about the Dream SMP. And it’s about the God of War and Pigs. Some might remember this theory but I’ve added on to it. So a long time ago I made a theory that Techno was a decedent of either Aries or Athena. Well, now we know that there are actual canonical gods to the server and they aren’t Greek. I still think he’s the descendent of a war god though because of his abnormally good his fighting abilities are, his violent ways, and the phrase ‘Technoblade never dies.’ These qualities (not the phrase. That’s just said because he’s a Demi-god) would make sense to have if he were the son or grandson or whatever of a God of War. The part I’ve added on is the pig part. In Egyptian Mythology, gods often look like whatever animal they are the god of and those who aren’t gods of animals can still turn into ones. They are often depicted with animal heads also. So it wouldn’t be a shocker if some of the Dream SMP gods look like the animals they rule. After all, Foolish is a totem of undying and he’s the god of Life and Death. So it would make sense that at least some of a Pig God’s physical characteristics might pass onto some of their descendants. And this god has a lot of descendants. Lots of Demi-god children. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but almost all Techno‘s characters in Tales of the SMP are of course pigs, but also violent. In the Masquerade he was killing people off for the Egg, in Wild West he was a sheriff, in The Pit he ran large scale battles, some to the death. The only one that wasn’t violent was his character in The Haunted Mansion, and we can’t expect all his descendants to share his qualities. There might be many generations between him and the god, leaving him with only his pig-like features. This is my proof that there is a God of War and Pigs.

Let’s get onto the two time gods. There isn’t to much to say about these two. I’m sure you can guess that one rules the Inbetween and one rules the Other Side. I believe that they are both feuding gods wishing for power from the time travelers that visit them. Not much to say other than that they are complete opposites and therefore hate each other. But, they might not be Time Gods. They might actually be Afterlife Gods which I’m getting to now.

Right so there is either an afterlife god and a time god, or 2 feuding time gods and an afterlife god, and this all goes with this huge theory I’ve said that I can’t get into to much detail of because it would take a while. And also, Afterlife God is different from Death God and Dead God. One is the god of the place, one of the verb, and one of the people who are dead. So the the simple option here is that there’s the feuding time gods I mentioned before and an afterlife god, who basically just rules the afterlife and chooses who goes where, like Tommy had a dark tunnel, Will had a train station, and Jack an endless hole. The reason there are two options is because I think these gods exist no matter what. It just depends on whether this theory of mine is true. Basically the theory is that there is the time god who chooses where the time travelers go, but the Inbetween and Other Side are part of the afterlife with the actual Afterlife place being the path from the Inbetween to the Other Side. All of the Afterlife’s known so far have to do with traveling. A tunnel, a train, and a seemingly endless pit. Rather than three gods controlling each place, the Inbetween, Other Side, and Afterlife, it’s one god controlling all of them.

Last god there’s no theory for. I just think that there’s the Prime God who is the one who kills people when they kill in the Holy Land.

For those who managed to get through this, hope you enjoyed! I honestly just wanted to brainstorm on who the other gods of the server are because I don’t think it’s just DreamXD, Drista, and Foolish. And I ended up realizing that I had come up with a lot of theories relating to gods in the past. If you have any ideas for more gods that might exist, let me know! Again hope you enjoyed! (And Nightmares 3 are coming soon. Been procrastinating).

How Everyone Came to the Dream SMP:
These are backstories for most of the people in the Dream SMP. I know I'm not the only one who has done this, but I thought it'd be fun. Some might be similar to other peoples. I put these in the order everyone came to the SMP.

Added Sections: Quackity and Schlatt, Niki

Dream, George, Callahan, Sapnap, Alyssa, and Awesomedude:

Dream was a very strong pvper and a very charismatic person. This caught the attention of a Dreamon that had stumbled into the town that Dream lived in. The dreamon decided he would be the perfect host for him and used his body, taking over his mind. His friends, George, Callahan, Sapnap, Alyssa, and Awesomedude, became worried as they realized a change in their friend. Their once kind friend had become rude and power hungry. When Dream proposed starting a new civilization somewhere else, they didn’t know what to think. George proposed that he would go with him and he would later contact them if he believed it was safe. Dream and George left together to discover the Dream SMP. After a while, the friends started gravitating towards the place as George reported to them that he believed Dream and his plans were safe. They grew to get used to the new Dream and were fine with him leading them and their SMP.

Ponk and Badboyhalo:

Ponk, another dreamon, had heard of Dream and his success in his SMP. Interested, he decided to go there and see the success of his fellow Dreamon hoping that this might be there chance to finally rise to greatness. Badboyhalo was a demon similar to Ponk and Dream, but he wasn’t an evil one. He uses a hood to cover up his face so no one knows what he really is in fear that they will hate him. He’s been hunting and spying on dreamons for a long time to keep them from causing chaos or blowing his cover. He’d been worried when his son Sapnap left with his friends all of the sudden, but chose to let them go. It was when Ponk, a man he knew was a dreamon, left to follow them later did he realize his son and his friends might be in danger. He said goodbye to his friend Skeppy, a diamond block he had accidentally humanized, and left for the Dream SMP to continue his quest to stop the dreamons.

Tommy, Tubbo, Wilbur, and Skeppy:

Philza had raised his 3 kids in a secluded home with no one around them for miles, along with his best friend Techno. He didn’t want his kids to be influenced by the people around the cities and he was worried for himself and losing his only life. The three children often were chaotic and often caused trouble from their boredom since they didn’t see people often. Techno helped to keep them entertained. He would often spar with Wilbur and taught him about potions, though he was more interested in writing and reading than fighting with him. Tommy and Tubbo, however, got out their energy by playing pranks on their father, brother, and Techno. Usually being Tommy’s idea, but Tubbo always followed along as they were best friends. When the kids grew up, Tommy and Tubbo decided to leave their secluded life and see the world, settling in the Dream SMP. Soon after, Wilbur decided to join them. Skeppy, lonely from not seeing his friend for some time, came to find the SMP also. (I added him with them just cause his was short).

Niki:

''Note: This is not a fan fiction thing where I want two people to get together and stuff. This is simply a small story about how Niki came to the Dream SMP and there happens to be relationships in them.'' Niki lived in the same town as Quackity and Schlatt. Schlatt tended to flirt with Niki, but due to his drunken nature Niki always left. When Wilbur came to stay in the town for a few days, Niki and Wilbur became quick friends. Schlatt was jealous of this, despite nothing happening between Niki and Wilbur, and he became angry with Niki and Wilbur. Niki left the town shortly before Quackity in order to find L’Manburg and be reunited with her friend Wilbur, because she had no reason to stay in her town. When Schlatt came, he exiled Wilbur and his brother Tommy, which ended up benefiting him and his rise to greatness, and raised taxes on Niki, as he wanted to keep her close still.

Quackity and Schlatt:

Quackity and Schlatt were long time friends much before joining everyone in the Dream SMP and L’Manburg. Quackity tended to be chaotic and loud, but this didn’t both Schlatt as he was drunk most of the time. Once, in a bar, the two met a man named Wilbur. They got along well and bought each other drinks. Wilbur explained how he was off to find his brothers, Tubbo and Tommy, in a place called the Dream SMP. Schlatt let Wilbur stay with him for a couple of days till he was off on his journey again. A while later, Quackity and Schlatt hear of the brand new L’Manburg. Learning that it was run by Wilbur, they saw a place for easy success. They came up with a scheme to become president. Schlatt offers to Wilbur to endorse him and that gives him his chance to run as president. When Wilbur and Tommy wanted to pool votes with Quackity, it made it all the easier for Schlatt and Quackity to pool votes with each other. Later on, during the Pogtopia vs Manburg war, Quackity realizes they will lose. He betrays his friend to go onto the winning side, but later comes up with a plan to bring Schlatt back.

Technoblade and Philza:

Philza had heard what was happening in Manburg and Pogtopia. He’d been hoping that everything would be fine and that his sons could deal with it themselves like they had in the previous war (L’manburg vs Dream SMP). Finally, he pushed back his fear of losing his only life to go and help them. Technoblade, however, refused to let him go. He told him he’d go in his place. That he had much more lives and was a much better pvper. Philza gave in and allowed Techno to go in his place. Techno promised he’d come back when the war was over and he’d keep Tubbo, Tommy, and Wilbur safe. Wilbur and Tommy, who were expecting Philza to be coming to their aid, were extremely wary when they saw Techno there. They knew and trusted him since he had helped raise them, but they also knew what his beliefs were. In the end though, they let him in. After Techno had still not returned, and it had been a long time, Philza finally decided that he should go also. He was fearful about if something might have happened to Techno or his sons and he felt the need to help. When he got there, however, he came to Wilbur blowing up L’manburg. After the events, Techno and Phil decided that Tubbo and Tommy needed them to stay there so they didn’t go crazy like Wilbur.

Ranboo:

''Note: This one is based of a theory I have about Ranboo being part dreamon. This one is likely wrong.'' Ranboo, a humanzied enderman, had been taken over by a dreamon. However, since he wasn’t a human unlike Dream and Ponk, the dreamon was struggling taking over. Ranboo still didn’t know what was happening to him, however, and his short term memory loss wasn’t helping him realize what was going on. He kept getting the urge to go to the Dream SMP and L’manburg. He didn’t know why, but he decided to go there. It was a big mistake though. The dreamon had led him there, but since he was around Dream and Ponk, the dreamon in him was stronger and was making him confused about everything.

Hope you enjoyed!

Dream SMP Backstories 2.0 But Everyone is Connected:
Alright so a month or two ago I posted some backstories on here over how certain people came to the Dream SMP. Well over time I started thinking up a couple more. And then in this past week I was like, "Hey, what if I thought up backstories for every single person, but I connected them all and they weren't just about how they got to the Dream SMP." These aren't how people get to the Dream SMP. In fact I stop mentioning how people get to the Dream SMP after Eret get's there. It's just peoples backstories and how every character is connected. There are two Dream SMP characters you will not be seeing in this. They are Ranboo and Fundy. Fundy was technically born in L'Manburg so he doesn't have a backstory and Ranboo has been going through a ton of character development so it just doesn't seem right to come up with a backstory for him. To see how everyone is connected in this you have to think of it this way: everyone is connected to either Technoblade or Badboyhalo (or connected to someone who is connected to one of them) and then Skeppy connects Bad and Techno together. I will warn you, this is long. Like, I used 8 and a bit pages of a Google Docs on 11 Arial font long. So if your curious about specific things, I have split everything up into sections with who it's about bolded at the top and what it's explains about the actual Dream SMP story and when it takes place in italics right under that. Everything is in the order it happened. Also remember that this is all speculation and likely isn't true, so some stuff might sound a bit weird to you. Also twice in this (once in the middle and once at the end) I state peoples ages at that current time in the backstories. It's intresting, but is really weird since the backstories make some people a lot older than they probably are canonically. Anyways, lets get into it:

Badboyhalo and Skeppy:

''The meeting of Bad and Skeppy is the first event to happen on the Dream SMP. This event is used to explain Skeppy and Bad’s long time friendship and why they share lives in a way.''

Despite being a demon himself, Bad didn’t like other demons. He felt like they ruined it for the good demons (like him) as most people believed that all demons were bad. Because of this, Badboyhalo has been a demon Hunter for a long time. Most people didn’t know he was a demon since he covered his face with a hood (most demons cover there faces with something so no one knows for sure what one looks like). Bad often puts his life in danger killing other demons or just keeping them under control. He read up some stuff on Totems and figured out a way to place his lives in inanimate objects and so the lives would only be taken if that item was destroyed. He planned to get three different items, one for each life. The first thing he tried this on was a diamond block. However, due to him being a demon, it didn’t go the way it was supposed to. Instead he gave all his lives to the diamond block and ended up bringing it to life. The diamond was confused and knew nothing about the world as he had just been turned human. Over time, Bad came to care for the diamond, who decided to go by Skeppy. He continued his demon hunting and made sure to never get Skeppy involved. Not just for his own lives, but he didn’t want Skeppy to die either.

Technoblade and Philza:

''It is unclear how much time has passed since the first event. This event is used to explain Techno and Phil’s long time friendship, Techno’s hate for government, Techno’s crown and robe, and why Techno looks like a pig.''

When Techno was a kid, he wandered into the Nether, which most people didn’t explore as it was recently discovered. When he got through a ghast blew up his portal. No one came for him so he eventually wandered off. As time went by, he got bitten by many zombie piglins and had to live off mushrooms and nether wart. Over time he started to transform into a piglin himself. One day, he’s about a teenager now maybe 17, a man about his age named Philza is exploring the Nether and finds him. At first he believes he is a piglin and raises his weapon, but after Techno speaks English and tells him what happened all those years ago Philza realizes that he’s indeed human(ish). Philza (who had wings for those who don’t know) flies Techno back to his own portal. When they go threw, though, Techno isn’t met with kindness or sympathy. People tell him and Philza that he’s a piglin and belongs in the Nether and the king soon ordered Philza to take Techno back where he came from. Philza did as he was told but stayed with Techno in the Nether. After a few months, they grew to be great friends and Techno came up with a scheme for revenge and Philza agreed that he would be there if he needed help. Philza had brought some obsidian to the Nether with them just in case they had to get to the Overworld and their portal was broken. Techno built a portal that led directly to the Kings bedroom and slaughtered him three times, taking all his lives. He immediately went back through the portal but not before the kings young son ran into the room and saw him escape. After this, Techno and Philza went back to the Overworld (through a seperate portal) and built a small house for the two of them away from everyone so no one could find and kill Techno. A few years pass and Philza leaves as he wants to start a family.

CaptainPuffy, Eret, Purpled, and Punz:

''This takes place right after the death of the king. This event is used to explain why Eret betrayed everyone to be king even though he is a nice guy.''

CaptainPuffy was a knight and was the Kings son, Eret, personal guard. Puffy was talking with two mercenaries, Purpled and Punz, about a job that they needed payment for. While discussing, the three heard a scream from another part of the castle. They rush over there to find the young Prince Eret crying on the ground and the king dead. Later, when he’s in a bit better shape, Eret tells Puffy and some other knights that the killer was a man who looked like a pig. They of course knew who that was. Puffy once again hires Punz and Purpled to find Techno as they were two of the best mercenaries around and already were in the castle and knew what happened. A few months later, the kingdom falls into anarchy as they are without a ruler since Eret is the runner up for the throne and he’s just a little boy. The kingdom is in shambles, but Puffy still stays with Eret to protect him. When he’s older, he finds and kills Technos parents after trying to get them to tell him where Techno is, despite them not knowing. (I put this in because a Techno has stated that his parents were killed by an orphan. This was a joke but thought I should add it in). Around this time, Puffy leaves her charge because she believes that he is now able to take care of himself, though it’s likely that she just didn’t like who he’d become. Purpled and Punz were still looking for Techno though.

Badboyhalo and Sapnap:

''This happened probably a year or two after the beginning of the previous event, just in a different part of the world, as I believe Eret and Sapnap are around the same age. This event is used to explain Sapnap being Bad’s son and for the backstories, why Bad is no longer a demon hunter.''

Bad often sat around places looking out for demons. One place that he started sitting around at recently was this park. Everyday these kids would play games here and then go to there houses around dinner. One kid, however, never left. He just sat down on a bench. Sometimes he would have food and sometimes he wouldn’t. Bad pitied this kid as he figured he didn’t have a home, or parents for that matter. One day he decided to pack an extra sandwich for the kid. After all the kids left he gave the boy the sandwich. The boy questioned why he was always there but Bad said that he couldn’t answer that. He ate the sandwich anyways and Bad went home. Every day he started bringing the kid food. He learned his name was Sapnap and that his parents were explorers and they’d gone on a trip and never came back. He didn’t know what had happened to them. After a while of this, Bad offered for Sapnap to stay at his place for the night. He met Skeppy (he was nervous at first since Skeppy is a diamond block) and it soon became a nightly thing to stay there. Eventually Bad bought him clothes and some stuff for his bedroom and just kind of adopted him. After this, Bad retired from demon hunting as he didn’t want to put Sapnap in danger.

Eret and Karl Jacobs:

''This happened a while after the previous event, probably somewhere between 10-15 years. It also happens a little bit after Eret kills Techno’s parents. This event is used to explain why Karl didn’t time travel for so long and how he knows how to.''

Puffy had just left Eret a few days ago. A couple days before that he had interrogated Techno’s parents and learned nothing. It had been years of searching for Techno and they still came up with nothing. Eret started to believe that he would never get revenge for the death of his father, or the falling of his kingdom. Eret was hanging out at a pub one day and saw these men teasing this guy. They kept asking him about past events and then later called him time traveler. Eret knew the guy was probably crazy and had told these people he could go back in time, but he was becoming desperate. He followed him out of the pub and confronted him. He said his name was Karl. Eret asked if he really was a time traveler and Karl said that he was. Eret invited him back to his place that way they could talk in private. Eret then asked him to stop the death of his father and to have everyone kill Techno on the spot when he steps out of the portal. Karl refuses, but after being promised hefty sums of money and a death threat Karl agrees to. It doesn’t go as planned, however, as only a few knights went after him, assuming he was weak, but they were killed quickly by Techno. Phil didn’t even fight. The king still ordered for him to be taken back and the king still later died. All this caused was more deaths. When Karl got back, Eret remembered what happened and now recognized Karl. He begged him to go back and try again, but this time he refuses and runs off, saying he’s done enough damage.

Eret and Connoreatspants:

''This happened just a little bit after the previous event. This is used to explain Connor’s interest in politics.''

Connor’s dad was the kings, Eret’s dad, right hand man. He helped him with many decisions with politics and family life. When anarchy came to the kingdom, this made Connor’s family a target. They manage to hide for awhile, but within a few years Connor’s family was killed. Connor managed to survive though and lived in the once great kingdom throughout most of his childhood. A while later, he runs into Eret. They both remembered each other and talked for awhile, glad to be able to talk and get away from everything going on. Eret informed him how Puffy had left him and how he, Purpled, and Punz were still looking for Techno, despite everyone else giving up hope. After this, Eret took Connor under his wing to keep each other safe and to give each other some company.

Wilbursoot, Slimecicle, and JackManifold:

''It’s getting very difficult to say the time everything happens in, so lets say this is around the same time as the last thing. This is used to explain Phil’s want for Tommy to be nice to Charlie and Jack’s hatred for the new L’Manburg (When Tubbo was president).''

Wilbur, Charlie, and Jack are best friends. They always hung out together and often messed with bees and mules (If you didn’t get it, this is a reference to two different Tommyinnit videos). When Wilbur’s mom died, the two boys were there for him and comforted him through it. The death ended up ending there friendship however as Phil decided to move in with “an old friend” and brought his three sons with him. This caused the friends great grief in having to leave each other, and had hope that they would be able to reunite one day. Eventually, of course, Jack and Wilbur did reunite, but Wilbur died soon after. This caused him to hate L’Manburg as it reminded him of Wilbur and he believed the leaders could’ve stopped him from going mad. A while later, Charlie comes also as he heard word that Jack was there. Note: only the beginning of this event happened in this placement as the others happened in the actual Dream SMP story.

Alright while we are here, I’m even getting confused on the ages of everyone in this story so here’s a rundown:

Badboyhalo’s age is unknown but he has a very long life due to him being a demon. If you want to believe these backstories, than canonically Bad is the oldest person on the server.

You can’t really define Skeppy’s age because he’s in the body of an adult, but as we can see he was born that way, but we also don’t know when he was created so lets just say he’s an adult.

Techno and Philza are around the same age. At the beginning they were teenagers, around 17, but in the time we are in now they are both probably in their low 30s.

Puffy, Punz, and Purpled were in their low 20s when they were first mentioned so now they are probably in their mid-late 30s.

Sapnap and Eret are around the same age. When Eret was first mentioned he was about 5 and when Sapnap was first mentioned he was about 9. So now they are in their low 20s.

Karl is a bit older than Eret so he’s in his mid-late 20s.

Connor is a bit younger than Eret so he’s in his high teens.

Wilbur, Slimecicle, and Jack are about 7. I’ll give another rundown later:)

Awesamdude and Hannahxxrose:

''This takes place around the same time as the previous event. This event is used to explain why Sam is a creeper.''

Sam is an amazing scientist and redstone engineer, despite his young age. The main thing he studied was creepers as he wanted to figure out what caused them to explode and how they could extinguish themselves before they exploded unlike regular TNT. While experimenting he decided to make something that would give him the qualities of a creeper temporarily, but it didn’t work. When he turned into a creeper, he caused an explosion. This injured him badly, but somehow didn’t kill him. Sam was in a remote location when he did the experiment just in case he did explode, but he had expected to die if that happened, so now he didn’t have any help. It just so happens that there was a girl around that area collecting roses who had heard the explosion. She ran over there and found Sam. Despite him looking like a creeper, she knew he wasn’t as he had the body shape of a human and she saw redstone remains so she assumed that had caused the explosion. She took Sam back to her house and cared for him there. When he awoke he thanked her and left a few days later. Sam speculated that since he had blast protection on his armor, the explosion didn’t kill him, but he couldn’t explode anymore since creepers only explode once. He learned some stuff that he wanted to know, but he ended up looking like a creeper forever.

Dream, Georgenotfound, Sapnap, Callahan, ItsAlyssa, and Awesamdude:

''This happens a couple years after the previous event. This event is used to explain Dream being a dreamon and how the Dream SMP started.''

Dream was an intelligent and charismatic guy, which caught the attention of a Dreamon (a type of demon) that needed a vessel. He decided to possess Dream to try and get some power, despite Dream having no power at the moment. His friends, George, Sapnap, Callahan, Alyssa, and Sam, all noticed him acting stranger and a bit more demanding but they didn’t question it till he told them all that he wanted to move away and start an SMP. The friends didn’t know how to react to this but George steps up and says he will go with him. He later tells all his friends that he will send a message if it is safe, and he eventually does. The friends slowly start coming and the Dream SMP is born.

Badboyhalo and Ponk:

''This happened right after the previous event. This is used to explain Ponk being a dreamon and the coming of Bad and Ponk to the server.''

Sapnap just left to go join his friends in the Dream SMP, leaving Bad and Skeppy. Bad accepts his decision and believes his son will be safe till he notices his neighbor Ponk leaving in the same direction as Sapnap did the day after. He ran to his room to get his Demon Hunting journal and there he remembered the Ponk was a Dreamon. Ponk wanted to see the success of his fellow Dreamon, as that type of demon often stuck together. Bad, worried about his son (also remember that he doesn’t know Dream is a Dreamon) pack up his things and goes in the same direction Sapnap and Ponk went. He tells Skeppy not to follow him, for both theirs safety, so Skeppy stays home.

Badboyhalo, FoolishGamers, and Antfrost:

''This happens a bit after the previous event, on Bad’s journey to find the Dream SMP. This is used to explain Ant’s great relationship with Bad, how Ant is a cat and Foolish is a totem, and for backstories, why Bad came to the Dream SMP a bit after Ponk despite leaving around the same time.''

Ponk and Bad left around the same time, but Ponk still arrived a quite a bit before Bad did. This was because Bad had a major delay on his journey. Bad ran into an old friend, one he had met during a demon hunting assignment, who was mortally wounded. Bad happened to have a totem with him and decided to try and use it to save Antfrost. Since Ant was having a very slow and painful death (he’d been in the hospital for a couple days) Bad couldn’t wait to use the totem for when he actually died. Instead he told Ant that he knew a way to combine him with another vessel so he would live. Ant wished to be combined with his cat and that’s how he became an anthropomorphic cat. In the process of ombining the bodies, as we know that things don’t go the way Bad expects due to him being a demon, they brought the totem itself to life. Bad had to stay with Ant and the totem, whom started calling himself Foolish, to help Ant get used to his new body and to help Foolish understand the world he lived in. Eventually, both Ant and Foolish will go to the Dream SMP (Likely because they here of other people similar to them, Skeppy, Awesamedude, and Techno).

Skeppy, Technoblade, Philza, Wilbursoot, Tommyinnit, and Tubbo:

''This happens a while after the previous event, about 15 years. I know in real time this should’ve only happened a couple of weeks after the previous event, but this is backstory time, which is a lot longer. This is used to explain why Tubbo, Tommy, and Wilbur went to the Dream SMP specifically and for backstories, to connect the Bad with Techno.''

Skeppy was supposed to stay home, away from Bad and Ponk, but after years of being alone he decided to leave. He struggled a lot finding the Dream SMP though. Most people wouldn’t help him due to his diamond block nature. Some attacked him hoping to get some diamonds out of it. Skeppy also just didn’t know to much about the orld. Yes, he’d been alive for a long time now, but he didn’t get out too much and mostly hung around Bad and Sapnap. Skeppy was wandering through the woods, going the complete opposite direction from where he needs to be I might add, and came across a cabin. He knocked on the door, bracing himself for the scorn, and a man with wings opened the door, sword in hand. Remember that people are hunting down and trying to kill Techno right now, and they’ve never gotten a visitor as the cabin is away from everything and deep in a forest. Meanwhile, Techno and Wilbur are sparring with sticks in the woods. Techno hears Phil ask someone what they want and see a silhouette of a man at the door. He tells Wilbur to get his brothers and hide and starts running over there. Skeppy is trying to explain to Phil that he is looking for his friend, Bad, and believes he is this tense because of his looks. Phil in reality doesn’t care at all as he lives with Techno. Techno runs up, prepared to fight. Skeppy is surprised by Techno’s appearance as he has never seen someone like him. Techno is a little also, but hides it as he believes this man is here to kill him. Techno asks him what he wants with him, and Skeppy claims that he wants nothing to do with him and that he just wants to find Bad. Techno is going to search Skeppy’s backpack for weapons or potions when he hears Wilbur yelling at someone to get back here. Tommy runs out of the woods and stops in shock. A quick note, at the time Phil and the three boys came to the cabin, Tommy was only a baby. And since no one had ever visited the cabin and he’d never gone anywhere, he’d never known another person other than the people he lived with. Wilbur and Tubbo also haven’t seen anyone else in a long time, but they still remembered other people, and they weren’t quite as hyperactive and talkative as Tommy so it didn’t hit them quite so hard when they saw someone at their house, and Wilbur, being the closest to Techno and the oldest, knows what Techno did and knows the danger someone visiting the house might bring. Anyways, Tommy’s stood still shocked and Wilbur and Tubbo run out of the woods after him. Wilbur yells at Tommy to get back, but Tommy ignores him. Phil walks over to him. Skeppy mumbles something about how he should probably leave, since he still believes that these people are acting weird because of his looks, but Techno sticks his sword out in front of him so he can’t. Tommy tries to walk to Skeppy, but Phil spreads his wings out, blocking his path and vision. He stands there thinking for a second and then drops his wings. He tells Techno to let him inside, but go through his backpack first, where they found nothing more than an iron sword, so they took that and let him inside. All of them talked for a long time, Techno and Skeppy got along particularly well, and they invited Skeppy to stay the night since it was dark out. The next morning, Tommy and Tubbo had disappeared. Everyone searched around the house and the nearby woods, but couldn’t find them, only a note saying where they were going and goodbye. Tommy had decided that he wanted to find the place Skeppy spoke of. He’d told Tubbo and Tubbo wanted to go with him since he wanted to make sure Tommy was safe, and he was becoming tired of this cabin also. So they made a dash for the woods. They ran for hours. Phil, panicked, flew up in the air and flew around for awhile, but they’d gotten a major headstart and even if he did catch up, he didn’t know which direction they went in and he coudn’t see them through the trees. Disheartened, he flew back. Techno and Wilbur comforted him and Skeppy left soon after. Phil eventually got over it a couple days later since he knew that they could fight and he knew they’d leave eventually.

Tommyinnit, Tubbo, Vikkstar, and Lazarbeam:

''This happens just a little bit after the previous event. This is used to explain Tommy’s obsession with Vikk, hatred for Lazar, why Lazar is anti-government, and Vikk and Lazar’s friendship.''

Tommy and Tubbo met a few people on their journey to the Dream SMP. After all, they needed places to stay and they needed to know the location of the Dream SMP. One of the first people they met was a celebrity named Vikkstar. This got Tommy extremely excited because despite not knowing who Vikk was, he didn’t know many people and to think that one of the first people he meets his a celebrity hypes him up a lot. Tommy wouldn’t leave Vikk alone, and of course Tubbo was following Tommy. Vikk was bothered by this a lot, but he couldn’t seem to get rid of them. Once, while Tommy was bombarding Vikk with questions, Lazar walked up to Vikk and pretended to know him, saying he needed to talk to him urgently. Vikk used this as an excuse to get away from Tommy and Tubbo and followed Lazar. Lazar then tells him that he was just trying to get him away from Tommy. Vikk was greatful and they hung out for awhile. Apparently Lazar lived in Eret’s old home and actually enjoyed it. This didn’t bother Vikk however and they ended up being good friends. Tommy ends up figuring out this was all scheme and trys to attack Lazar, which Tubbo sees as a cue that the two of them should probably leave town, so Tubbo drags him away and they are off on their journey again. A while later, as we know, Vikk and Lazar come to the Dream SMP, not realizing Tommy would be there.

Wilbursoot and HBomb:

''This happens about a year after the previous event. This is used to explain why HBomb wishes to be Fundy’s maid so much. I don’t know why I did something over this rather than L’Cast or something, but this is what I came up with.''

About a year after Tommy and Tubbo left, Wilbur decided to go after them. Wilbur made a lot of pit stops on his way, but a big one included a town with an actual nice hotel that was cheap. He stayed there and the place ended up having room service. Wilbur was very nice to the room service guy and gave him a big tip. He also talked with him for a while. He learned his name was HBomb and he was trying to earn enough money to get out of this place. They talked a lot during Wilbur’s stay there and Wilbur always gave him decent tips. Later on, HBomb moved to the Dream SMP as Wilbur had talked about it. He wanted to repay Wilbur as his tips had helped him a lot in being able to quit his job and move, but Wilbur died before he could. He now often tries to help out Fundy, Wilbur’s son, despite him messing around most of the time.

Wilbursoot, JSchlatt, Quackity, and Nihachu:

''This happened just a little bit after the previous event, still on Wilbur’s journey to the Dream SMP. This event is used to explain why Wilbur chose Schlatt to endorse him, why Schlatt didn’t, why Quackity sided with Schlatt, why Schlatt banned Tommy and Wilbur from L’Manburg, why Schlatt targeted Niki specifically with taxes, why Quackity wants to bring Schlatt to life, and why Quackity betrayed Schlatt. For backstory purposes, we have to pretend that Schlatt never joined the Dream SMP the first time, when he got banned almost immediately. Also, this is like the one story from the original backstories thread that’s like the exact same.''

One big pit stop Wilbur had on the Dream SMP was in a town where he met two guys in a bar. They all bought each other drinks and talked. Their names were Schlatt and Quackity. While they were drunk, Schlatt invited Wilbur to stay at his place for a bit so he didn’t have to get a hotel room or camp out on a bench. Wilbur stayed in this town for about a week, hanging out with Quackity and Schaltt every day. He also hung out with a girl named Niki a lot, and they became good friends also. It just so happens, though, that Schaltt liked Niki, and often tried to get her to go on a date with him when he was drunk (which was most of the time). Niki, of course, didn’t like this and hated Schlatt for it. When Schlatt saw how well she got along with Wilbur, it made him jealous and angry, despite nothing going on between Wilbur and Niki. Eventually Wilbur left the town and found the Dream SMP soon after. After L’Manburg won independence, word spread of this new nation to this town. Schlatt and Quackity saw this as a place for easy success. They came up with a scheme to get Wilbur to start an election and have him be his endorsement, and then he and Quackity could combine votes and win over L’Manburg. A little bit before this plan came into action, Niki left her town to go to L’Manburg. Because of his jealousy, rather than a simple take over, Schlatt decided last minute (without telling Quackity) to ban Wilbur and his brother Tommy (who happened to be running for vice president, so just bad luck) and raise taxes on Niki, as he didn’t want her to leave. This ended up resulting in everyone, including Quackity, to turn against him. This ended up making Quackity feel guilty for betraying his friend and he started coming up with a scheme to bring him back to life.

Purpled, Punz, and Eret:

''This happened at the same time as the last event. This is to show how the three ended up finding the Dream SMP.''

So Wilbur was a little careless at that bar where he met Schlatt and Quackity. I mean, he was a bit drunk after all. He mentioned how he used to live in the middle of no where with his brothers, dad, and dad’s friend. He of course didn’t specify who, but he also talked about how he was going to the Dream SMP, and since Purpled and Punz had never heard of the place, they figured it was worth it to check it out, and they were curious about this Wilbur fellow. They headed out to the Dream SMP and contacted Eret since they had a lead with Tommy, Tubbo, and Wilbur. Eret came as fast as he could, but he was far away so it took him awhile. When he did get there, he made friends and became a king. When Techno came, he didn’t care as much as he used to. He also knew now that he could never take Techno on. He fired Punz and Purpled, who were relieved and only continued this job because they were offered a lot of money.

And lets have a quick rundown of everyone’s ages at the time Eret joined the Dream SMP:

Tommy is about 17.

Tubbo is about 20.

Wilbur, Jack, Charlie, Quackity, and Niki are about 23

Schlatt is a little older than Wilbur, Quackity, and Niki so about 25.

Dream, George, Sapnap, Callahan, Alyssa, Sam, and Eret are all in there late 30s.

Techno and Phil are in their mid 40s.

Puffy, Purpled, and Punz are in their late 40s.

Karl and Hannah are in their early 40s.

Connor and HBomb are in their early - mid 30s.

Vikk and Lazar are in their early 50s.

Ant is in his mid - late 50s.

Foolish is technically about 16, though he was basically born an adult.

Bad, Skeppy, and Ponk’s ages are unknown.

I do hope you enjoyed these backstories, whether you believe any of them, all of them, or none of them to be true. Feel free to say your favorite ones. I'm curious. And your thoughts. Thanks for reading.

Historical Figures Compared to DSMP Characters:
So a couple weeks ago I started comparing historical figures to Dream SMP characters. I was going to do every important character, but while I was researching Napoleon I lost interest in this project. Figured I would show you what I had though. The characters listed are Tommy, Tubbo, Techno, Eret, Philza, Wilbur, and Quackity. Most of the people are from Hamilton but that’s just because a lot of the historical figures I know are in Hamilton. Not supposed to be Hamilton Characters Compared to Dream SMP Characters. Anyways, let’s get started:

Tommyinnit/Alexander Hamilton: I actually almost put Wilbur as Hamilton due to both their writing skills, but it’s clear that Tommy is the right choice for this one. Both Tommy and Hamilton were the generals right hand man during their revolutions. They also both seemed to struggle to hold onto the relationships they had and chose other things over someone they were very close to, but later came back to that person. For Tommy it was Tubbo and the discs, and for Hamilton it was Eliza and his mistress. Tommy also got exiled because of his obsession with the discs and his tendency to act irrational while Hamilton got shunned by many people because of his mistress and his tendency to be a bit irrational (aka posting his love life in the news). There is also other relationships that Hamilton had with others that are similar to the relationships Tommy had with some of the characters on the Dream SMP, which I will mention later. There are obviously some things that aren’t similar like the writing thing, but all in all they are pretty similar.

Tubbo/Abraham Lincoln: Another one I also almost put as Wilbur due to both their depressions, but I ended up deciding that Tubbo was the better option. And yes, Abraham clearly never had an interactions with Hamilton while Tubbo and Tommy are best friends, but tho some of these may have relationships included in them, in trying not to make them solely based off them. The first thing that makes Lincoln and Tubbo similar are both their tendencies to lighten the mood. They are for different reasons, Tubbo’s character can be a bit incompetent and Lincoln used humor to battle their depression, but they still do and they are both good natured people. There were also the wars in their presidency, the Doomsday War with Tubbo and the Civil War with Lincoln. They were also both killed by tyrants, though I don’t think that has much to do with their character, but still. Techno killed Tubbo on multiple occasions and Booth killed Lincoln. Idk how I forgot to mention this till now but they were also both president and neither finished their term. And they both like theater. Tubbo has used his stage for many purposes to interact with his chat and Lincoln just like the theater.

Technoblade/Marquis de Lafayette: Despite comparing Booth and Techno in the last paragraph, no, that is not who Techno is similar to. Techno’s character is actually shockingly similar to Lafayette. I was originally just going to mention one thing and then I read some stuff over Lafayette and learned just how similar they are. Let’s start with what I originally decided made Techno and Lafayette similar. Techno and Lafayette both helped out in a war, despite it not being theirs. Techno in the Manburg vs Pogtopia War and Lafayette in the Revolutionary War. They were both great fighters and helped lead their revolutions. And then they both were betrayed (tho in different ways). Techno, despite fighting for anarchy, ended up being betrayed as L’Manburg was restored in front of his own eyes. Lafayette helped in the American Revolution and America was actually planning on helping out in the French Revolution but didn’t and Hamilton said that Lafayette would be fine. Both L’Manburg and the American’s thought what they were doing was right, but it depends on what side you look at it from. Of course, Lafayette took this significantly more lightly then Techno did. Then I started reading articles on Lafayette and learned that after ordering soldiers to fire into a crowd, he was labeled as a traitor. A mob gathered at his house, destroyed it, and tried to assault his wife. Later, Lafayette was put in prison for 5 years. Now listen to this: After Techno spawned withers, he was labeled as a traitor. The Butcher Army gathered at his house and proceeded to try and kill Techno and threaten his horse, Carl. He was then almost executed. These are very similar stories. Even Techno’s and Tommy’s relationship is similar(ish) to Lafayette’s and Hamilton’s. They were both great friends and then later Tommy refused to help Techno in the Doomsday War and Hamilton refused to help Lafayette in the French Revolution. I honestly can’t believe I’ve never realized these similarities

Eret/Benedict Arnold: I don’t know much about Benedict Arnold, other than that he was a part of the American Revolution. In the American Revolution, he was a great soldier, just like Eret, and in want of money and a higher ranking in the army, Arnold switched sides and became a British general. Eret, in want to become king of the SMP, switched sides and became a king for the Dream SMP and fought with them. Like I said, I don’t know much about Arnold, but also Eret hasn’t been a big part of the SMP’s lore in a long time so Arnold does suit him.

Philza/George Washington: Another one I almost put Wilbur as, but Wilbur only acted like him at the beginning of the SMP, and I figured that Washington fit Phil a bit better. Both Phil and Washington knew of bad things that could come from their governments. Phil said that it turned good people bad and Washington before he resigned as president said how the country shouldn’t have political parties and try to remain neutral in conflicts, and clearly this didn’t happen. So both believed government could be good but then the things they were worried about happened. Washington, didn’t turn into an anarchist however, unlike Phil. Phil and Washington also had similar relationships with some of the people I’ve already compared. Phil was a father figure towards Techno and Tommy and Washington was a father figure towards Lafayette and Hamilton. Washington actually wanted to visit Lafayette when he was in prison just as Phil visited Techno in his self-exile.

Wilbur Soot/John Laurens: After many historical figures, I finally settled on John Laurens for Wilbur. I actually almost switched Hamilton to Wilbur and put Tommy as Laurens, but it was Laurens and Hamilton’s deaths that made me stick with this as I could make Hamilton’s death fit both Tommy and Wilbur while Lauren’s death only fit Wilbur. Laurens helped lead the American Revolution just as Wilbur helped lead the LManburg Revolution. Laurens was also very close to Hamilton and Lafayette and they were seen as a trio similar to Wilbur, Tommy, and Techno during the Pogtopia vs Manburg war. Laurens was also one of the last people to die in the American Revolution just like Wilbur in the Pogtopia vs Manburg War. And here’s the death I mentioned earlier, Laurens went into the Battle at Charleston while he was sick, rushing in carelessly and wanting all the honor and glory for the battle and ended up dying. Not exactly like Wilbur’s but Wilbur went into battle when he clearly was having some mental problems wanting to blow up L’Manburg, rushed in carelessly since we know he didn’t wear any armor, and ended up dying later on, but unlike Laurens he wanted to die.

Quackity/Aaron Burr: I was reading up on Aaron Burr to decide whether he should go with Jack Manifold or Dream but he ended up being surprisingly similar to Quackity. Other than the killing Hamilton thing. Both Burr and Quacktiy were both a soldier and a politician. Both helped lead their own wars, the American Revolution for Burr and the Manburg vs Pogtopia for Quackity. They also both ran for president and in a very close running, both ended up being vice president. Burr was vice president to Thomas Jefferson and Quackity was vice president to Schlatt and later Tubbo. Their relationships with Hamilton and Tommy are relatively similar also. Burr was good friends with Hamilton till Burr got a place in the Senate rather than Hamilton’s father-in-law. Just like how Tommy and Quackity were friends till Quackity ran for president and he and Schlatt beat Wilbur and became the president and vice president. They also both wanted more land then they needed, as Quackity and Schlatt took down the L’Manburg walls when they came into power and Burr tried to establish places in Louisiana and Mexico, and in both situations, no one liked the idea.

Hoped you enjoyed that. Like I said, I was reading up on Napoleon and I wanted to read up on Jefferson and Adams, but I just got bored of this. If you have anymore for other characters then feel free to share them, but this is all I’ve got for now. Maybe I’ll post more in the future.

Derivakat Songs in Chronological Order:
The title says it all. Don’t judge I’ve been in a car for 13 hours and I’ve got 4 left to go and I need something to pass the time.

Aint No Crying - The beginning of the story starts with this song calling for war. I read through the lyrics in order to decide which war it is about since there is a lot and I’ve determined that it’s about the Manburg Rebellion era rather than Independence or Doomsday. The lyrics ‘Every shoulder you've leaned on is the one you will turn on

Burn it to ashes, watch as it crashes’ indicate which war it’s in because the first part is referring to Techno killing Tubbo and Quackity betraying Schlatt. U may think, what about Eret betraying them in the first war? Well the next part about burning, there were no fires in the Independence War. However, in the War of the Burning Eiffel Tower the Eiffel Tower was burned down and as far as I can tell there isn’t much else arson on the server that could fit that.

Night Before Dawn - This one is also about the Manburg Rebellion era, however, this song is specific towards the Pogtopia vs Manburg war while the previous one talks about the Red Festival and the War of the Burning Eiffel Tower, both events leading up to it, making this one come second. I originally thought this was over the Independence War based off the tone, but throughout the song it talks about reclaiming what they’ve lost and taking back their home, meaning it’s likely referring towards the members of Pogtopia taking back L’Manburg

Voices - Unlike the previous two, this song isn’t about a specific event, making me not really able to put it somewhere chronologically. I decided that the best place to put it is at the time where Techno first talks about the voices to Philza, which was a bit after the Manburg vs Pogtopia War.

Welcome Home - This song is about Tommy being in exile and despite another song being mentioned in a sec taking place during his exile too, this comes before it because the next one is during (or just before) him joining Techno while this is about him being all alone and wanting to come home.

Blue - This song is about Ghostbur and Friend so obviously the best place to put this song is when the dynamic duo (RIP both of them) met, which was during Techno’s execution. Plus this is even more the best place to put it because it talks about him telling people that he named it Friend, meaning it’s when they first came together.

In My Head - So like Voices this isn’t about a specific time, but it’s a lot easier to place it. In the song, there’s a line saying that they call him a traitor, and so it’s likely that it’s talking about the time in the panic room right after the Green Festival.

Kiss Your Dreams Goodbye - I was debating about if this took place during the Green Festival, Doomsday, or the Disc Confrontation and after looking through the lyrics I’ve decided that it’s about Doomsday. The lyrics go, ‘lights flash, break through the darkness. Sides clash, they’re calling me heartless. But I don’t care anymore, I don’t care, I don’t care. You can kiss your dreams goodbye.’ The beginning about the lights is talking about the tnt and wither explosions. Sides clash is obviously referring to Techno, Phil, and the hounds vs everyone else. This part could go with the Green Festival also but the rest doesn’t really. They’re calling me heartless could go with the Disc Confrontation also but the rest once again doesn’t really. Then it’s saying that he doesn’t care what people like George and Sapnap think anymore and he’s just gonna destroy everything basically.

Why - This one has given be an exact moment. When Ghostbur yells at Philza after Friend is killed and L’Manburg is destroyed.

Syndicate - This ones about the syndicate itself rather than a time but I’m just gonna say that it goes when the Syndicate is formed.

Turn Back Time - So I would’ve put this one when Tales started, but it talks about the Inbetween meaning it happens at least during the Masquerade. But no bad things about the Inbetween are talked about so we are just gonna assume that it happens when he first discovers it.

Tell Your Story - By now he’s losing his memory and realizes all the bad stuff about the Inbetween. He also mentions writing stuff down meaning that it happens after the previous one.

Write It Down - This is the last one and it comes after the previous one because it mentions the portal to The Other Side in it while the previous one didn’t.

Eyyyyy that wasted an hour. Only 3 left! Anyways hope you enjoyed this pointless post:)

I Found the Daily Food Intake of DSMP Characters:
So I was writing my One Big Happy Family story, and I was like, how much food should Fundy be eating right now? So I calculated that. And then I decided to find Foolish's, Puffy's, Schlatt's, Hannah's, Techno's, and Ant's food intake also. I also found about what their canonical weight should be also! I was going to find Skeppy's but someone decided to make up a whole new unit for diamonds and I wasn't gonna deal with that, but he doesn't weigh a lot, meaning he likely doesn't eat a lot. Anyways, lets get into it.

So I started with Fundy's food intake. An average red fox weighs about 26.1 pounds while the average adult male weighs 197.9 pounds. Even though foxes are small, Fundy still is the size of a human, so I guessed his weight is going to be around 150 pounds. Now we get into food intake. The average human eats 4 pounds of food a day and the average fox eats about 1.5 pounds of food a day. If you take 197.9 and divide it by 3 you get 65.9666 repeating meaning that for every 65.9666 pounds, you eat about one pound of food a day. If you take 26.1 and divide it by 1.5 you get 17.4, meaning that for every 17.4 pounds, a fox eats 1 pound of food a day. Now Fundy weighs about 150 pounds, meaning in fox terms he eats about 8.62 pounds a day and in human terms he eats about 2.27 pounds a day. That's a big difference so we are going to do is find the median of the two which is 5.444 pounds a day. Fundy is more fox than he is human physically, so we can assume he leans more on the fox side, so we can estimate that Fundy eats about 6 pounds of food a day.

Foolish's was the hardest to find because I don't understand grams and ounces. So Foolish is 23.3 feet tall. The average male height is 5.9, or 69 inches (I swear if anyone comments on that number), and like I said earlier, the average male weight is 197.9 pounds. So we take 197.9 and divide it by 69 to come up with 2.868. To find Foolish's weight we take his height and times it by that and we get a big number that I've forgotten, I think 800 pounds, but we aren't done. Foolish is 10% gold. So we take 10% of Foolish, so 80 pounds (I was right about the 800), and times that by however much gold weighs which I'm not going to explain because it's weird and we get a grand total of 1886.8699 pounds. Divide that by 65.9666 and we get 28.0633 pounds of food each day!

Hannah's wasn't hard it was just annoying. So weight didn't matter in this one. So humans eat about 3 pounds of food a day (Which I just realized is on the low side. It doesn't matter though. These people live in the wilderness so we can just assume it's on the low side). Roses make almost no food a day. They don't need much so the simple answer is that Hannah needs less than 1 pound of food a day. I honestly couldn't find a straight answer on how much they need.

Right so Techno. The average pig weighs about 500 pounds. Since Techno is human sized, we will say he weighs about 300 pounds. Pigs eat about 6 pounds of food a day. Based on Techno's size, in human terms he's eating 4.547 pounds of food a day. In pig terms, he'd be eating about 3.600. Average that to be about 4.0735. Like Fundy, we are going to assume he's leaning more towards the pigs side so Techno eats about 3.8 pounds of food a day.

On to Puffy! The average female weight is 170.6 pounds while the average weight of an ewe (Female sheep) is 121 pounds. We are going to assume Puffy weighs about 140 pounds then. The average ewe eats about 4.5 pounds of food a day. This means in human terms Puffy eats about 2.1222 pounds of food a day while in ewe terms she eats about 5.2066 pounds of food a day. The median is 3.6643 pounds of food. Unlike Fundy and Techno, she is a human-sheep hybrid rather than an anthrapramorphic sheep, so I'm keeping it at the median. (Note: While checking Puffy's page to double check that shes a hybrid, I've learned that she has a canonical height. This means she weighs more, meaning she eats more food than I put. I'm not changing the math, as this page took forever. It's not going to be a drastic difference. Just probably more like 5 pounds or something).

Schlatt time! The average weight of a ram is 250 pounds so we are going to assume that Schlatt weighs about 230 pounds. In human terms, this would mean that he would eat about 3.4866 pounds of food a day. I can't find how much ram's eat in a day, so we are going to take the ewes 4.5 and boot it up to 5 pounds of food a day, so in those terms he would be eating 4.6 pounds of food a day. Like Puffy, he is a sheep hybrid so we are just finding the median which is 4.0433 pounds of food a day for Schlatt.

The last one we are going over is Antfrost! The average cat weighs about 8.9 pounds, but with Ant being the size of a human we are going to say he weighs about 120 pounds. For the life of me, I can not find how many pounds cats eat a day. So we are going to base it off humans and just take off a bit. So in human terms, he would be eating 1.819 pounds a day... which isn't very much. Maybe I won't take off any. We can say just like 1.5 pounds a day?

That took forever. This feels like I just wrote the script for a Game Theory episode. If you managed to make it all the way through that. I hope you enjoyed. It took me like 2 hours, probably more. Thanks for reading!

Showing My Sister Fan Content Pt. 1:
So, I’ve got a younger sister who used to watch DSMP till around the time Tommy got exiled and now she dislikes it and finds it dumb. She is, however, obsessed with anime which I am not. Basically, the other day she was like ‘Can I read you a Danganronpa fic?’ I took advantage of this and said ‘If I get to show you a DSMP animatic.’ And she agreed. She asked if I wanted fluff or angst and I said angst and then she said she wanted a sad animatic. So I showed her the Brothers animatic and here’s how the convo went. Italics is her.

(When Techno hugs Tommy and Wilbur)

Is that Ghostbur?

No that’s during Pogtopia

That’s Philza

Now that’s Ghostbur

''I know. You don’t have to tell me everything.''

(just before Doomsday)

Do you actually watch these things?

When I’m bored and have nothing else, yes.

You can never make fun of me for watching edits again.

This is cool cause you get to see art styles and small details. Like how Tommy was wearing Wilbur’s beanie the whole time. This isn’t even one of the really good ones. It has no movement.

All in all, she didn’t like it. But her fic wasn’t good either sooo. BUT earlier today she wanted me to listen to a Doki Doki song. I of course said, if you listen to a DSMP song.

Thats a thing?

Yes *laughs

''I mean, I’ve heard Roadtrip. Imma look this up *Types Dream SMP Song in her phone''

You know what, I don’t care enough

A few minutes pass by

I’m bored

Did I ask?

Plz listen to one. I want to see your reaction.

* Texts link to Derivakats channel

She famous. Listen to her

Fine listen to my playlist *Proceeds to text me her playlist

Turn Back Time?

No not that one

Casino Royale?

Yea that ones pretty good. It’s her newest

Opinions?

It’s not that bad but I would never willingly listen to it

THATS A WIN IN MY BOOK

Showing My Sister Fan Content Pt. 2:
So I recently showed my sister the Brothers animatic by WolfytheWitch and Casino Royale by Derivakat. She didn’t like Brothers and thought Casino Royale was alright. Then a few weeks back we had this conversation (italics is her):

* My sister was sitting on her bed reading Danganronpa fan fics*

You should read a DSMP fan fic and tell me how talented my Fandom is.

''I actually read a Quackity x Reader once. *Then goes on to talk about it. Irrelevant to story.*''

You should read Heatwaves. It’s DNF and one of like the two really famous DSMP fan fics. I’m to scared to read it.

''Alright. Let me finish this like 48 chapter one first.''

SHE SAID YES. For the record, I have never read Heatwaves nor do I plan to. I didn’t actually expect her to read it. But then the next day she walks into our room screaming and reading Heatwaves.

Hows it going?

''Its so cringy but it’s so well written. *Proceeds to read me part of the first chapter and WOW.*''

This takes place over multiple weeks so im just gonna add a few other quotes.

* we just finished dinner*

Alexa, play Heatwaves.

* Dies laughing (this song is ruined for me and I haven’t even read it)

What are you laughing at?

Mom: What is it?

* leaves room*

Hows Heatwaves?

A lot

And then the fateful day happened like 20 min ago. We were sitting on her bed together. She mentioned something about it but I forgot what.

How’s Heatwaves? Are you still reading it?

''No. Im probably not gonna finish it. It’s very well written and I understand how it’s popular but it’s so long. It takes like 45 min to read a chapter and there’s 10.''

Well RIP. There was also some point where she was reading some INTERESTING comments to me.

One more thing:

Im gonna watch that animatic you sent me but can you watch a DSMP animatic with me?

''Fine. You know you don’t have to watch it right?''

You asked me if I had like 5 times yesterday.

*laughs*

Do you want SAD-ist or DropsteR? SAD-ist is just really popular and just really good while DropsteR does darker animatics.

Not darker ones *Goes on a 10 min rant about that 48 chapter fan fic I mentioned earlier*

SAD-ist it is. We’re watching Hog Hunt *Starts playing*

''Im holding it *grabs phone* Her names SAD-ist? She enjoys seeing people in pain?'' (We pronounce it different ways)

Look how good her lighting is.

* it shows Technoblade’s house, literally like 15 seconds in* yea I can’t watch anymore of this *gives back phone and leaves*

Not going great. Imma try and get her to listen to some more songs soon:)

Mouse's Guide to Dream SMP Original Fan Songs:
Have you been hearing about this Derivakat person and want to learn how to get into their music? Have you listened to Derivakat and want to learn about other DSMP songs? Have you listened to every single DSMP song in existence, but still want to read this because it took me hours. Then you're on the right post! I've seen many posts asking about what Dream SMP songs they should listen to and even more posts about the newest Derivakat song's, but the new songs from other artists are left forgotten. So I gathered up pretty much every DSMP song artist I have ever listened to, found there newest, most popular, and my personal favorite song, along with some honorable mentions for each of them. I then got the links to every channel and song, listened to every song, and wrote descriptions for each song. There were a lot of songs. This took forever. I also had to research on how to identify different song genres because I can't, which you will soon figure out as you read this. Btw, the most popular thing is based off views because you can't categorize music channels videos on youtube, but on some channels, the have a popular uploads section on the home page, which is sorted by views, so I just did that. I mean, a song won't get listened to if it's not good. Cause a lot of those listens are the same person listening to it over and over again. Anyways, here's Mouse's Guide to DSMP Original Fan Songs:

Derivakat: https://youtube.com/c/derivakat

Newest: REVIVED https://youtu.be/lCpszkhqV-o

REVIVED is an electronic song about Wilbur Soot coming back to life. It mainly uses bass drums and the sound of trains. It’s 2:43 minutes long. It’s upbeat and loud with a very angry tone.

Most Popular: Voices https://youtu.be/8sAKC90Ol1k

Voices is a rock song about the voices in Technoblades head. 70 different people sing in it and Otis Joi, Ellienort, and Kiba all have solos. It consists mostly of drums and electric guitar. It’s 2:43 minutes long. The drums and guitar give it the feeling of being upbeat, however the voices are significantly less so.

Personal Favorite: Casino Royale https://youtu.be/MfeXlq3cka8

Casino Royale is a jazz song about Quackity and Las Nevadas. It uses drums (Mainly the high hat), piano, bass, trumpet, and coins and poker chips. It also consists of a piano solo. It’s 3:10 minutes long. While the versus have a smooth jazz feel, the chorus gives you much more upbeat vocals, trumpet, and piano.

Honorable Mentions:

In My Head https://youtu.be/wxDFIiTuxsM

In My Head is an electronic song about Ranboo and Dream’s voice in his head. It mainly uses piano. It’s 2:38 minutes long. It feels very slow and has a very dark and creepy tone.

Captain’s Call https://youtu.be/vIeAw0-FyZM

Captain’s Call is a pop/sea shanty about CaptainPuffy and features CG5. It mainly uses drums, electric guitar, and an accordion. It is 2:29 minutes long. It’s an upbeat song other than during CG5’s solo in which it slows down and sounds more like an electronic song.

The Syndicate https://youtu.be/qbqKnuW_Q6E

The Syndicate is a jazz song about, of course, the Syndicate. It consists mainly of bass, saxophone, and piano. It’s 2:28 minutes long. It’s a slow, calm song, focusing on the smooth jazz tune it gives.

Kroh: https://youtube.com/c/krohmusic

Newest: Home https://youtu.be/TbRim4PCvac

Home is a pop/electronic song about the Bee Duo and features Precious Jewel Amor. It mainly consists of drums and piano. It’s 4:14 minutes long. It’s slower during the verses, but gets more upbeat in the chorus with a caring tone all throughout.

Most Popular: Hush https://youtu.be/Qflixb8ss3Q

Hush is an electronic song about the Syndicate and features Mizz Fish. It has piano, electric guitar, and drums in it, but focuses mainly on the electronic style sounds. It’s 3:02 minutes long. It slows down during the vocals, allowing you to focus on those, but tends to get more upbeat during the parts without the vocals.

Personal Favorite: Home https://youtu.be/TbRim4PCvac

Home is a pop/electronic song about the Bee Duo and features Precious Jewel Amor. It mainly consists of drums and piano. It’s 4:14 minutes long. It’s slower during the verses, but gets more upbeat in the chorus with a caring tone all throughout.

Honorable Mentions:

Typical Me https://youtu.be/-KL01aw-OA0

Typical Me is an electronic song about Ranboo. It uses drums and trumpet, but mainly uses the electronic sounds you can get on a computer. It’s 3:08 minutes long. While it is a slower song, the drums and trumpet make it seem more upbeat than it is. Throughout it, there are multiple parts where you focus more on the instrumentals rather than the lyrics.

Kanaya: https://youtube.com/c/kanayaa

Newest: Home Is https://youtu.be/-5eAA3KnCiM

Home Is is a pop song about the Bench Trio. It mainly uses ukulele, guitar, and piano. It’s 3:25 minutes long. It’s a soft and slow song using quieter instruments and keeping the vocals quiet, giving it a very peaceful tone.

Most Popular: Violence https://youtu.be/mFuITzk5t6o

Violence is a rock song about Technoblade. It uses the sound of a clock along with a piano, electric guitar, and drums. It’s 3:18 minutes long. Despite it being slower, it still uses strong vocals and drums, making it feel very intense, and it does get a bit faster and more upbeat as the song goes on.

Personal Favorite: Violence https://youtu.be/mFuITzk5t6o

Violence is a rock song about Technoblade. It uses the sound of a clock along with a piano, electric guitar, and drums. It’s 3:18 minutes long. Despite it being slower, it still uses strong vocals and drums, making it feel very intense, and it does get a bit faster and more upbeat as the song goes on.

Honorable Mentions:

Little Hero https://youtu.be/A6yi263yk2M

Little Hero is a waltz-like song about Tommyinnit. It mainly uses the piano and the glockenspiel. It’s 4:21 minutes long. It’s soft and slow with a sad tone.

November 16th https://youtu.be/szpULJ1NE1k

November 16th is a pop song (???) about Philza grieving Wilbur Soot’s death. It consists mainly of piano and chimes. It’s 3:26 minutes long. It’s slow and has a sad, mournful tone.

Welcome Home, Theseus https://youtu.be/Kw73UvgbULw

Welcome Home, Theseus is a rock song about Technoblade welcoming Tommyinnit into his home. It mainly uses drums, an electric guitar, and a piano, along with a clock. It’s 3:34 minutes long. It’s a slow song, but unlike some of the previous songs, it doesn’t give a sad tone at all and truly shows the two’s friendship.

CG5: https://youtube.com/c/CG5

Newest: Tommy Innit https://youtu.be/fQHXlwMHgUk

Tommy Innit is a pop song about Tommyinnit (Obviously). It consists of a guitar and drums along with many sound effects from the computer. It’s 3:03 minutes long. It’s upbeat and cheerful, though there is a part that has a sadder tone, it runs smoothly with the rest of the song and is brief.

Most Popular: I See a Dreamer https://youtu.be/SXJGTnVfJic

I See a Dreamer is a pop song about Dream’s Minecraft Manhunt. It consists of drums, an electric guitar, along with many computer sound effects. It’s 3:11 minutes long. It’s upbeat with a strong bass drum in the chorus and a cheerful tone in the verses.

Personal Favorite: Tommy Innit https://youtu.be/fQHXlwMHgUk

Tommy Innit is a pop song about Tommyinnit (Obviously). It consists of a guitar and drums along with many sound effects from the computer. It’s 3:03 minutes long. It’s upbeat and cheerful, though there is a part that has a sadder tone, it runs smoothly with the rest of the song and is brief.

Honorable Mentions:

Gone Away https://youtu.be/g-zoAnEiOfk

Gone Away is a rock song about L’Manburg’s fall. It consists of drums, guitar, and piano. It’s 3:26 minutes long. It’s very upbeat from the loud drums, however it still gives off a sad tone from the vocals and lyrics.

Ellienort: https://youtube.com/c/Ellienort

Newest: Dancing with the Dead https://youtu.be/hFVl0168UuE

Dancing with the Dead is an electronic song about…. Um…. I'm not really sure to be honest. It’s a good song tho. It consists of the piano, but mainly focuses on the electric style sounds. It's 3:24 minutes long. It’s slower with drawn out lyrics and a slow piano and has a somewhat eerie tone.

Most Popular: Two-Faced https://youtu.be/pyylpMuISjA

Two-Faced is a pop song about Ranboo. It has piano, drums, and guitar, with an almost constant snapping to keep rhythm. It’s 4:21 minutes long. It’s slow with a dark and eeries tone.

Personal Favorite: Spectre https://youtu.be/0QAMTRnSZ6w

Spectre is a rock song about Wilbur Soot trading places with Ghostbur and features Hator. It mainly uses drums, electric guitar, and a bit of the glockenspiel. It’s 3:03 minutes long. It’s upbeat and loud when Hator is singing Wilbur Soot’s part while softer with a sad tone when Ellienort is singing Ghostbur’s part.

Honorable Mentions:

The Warden https://youtu.be/G-VA_PSekJE

The Warden is an electronic song about Awesamdude and Pandora’s Vault. Though it mainly has electronic style sounds, it also uses drums and an electric guitar. It’s 2:41 minutes long. It’s slow and has a calm, yet threatening, tone.

Lessons https://youtu.be/SyHQ1e7l86M

Lessons is an electronic song (???) about Ranboo and Dream’s voice and the lessons. It mostly uses piano. It’s 3:33 minutes long. It has an eerie and threatening tone and though it’s soft, it also is pretty quick and upbeat.

Home https://youtu.be/BlxysEKj_Yc

Home is an electronic song about the Bee Duo. It uses mostly electronic sounds though it also uses a bit of drums and the glockenspiel. It’s 2:45 minutes long. It’s soft, especially with the use of the glockenspiel, with a caring tone.

Creamay: https://youtube.com/channel/UC4mB50E8aeA7s4QGfaOX61g

Newest: I Will Love You Forever https://youtu.be/DSY_rGh4zJ4

I Will Love You Forever is a rock song about the Passerine fan fiction. It mostly uses drums and acoustic guitar. It’s 1:25 minutes long. It’s soft and slow with a sad and caring tone.

Most Popular: No Heroes Here https://youtu.be/tJuEHgcIq9M

No Heroes Here is a rock song about Technoblade. It mostly uses guitar and drums. It’s 2:47 minutes long. It’s soft during the verses, however it gets more upbeat during the chorus and seems quicker from the fast lyrics.

Personal Favorite: Emotional https://youtu.be/yPlZcKsFCVc

Emotional is a rock song (???) about Bad being sad after Skeppy gets taken over by the Egg. It uses drums, guitar, and piano. It’s 2:30 minutes long. It’s slow and soft with a sad and mournful tone, using quiet instrumentals behind the sad vocals.

Honorable Mentions:

Gogy Wake Up https://youtu.be/pylhEhLLQqU

Gogy Wake Up is a pop song about George causing all the crap that happens on the SMP. It mostly uses ukulele, and piano. It’s 2:17 minutes long. It’s upbeat and has a very cheerful tone in the verses, but a more confused and upset tone in the chorus.

Broken, not Destroyed https://youtu.be/zFjWQgHdtsA

Broken, Not Destroyed is an electronic song (???) about the explosion after the Manburg vs Pogtopia War. It mostly uses drums, piano, and guitar. It’s 2:13 minutes long. It’s soft, yet upbeat. At the beginning of the song, it has more of a sad tone, but slowly switches to a cheerful and hopeful one.

Guilty Mind https://youtu.be/fyLGylI_B9w

Guilty Mind is a pop song (???) about Ranboo. It mainly uses piano and I think a glockenspiel. It’s 2:28 minutes long. It’s slower and softer with an eerie, yet sad tone.

Izaac Thee Unknown: https://youtube.com/channel/UCH-DI7tW78vZ4uiGfBUw_Lw

Newest: Forget https://youtu.be/Dgv-GOZsluU

Forget is a rap song about Ranboo and him forgetting things. It mainly uses piano and the hi hat, along with many electronic sounds. It’s 3:36 minutes long. It’s upbeat and typically has a very angry tone, though it switches to sad and hopeless tones throughout the song.

Most Popular: THE BLADE https://youtu.be/N7BRDPryzRU

THE BLADE is a rap song about Technoblade. It uses a lot of electronic sounds along with a piano and the drums. It’s 3:15 minutes long. It’s upbeat and a mildly angry tone.

Personal Favorite: THE BLADE https://youtu.be/N7BRDPryzRU

THE BLADE is a rap song about Technoblade. It uses a lot of electronic sounds along with a piano and the drums. It’s 3:15 minutes long. It’s upbeat and a mildly angry and cocky tone.

Honorable Mentions:

Maniac https://youtu.be/8crJBywwxi8

Maniac is a rap song about JSchlatt. It mainly uses electronic sounds though it also uses drums and a piano. It’s 2:50 minutes long. It’s upbeat and has a cocky tone and at times an angry one.

TOMMY! https://youtu.be/SfOrHlEiNAY

TOMMY! is a rap song about Tommyinnit. It uses drums and a trumpet, though for the most part it’s electronic sounds. It’s 3:14 minutes long. It’s upbeat and has an angry tone for the most part besides a part towards the end that softer and has a sad tone.

NIGHTMARE https://youtu.be/Go1rvtt6NI4

NIGHTMARE is a rap song about Dream. It uses electronic sounds for the most part. It’s 3:08 minutes long. It’s upbeat and has an angry tone (Surprise, surprise).

Tia Jade: https://youtube.com/channel/UCrFVqZ-MMnjfENFE9x_mhbQ

Newest: Out of Touch https://youtu.be/vY9u7cpBQgM

Out of Touch is a pop song about the TNT Duo and features CG5. It uses drums along with many electronic noises. It’s 2:23 minutes long. It’s got very upbeat verses, but gets softer during the chorus when the drums disappear, allowing you to focus more on the lyrics.

Most Popular: Out of Touch https://youtu.be/vY9u7cpBQgM

Out of Touch is a pop song about the TNT Duo and features CG5. It uses drums along with many electronic noises. It’s 2:23 minutes long. It’s got very upbeat verses, but gets softer during the chorus when the drums disappear, allowing you to focus more on the lyrics.

Personal Favorite: Out of Touch https://youtu.be/vY9u7cpBQgM

Out of Touch is a pop song about the TNT Duo and features CG5. It uses drums along with many electronic noises. It’s 2:23 minutes long. It’s got very upbeat verses, but gets softer during the chorus when the drums disappear, allowing you to focus more on the lyrics.

Honorable Mentions:

All-In https://youtu.be/KdhfaNZyc08

All-In is a pop song about Quackity creating Las Nevadas. It uses drums and many electronic noises. It’s 2:17 minutes long. It’s upbeat, though the vocals give it a bit of an upset or angry tone at times.

New Beginning https://youtu.be/D0e1PMQmdRs

New Beginning is a pop song about Quackity starting Las Nevadas. It mostly uses electronic sounds along with the drums. It’s 1:50 minutes long. It’s upbeat with a slight bit of anger in the tone.

Yuki: https://youtube.com/user/SongInSnow

Newest: Bird of Passage https://youtu.be/dF8yy3wUVaU

Bird of Passage is a rock song about Philza. It mostly uses drums, piano, and the electric guitar. It’s 4:20 minutes long. It’s upbeat with the quick and loud instrumentals and the high pitch and louds vocals and reminds you of an anime theme song.

Most Popular: Death March https://youtu.be/wch1aT2f6Bk

Death March is a rock song about Technoblade. It mostly uses drums, electric guitar, piano, and I wanna say some sort of string instrument like a violin. It’s 4:20 minutes long. It’s upbeat and loud, with the use of lower drums rather than the snare or hi hat and has an angry tone.

Personal Favorite: Bird of Passage https://youtu.be/dF8yy3wUVaU

Bird of Passage is a rock song about Philza. It mostly uses drums, piano, and the electric guitar. It’s 4:20 minutes long. It’s upbeat with the quick and loud instrumentals and the high pitch and louds vocals and reminds you of an anime theme song.

Honorable Mentions:

No other songs

Beetlebug: https://youtube.com/c/beetlebum

Newest: An Ode to L’Manburg https://youtu.be/fEDGo4DBn68

An Ode to L’Manburg is… a pop song??? Idk. It uses the ukulele and harmonica… no it’s not a harmonica. I don’t know what that is here. It’s something you blow into. Wait maybe it is. If you can’t tell I’m listening to it has I type this. It’s 3:53 minutes long. It’s soft, using light instruments and vocals, with a hopeful tone at the beginning, however it fades into a sad tone towards the end.

Most Popular: An Ode to L’Manburg https://youtu.be/fEDGo4DBn68

An Ode to L’Manburg is… a pop song??? Idk. It uses the ukulele and harmonica… no it’s not a harmonica. I don’t know what that is here. It’s something you blow into. Wait maybe it is. If you can’t tell I’m listening to it has I type this. It’s 3:53 minutes long. It’s soft, using light instruments and vocals, with a hopeful tone at the beginning, however it fades into a sad tone towards the end.

Personal Favorite: An Ode to L’Manburg https://youtu.be/fEDGo4DBn68

An Ode to L’Manburg is… a pop song??? Idk. It uses the ukulele and harmonica… no it’s not a harmonica. I don’t know what that is here. It’s something you blow into. Wait maybe it is. If you can’t tell I’m listening to it has I type this. It’s 3:53 minutes long. It’s soft, using light instruments and vocals, with a hopeful tone at the beginning, however it fades into a sad tone towards the end.

Honorable Mentions:

No other songs lol

Amanda Fagan: https://youtube.com/channel/UCdfbpSwzOGWjiP_mRSs3ZHw

Newest: Once Upon a Time https://youtu.be/Jm_DDKIqKR0

I’ll be straight with you, I don’t know the genre of this song. It’s amazing tho and features Kanaya and Beetlebug. It uses the ukulele, violin, flute, and the tambourine. It’s 4:14 minutes long. It’s soft, using very light instruments other than the violin, allowing it to stand out, and it has a very sad tone.

Most Popular: Please Don’t Make Me Choose https://youtu.be/Ytd-5KwPTIc

Please Don’t Make Me Choose is a rock song about Tommyinnit watching Wilbur go insane. It uses the electric guitar and drums. It’s 4:12 minutes long. It’s upbeat, using louder, repetitive, instruments.

Personal Favorite: Once Upon a Time (Actually favorite DSMP song over all) https://youtu.be/Jm_DDKIqKR0

I’ll be straight with you, I don’t know the genre of this song. It’s amazing tho and features Kanaya and Beetlebug. It uses the ukulele, violin, flute, and the tambourine. It’s 4:14 minutes long. It’s soft, using very light instruments other than the violin, allowing it to stand out, and it has a very sad tone.

Honorable Mentions:

Don’t Stray https://youtu.be/KXeKP4G6KeI

Don’t Stray is a pop song about Karl Jacobs, the Inbetween, and The Other Side. It mainly uses the piano, I think one of those egg shakers, a clock, and drums. It’s 3:46 minutes long. It’s upbeat in the chorus, but softer in the verses. It has a cheerful tone, but that proves contradicting if you listen to the lyrics.

Bittersweet https://youtu.be/rbmRILJf4dI

Bittersweet is a rock song about Jack Manifold after Tommyinnit dies. It uses the piano, guitar, drums, and tambourine. It’s 3:01 minutes long. It’s soft, though the instrumentals get upbeat as the song goes on, and it has a sad tone.

Take You Down https://youtu.be/fl_4azIsF1s

Take You Down is a pop song (???) about Quackity. It mainly uses ukulele, guitar, piano, and drums. It’s 2:34 minutes long. It’s upbeat with a cheerful tone from the use of the quick ukulele, but the vocals give it an angry tone at the same time.

Precious Jewel Amor: https://youtube.com/c/JewelTries

Newest: My Bee, My Boo https://youtu.be/w6yjfHBFJYY

My Bee, My Boo is a pop song (???) about Ranboo and Tubbo and features Megan Shumway. It mainly uses the guitar and glockenspiel. It’s 2:43 minutes long. It’s soft and slow, using lighter instrumentals, with a caring tone.

Most Popular: Death Hole https://youtu.be/ekjmzPIqqZU

Imma be honest I don’t know the genre of this song. It’s about Tubbo. It uses the piano for the most part with a bit of cello (I think… Could be viola. Perhaps violin. Could be multiple of these. I just know there is a string instrument. Sorry I’m not in orchestra). It’s 2:32 minutes long. The vocals are soft and so is the instrumental during the verses, however the piano is loud and overtakes the vocals during the chorus.

Personal Favorite: Letter to a Dead Friend/Letter to Mr. President https://youtu.be/hkmO-O2dBLM

LTADF/LTMP is a… song that has a genre about Tommy and Tubbo during the exile arc and features Kanaya. It uses mainly piano, a bit of electric guitar, and I wanna say violin. Don’t take my word for string instruments. It’s 3:15 minutes long. It’s soft and slow in both the lyrics and instrumentals with a sad and mournful tone.

Honorable Mentions:

All Hail the King https://youtu.be/Vrg4HRkZSG

All Hail the King is a rock song about Eret. It mainly uses the piano, guitar, and drums. It’s 4:05 minutes long. The lyrics are soft, but as the song goes on the instrumentals get more and more upbeat until the vocals being hard with an angry tone.

Empty https://youtu.be/MVuHNNV-TKI

Empty is a rock song about CaptainPuffy. It mainly uses piano, tambourine, guitar, and drums. It’s 4:03 minutes long. It’s soft though it gets more upbeat towards the end, but then soft and slow again. It has a very sad and mournful tone.

In My Dreams https://youtu.be/P41-nCnaupQ

In My Dreams is an electric song about Georgenotfound and his dreams. It mainly uses piano, drums, and many electric sounds. It’s 3:53 minutes long. It’s soft, though the piano is louder and has a hard sound, and it has a sad tone.

Alioof: https://youtube.com/c/alioof

Newest: Something to Me https://youtu.be/Ad8d71pZsyw

Something to Me is a pop song (???) about Tubbo. It uses the piano. It’s 4:03 minutes long. It’s soft and slow, with a sad and mournful tone.

Most Popular: Sleepy Bois Inc Theme Song https://youtu.be/kVhvQ6FRj0o

Sleepy Bois Inc Theme Song is an electric song (???) about the Sleepy Bois Inc. It mainly uses the ukulele, violin, drums, piano, and some electric sounds. It’s 2:27 minutes long. It’s soft, yet upbeat from instrumentals.

Personal Favorite: Just a Kid https://youtu.be/ZjVs0s-FkPg

Just a Kid is a pop song (???) about Awesamdude after Tommyinnit’s death. It mainly uses the piano. It’s 3:47 minutes long. It’s soft with the use of the mournful and slow piano, with a sad and melancholy tone.

Honorable Mentions:

Never Meant to Be https://youtu.be/5liFRMqnydA

Never Meant to Be is a pop song about Eret, Wilbur Soot, and Nihachu. It mainly uses the piano and guitar. It’s 2:35 minutes long. It’s upbeat in the chorus, but softer in the verses and has an angry tone.

The Dearest of Friends https://youtu.be/41Ab2ENQ3c0

The Dearest of Friends is a jazz song about when Glatt asked Quackity to revive him and features Hator. It mainly uses the bass, guitar, drums, and piano. It’s 2:39 minutes long. It’s smooth from it’s jazz style.

Villain https://youtu.be/itikI9ro0ik

Villain is a rock song about Wilbur Soot and Tommyinnit during the Pogtopia times and features Carissa. It mainly uses guitar and drums. It’s 3:11 minutes long. The vocals are soft, but the instrumentals are upbeat, especially from the drums.

Seven and a half Google Doc pages if you're wondering. I hope this was helpful. This will be on my profile page soon, along with almost anything I've ever posted if you're wondering, if you want to refer back to it ever. Thanks for reading. Or skimming through it. Or just skipping to the bottom for who knows why.

The Defining DSMP Songs for Plots:
Basically this is, if you want to learn more about a certain plot of the SMP, which Dream SMP Original Song should you listen to? Why am I doing this? Cause I thought of it two seconds ago! Also got a little announcement at the end;). For the record, I am not doing in depth descriptions like last time. I'm not going through that again. That took like a week to do. Anyways, lets start with plots.

L'Manburg War for Independence: An Ode to L'Manburg by Beetlebug. I mean, obviously. It tells the entire story of the war! Very pog song.

Manburg vs Pogtopia War: I tried I couldn't find one for the election. There are two that you would have to listen to to understand the war because one talks of the after math and one talks of the war itself. The first is Aint No Crying by Derivakat. I know this might be about the Independence War or the Doomsday War. I've had debates over it. I personally think it's about this war though. Other one is November 16th by Kanaya. Can't argue with me on this one about what it's about.

Exile Arc: EASY. Not many about this topic, but the one that does is very helpful about it. I'm actually going to name two though. One for the first half and another for the second. The first is Letter to a Dead Friend/Letter to Mr. President by Precious Jewel Amor. I love this song. Next is Welcome Home Theseus by Kanaya. Gotta get the whole Techno part of the Exile Arc.

Techno's Execution: Despite there being tons of Techno songs, I don't know any specifically about the execution. I suppose the best one would be Woe to the People of Order by The Shiny Snivy. It focuses on Pogtopia also, but there is a verse about the execution. You could probably also put Take You Down by Amanda Fagan here too because it gets the other side's view, but again, it's only one verse about it.

Doomsday: Surprise, surprise, the best song for this is Doomsday by Derivakat. Don't have much else to say about this one.

I couldn't find any about the Disc Confrontation. Sorry.

Prison Arc: For clarification this is about the prison in general. Not about the Tommy dying thing. Best song for this is Tick Tock by Ellienort.

Tommy Dying: Two songs here. First is Void by Ellienort. It's about Tommy going to Limbo and stuff. Other is Just a Kid by Alioof and it's technically about Sam reacting to Tommy's death, but it sums the reaction of his death pretty well.

Las Nevadas: So for the start of the Las Nevadas Arc, I suggest The Dearest of Friends by Alioof. It's about Glatt and Quackity. Then Casino Royale by Derivakat to see what Las Nevadas actually became.

Wilbur's Revival: HA you thought I was going to say Revived by Derivakat. Well that is a pretty good one but NOPE. Actually Spectre by Ellienort is better about telling the story because it gives both Wilbur's and Ghostbur's points of view.

Egg Arc: Got two here. Both of the Savior songs by Precious Jewel Amor. Yeah. She has two. Emotional by Creamay is pretty good too for the whole Bad and Skeppy thing.

So if you want to tell someone the Dream SMP storyline through music for some reason the listen to them in this order:

An Ode to L'Manburg by Beetlebug

Ain't No Crying by Derivakat

November 16th by Kanaya

Letter to a Dead Friend/Letter to Mr. President by Precious Jewel Amor

Welcome Home Theseus by Kanaya

Woe to the People of Order by The Shiny Snivy

Doomsday by Derivakat

Tick Tock by Ellienort

Void by Ellienort

Just a Kid by Alioof

Dearest of Friends by Alioof

Casino Royale by Derivakat

Spectre by Ellienort

Savior by Precious Jewel Amor (Badboyhalo one)

Savior by Precious Jewel Amor (Red Banquet one)

Right lets get to the real reason I made this post. I'm posting chapter one of Fallen Angels tomorrow! Now this is going to work differently compared to One Big Happy Family. I posted One Big Happy Family everyday. The chapters were typically around one page long and took me about an hour and a half to write them, maybe a bit less (yea. I put a lot of work into that. that story was like 70 pages long). Well so far each chapter of this is about three pages long, sometimes a bit more. Meaning it takes me about four and a half hours to write one chapter. School exists also unlike last time where I posted it during the summer. So rather than posting every day, I will be posting once a week. Every Wednesday. So I will see you guys tomorrow morning for the first chapter of Fallen Angels.

DSMP Original Songs that Best Describe Each Character:
Mouse, why are you doing this so soon? Your last one was a joke purely made on the spot to announce Fallen Angels, my current fan fic that I'm writing about Sleepy Bois Inc that you can read here on the Fandom! (No this isn't an advertisement). Well, you see, I have this little thing called asthma which decided to start being dumb today, so I'm bored and feel like crap. And what do I do when I'm bored? Make pointless posts over the Dream SMP! So basically I'm looked at each character, searching through my Dream SMP playlist, and seeing if I can find a song that tells their story well. I think I posted the last one over the plots on my profile page. If not, I will later today. You can just dig through my activity if you want. It shouldn't be too far down.

Dream - Checkmate by Ellienort. Chess Board by Amanda Fagan is pretty good too.

Georgenotfound - Of course I have one for George what are you talking about? Gogy Wake Up by Creamay. It's actually very good. It be a bop.

Sapnap - I actually don't know any about Sapnap, so FIREBORN by Derivakat. I know it's technically not about him, but the thumbnail is a picture of him and it's the best I've got.

Eret - All Hail the King by Precious Jewel Amor. I freaking love this song. It's so underrated.

Badboyhalo - Savior by Precious Jewel Amor. The Badboyhalo one. Not the Red Banquet one.

Awesamdude - Got two for this one. The Warden by Ellienort and Just a Kid by Alioof. They both only really show one side of him, so to get the full picture you've got to listen to both.

Skeppy - Emotional by Creamay. It's technically about Bad, but it talks about Skeppy's lore so it works.

Hannah - I don't have a song for this, but I know Alioof has a song over her. I've just never heard it. (EYYYYYYYYYYYY ONCE UPON A TIME JUST CAME ON I LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH GO LISTEN TO IT IT"S BY AMANDA FAGAN OK BACK TO THE POST)

Technoblade - This dudes got so many different songs. Like, he's everyones go to DSMP character to make songs over. Probably the Woe to the People of Order cover by Mizz Fish, cause it tells his whole story. Rue the Day by Amanda Fagan is good too because it shows another side of him that most songs don't talk about.

Philza - This dude doesn't have enough fan songs. Best one to tell his story tho is Sleep, My Son by Precious Jewel Amor. It's long but very pog.

Nihachu - First one I have to actually listen to a song for! Currently listening to Hidden in the Depths by Precious Jewel Amor. I couldn't remember if it describes her relationship with Wilbur at all so lets find out. So it tells her story I well, but it doesn't describe her anger at all. So I'm naming two for this one. Hidden in the Depths by Precious Jewel Amor and Ashes by Ellienort, cause it talks about her burning the tree and stuff.

Ranboo - See this ones hard because they're are lots of songs over him, but I'm like, none of them mentions this, but then it's like, how in heck would they? Ranboo has the most complex character that we know like nothing about. I need to re-listen to Identity by Precious Jewel Amor before I decide anything. Alright I'm naming two again. Identity by Precious Jewel Amor and Monsters by Amanda Fagan because Identity mentioned literally everything except the voice.

Tubbo - WHY DO I ONLY KNOW OF ONE SONG FOR THIS DUDE??? THIS IS WHY DEATH HOLE IS SO POPULAR. If you couldn't guess the song is Death Hole by Precious Jewel Amor. Dang we are getting a lot of Precious Jewel Amor, which makes sense. She's good at character songs.

Jack Manifold - I know one song for this guy and it works very well. Bittersweet by Amanda Fagan.

CaptainPuffy - Surprise, surprise, it's Precious Jewel Amor. Empty by Precious Jewel Amor.

Karl Jacobs - No, I'm not choosing one of Derivakat's three songs. Dang she had three chances. I'm honestly surprised she didn't get it. However, I'm choosing Don't Stray by Amanda Fagan.

Quackity - Hey look, the song I was going to choose just came on. I considered multiple songs for this. I have decided on All for the Clothes of the Emperor by Precious Jewel Amor. Seriously I rewrote this post like three times. I also considered Take You Down by Amanda Fagan and Out of Touch by Tia Jade. This one works well though, even though it's technically about past Quackity. Like just Quackity from when Schlatt was president. But it still works. Like, that shows how good of a character Quackity is. He's got consistancy no matter how much he's changed.

Foolish Gamers - I only know one song about this guy. Desert Skies by Creamay. Doesn't tell his story the best, but it's all I've got.

Fundy - Your Unfinished Symphony by Kanaya. Eyyy first Kanaya on the list. She actually had a lot on the last post. Huh.

Purpled - Only know one song for this guy and it actually works very well. Legacy by Creamay.

Slimecicle - I know Alioof has a song for this guy but I've never heard it.

Tommyinnit - This one his hard cause most songs don't talk about Tommy in general, just like aspects of his life, like exile or Wilbur going crazy. I think the best one his Hero by Ellienort tho. It sums him up decently.

Wilbur Soot - I've got three for this one lol. Gone by Ellienort, REVIVED by Derivakat, and Villain by Alioof. This dudes character changes so much! It was hard to pick one or two! (Though, if you want to learn how his character doesn't change that much, you should head over to my profile page and look at my Wilbur Soot character analysis).

JSchlatt - Last one! This one may surprise some people, but like no one makes songs over JSchlatt. Maniac by Izaac Thee Unknown. It actually sums him up pretty well and also i don't know any others.

If I didn't name somebody, that means I don't have one for them. We should try and convince Precious Jewel Amor to make a song over Ponk. That'd be cool. Maybe get Derivakat to make one over Callahan. Kanaya should make one over Alyssa. If any of these happen I will die happily. Thx for reading.

What the Teams Should be for MCC All Stars:
SO I’ve been thinking. Is it possible for all the MCC AS teams to be previous teams? I didn’t think it was but I decided to test it out. AND GUESS WHAT? It’s not. You only get 8 teams. BUT I decided to take a look at the non canon events and tho Pride2021 wasn’t helpful, Jingle Jam and MCCR were! Meaning we’ve got 10 teams!

ALL THE WAY BACK FROM MCC1, YOUR FIRST TEAM:

Michaelmcchill

KaraKorvus

Krtzyy

King Burren

YOUR SECOND TEAM FROM MCC2:

Quig

HBomb

Ryguyrocky

Mini Muka

MY PERSONAL FAVORITE FROM MCC4:

Technoblade

Tommyinnit

WilburSoot

Philza

THE FOURTH TEAM FROM MCC6:

Fundy

Fruitberries

CaptainPuffy

Bitzel

A BIG JUMP ALL THE WAY TO MCC13:

Eret

Illumina

Krinios

Punz

TEAM #6 FROM MCC16:

Dream

Finnster

Badboyhalo

Seapeekay

NUMERO SIETE FROM MCC17:

Falsesymmetry

Grian

Petezahhut

Sb737

TEAM 8 FROM MCC18:

Sylvee

Tubbo

Sapnap

Smajor

OUR NINTH TEAM FROM MCC JINGLE JAM:

InTheLittleWood

Lewis Brindley

Simon Lane

SolidarityGaming

AND OUR FINAL TEAM FROM MCC RISING:

Jojosolos

SpeedSilver

XNestorio

Blushi

SERIOUSLY, they should do this for mcc all stars. It would be sick.

Not featured:

Quackity

Wisp

TapL

Georgenotfound

Karl Jacobs

Cubfan

Smallishbeans

Rendog

Fwhip

Shubble

Vikkstar

Gizzygazza

Kreekkraft

Yea they didn’t make it in. Poor them.