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"I'm not doing anything yet," Tubbo informed Tommy. Tommy scowled at where he remembered Tubbo being before putting on the blindfold that helped him focus.
"Shut up," he scowled, trying to focus. He pulled on the tie, trying to get it to just work.
"Wasp, let Red do his thing." He heard Dream say bitterly beside him.
When he first developed his power, trying to grab a tie and make it work had felt so wrong but so cool at the same time. He wasn't moving his hand, or anything, just lightly tugging that string or tether that hung in his head.
Or yanking, or pulling, or ripping, but really the point still stood that it felt odd. And was definitely hard to do when Tubbo wouldn't shut up.
He felt it brush against him, that odd phantom feeling where he could feel himself starting to grab it despite his hand still laying still. That he didn't feel it brushing his physical hand, but instead like a third invisible limb.
"Oh! I'm walking forwards, Tommy! You're making me walk forwards!"
"Really!?" He said, ripping off his blindfold to look. He heard Dream mumble something in disagreement, but he wasn't focusing because did he just make Tubbo move ON PURPOSE?
And, there Tubbo was, a few steps ahead.
Focusing back on the tether in his head, he tried to pull it the same way again. It hurt his head slightly this time, but he watched Tubbo take another step forward with a shocked expression on his face.
"Dude. That is literally so creepy. My legs just moved, without me telling them to!" Tubbo exclaimed.
An annoyed sigh from Dream. "Yes, Wasp, that is how mind control works."
"Sounds pretty cool," Ranboo pitched in.
Tommy grinned to himself. He could use his powers at will at only ten? Not many people could do that. Most got them at twelve or thirteen, Ranboo and Tubbo both being twelve.
He felt Dream pat him roughly on the back, and Tommy looked over to see he was face-to-face with the mask.
"Good job, Red. You'll be fighting The Syndicate in no time."
Tommy's heart swelled at the praise.
Because that is what he was meant to do. Not starve to death on the street alongside Ranboo and Tubbo, all bastard orphans waiting to be brought into the hands of Lady Death herself, but Heroes. The kind with a capital 'H'.
He was going to kill The Syndicate one day, and Dream was going to be proud of him.
"You fucking idiotic child!" He heard Dream scream. Tommy held back a flinch, biting the inside of his cheek.
"You are fucking eleven now, Tommy. You should have improved. But now it seems like your powers have only gotten worse."
Tommy tried not to cry. It wasn't working.
Dream sighed. It wasn't a fond sigh, not that he heard them often. Dream was mad. At him. And Dream had taken Tommy to train specifically, so Ranboo and Tubbo weren't even here.
"Tommy, you are going to save the city one day from The Syndicate. You are going to kill all of them, and save us all. You'll be a hero." A pause. "But you can't if you are incompetent."
"'m sorry, Dream." He mumbled, a tear falling down his cheek. No, no, no, Dream didn't like it when he cried. Shit.
"Oh Prime, you are fucking crying? Heroes do not cry, Tommy."
"I know."
"I don't want to look at you anymore. We'll keep going tomorrow. Just get out of my sight."
"I'm sorry."
"Leave."
Tommy left without another word.
Red.
Red, it stained his clothes, it stained everything, he was sorry he just wanted to listen and be good he was so sorry he didn't want to do this anymore he didn't want to be Red, he didn't want to be covered in red, he just wanted to listen and do what he was supposed to but he wasn't good enough-
Tommy was getting better now.
It had taken a lot of work from Dream for him to be able to, which he was very sorry about, but he was getting better.
Every time he got hurt, it was okay, because Dream was making him better. Even if he cried and screamed, he was getting better.
He was twelve now, when most people could just start to develop their powers, and he could already make Tubbo and Ranboo say things from across the apartment.
He couldn't do it today, though. He'd been using it too much yesterday and it had hurt today and then Dream made him hurt but it was okay.
His head throbbed. His ribs felt broken. He could see bruises on his face in the bathroom mirror.
It was okay though. He was getting better.
He wasn't going to cry, because he was going to be a Hero, and they didn't cry. He wasn't going to cry.
He wasn't, he-
He sat down against the locked bathroom door and broke down.
He was thirteen now.
He could do so much better now. He was so much better.
His eyes were closed, and he could feel himself pulling on the tethers between him and Ranboo. He could hear Ranboo's footsteps against the ground, doing the complex battle moves Dream had taught them.
"You're doing so good, Tommy." He felt Dream ruffle his hair.
His heart fluttered in his chest. Dream was happy. He wasn't pulling his hair, and he wasn't hurting him. He was-
Tommy was grinning. He knew he was doing good.
When he did the final move, he reached his hands up to take off his blindfold. He saw Ranboo, smiling at him, his legs shaking.
"That... That is still so weird man." Ranboo said slowly. Tubbo nodded in agreement.
Tommy's had started to throb from the work, but he saw Dream, and although he couldn't see Dream's face he'd learnt his tells for his moods. He looked relaxed, and his head was tilted slightly to the side, and by the way he could see his jaw under the mask slightly higher meant he was smiling.
He- he didn't smile often. Or, smile in a happy way.
He felt Dream's arm go around his shoulder. Tommy's grin only grew wider.
"You're doing so, so good. You're going to do so well." Dream sounded almost excited.
"Tommy, take it easy, you are gonna make Ranboo fall over, or hurt yourself."
Tommy couldn't though. He couldn't. He was fourteen now and he was supposed to go and fight The Syndicate with them tomorrow and he wasn't ready.
His breaths weren't coming out right, and a horrible headache was forming at the base of his skull.
He'd explain it to them but he needed to focus. He wasn't ready yet, he-
He couldn't-
He felt Tubbo's hands on his shoulders, shaking him, and Tubbo saying something. He couldn't hear it, because he could feel the tether slipping through his fingers as the pain in his head grew worse.
No, he was better than this, he was supposed to be a Hero. He couldn't let it slip away, not when he'd be fighting The Syndicate tomorrow.
He'd been training his whole life for this, so many nights, so much blood and pain so he had to do this.
"-ommy! Let go of the tether!"
What? No, he couldn't do that, The Syndicate would kill him if he-
He couldn't-
He cou-
He-
"Breathe, Tommy, c'mon you can do this you're okay-"
Tubbo was saying more things. He couldn't focus, he couldn't breathe, he wasn't ready to fight them he wasn't ready-
He felt Tubbo pull him into a hug. "Tommy, you are okay. Just breathe."
He couldn't breathe, he couldn't breathe, he felt tears running down his face but he wasn't supposed to cry, everything hurt his head hurt it all hurt-
"You've got to let go of Ranboo, he can't move."
Let go? Of the tether?
He couldn't do that, no, he-
He felt it slip between his fingers, out of reach.
The horrible pain in his head seemed to have peaked, but still ever present like there was a jackhammer drilling through his skull. He felt his hands clench into someone's- Tubbo'- shirt, and he buried his head into his shoulder.
"Tommy? What's- what's wrong? Breathe for me, Tom."
Tommy finally took in a shaking breath. It made his head hurt.
"Yeah, yeah, good job. You're doing so good."
"You're doing so, so good. You're going to do so well." Dream's words rung in his ears.
He wasn't going to do good. He wasn't ready. He hadn't bled enough, he wasn't hurt enough he needed to be better he was supposed to be a Hero, he couldn't be a Hero if he was scared.
But soon, his breathing was semi-normal again, and he was coming back to his senses.
"Tommy?" Tubbo asked, sounding scared.
"I- I- I'm n- not ready, Tubbo."
He heard Tubbo make a pitying noise.
"None of us are ready, Tommy. We just are gonna have to do it anyways."
Tommy nodded into Tubbo's shirt. This- he-
He was going to be okay because Ranboo and Tubbo and Dream would be there. Tubbo and Ranboo were sixteen now, and Dream was twenty-six.
If something happened, Dream would be there. Dream would protect him, he knew Dream would.
The bruises under his shirt said otherwise.
As Tommy stood alongside Tubbo, Ranboo, and Dream, he tried his best to stay calm.
His hands had been interlocked with Ranboo and Tubbo's just a few moments ago, but when Dream had noticed, he'd said something about it 'showing weakness'.
Tommy wasn't one to argue, especially with Dream, but he really wished he still had the support of the two of them right now, as much as they probably needed his.
The Syndicate would be coming out any moment now, he realised, as he looked down at his watch. They'd scheduled a meeting with the three of them- Siren, The Blade, and The Angel of Death- at three, but it was around two thirty now. They were smart enough to know they wouldn't be late.
As if on cue, The Blade was the first to step out.
Despite not being as powerful as Angel, he made Tommy unreasonably scared. His physical strength was much stronger than Siren and Angel's, and he was almost impossible to injure with regular weapons. Only gold was really effective, despite gold usually being impractical for weapons because of how soft of a mineral it was. All four of them had an obsidian dagger plated with gold.
The Blade wore a large mask over his eyes, with blades coming out of the side resembling curved tusks. His hair was long and pink, in a long braid that was a similar colour to the mask.
"Long time no see, Dream." The Blade greeted, a sly smile on his face.
Tommy stiffened, resisting the urge to step closer to Dream for protection.
He was going to be a Hero after today, there was no way he could be seen cowering behind Dream.
"Nice to see you again, Blade." The words were spat with such venom laced into the words from Dream that even Tommy felt uneasy. "It's nice to see an old rival doing so well. I'd like to introduce you to my new colleagues."
Dream's arm extended, gesturing to Tommy and his friends. "Red," Dream started, "Wasp, and Ender."
There was a moment of silence, as Blade inspected them. Tommy tried not to shrink back.
"Huh. Did we not kill enough for people to get the hint? Y'know, that being a Hero is a bad idea? The system is corrupt Dream, and you just don't care because you are sitting at the top."
A laugh from Dream came. An eerily familiar one, that reminded him of pain I'm getting stronger I'm in pain I should be stronger he is making me better this is okay I deserve this please stop I'm in pain I want to be stronger-
Dream's voice snapped him out of his temporary trance. "Oh, Blade, you and your insistence on turning Heroes against each other. It sure seemed to work on Merling, ever since we saw her with you. And no one will ever forget August; her betrayal will go down in history."
Tommy didn't know who any of those people were. He wasn't sure if he wanted to if they were underlings of The Syndicate now.
Tommy froze when he saw Angel swoop down beside Blade from above, and when he saw Siren step out of the shadows of an alley.
"Let's begin, now, shall we?" Angel said, a grin on his face.
Tommy barely had time to take in the fact that the battle was fucking starting before The Syndicate was right up the them.
He knew what he was supposed to do, though. He'd spent years planning for what he'd do with Dream.
First, in a moment, he reached out and felt the three tethers of The Syndicate in his palm. He felt them against his skin, his eyes shut so he could focus on the three of them.
He'd never touched The Syndicate's tethers before, and one of them particularly felt like it was burning him, but he could do this.
He focused on Siren's first, the burning sensation getting stronger. It hurt like a bitch, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle.
Closing someone's throat to suffocate them would be practical, of course, but it took a lot of energy. Because although he could control people's muscles, breathing was a natural function and much harder to stop.
So, he could only stop Siren from talking for now. He knew the stories Dream had told him of about Siren- the people he'd killed with just his words- and he couldn't imagine that happening to Tubbo or Ranboo.
Second, he went with something a bit more complex. Making their muscles lock up when they were still, trying to slowly transition to stopping them from moving. He was especially careful to lock up Angel's wings.
He heard some confused yells from The Syndicate, as he heard Dream, Tubbo, and Ender fight them.
That was step two. He was slowly making them unable to do, he just had to keep-
A wave of pain came from his head when he tried to hold them tighter, and he started to feel the tethers slip.
Dream had always been the only one to ever test him on resisting his powers, and now he was doing it to three people at once, and along with the pain that Siren's tether was giving him everything hurt.
The burning sensation was in his head now too, and fuck it was painful.
He figured it was probably because of Siren's ability also involving mind control. Shit.
"IT'S THE RED GUY! BLADE, GO FOR HIM!" He heard Angel's voice call out, sounding strained.
Oh.
He felt terror strike through him, nearly making him let go of the tethers, opening his eyes to see Blade looking right at him.
In a moment of terror, he tried to make Blade unable to move at all, but he powered through it sending a horrible wave of pain through Tommy's head.
Dream had resisted it before, but never- never-
He'd never gone completely through it.
The Blade had just fucking snapped the tether.
He hadn't known that was possible, shit, he was going to die he didn't want to die, Prime please he didn't want to die yet-
He was supposed to be a Hero. It was all he'd ever wanted, and now he was going to-
He was fourteen.
Fucking fourteen and he was going to gutted by this guy, he looked so angry, angrier than Dream was sometimes.
Tommy had just wanted to be good, to listen to Dream-
He ran.
With the other two tethers held solidly in his mind, he ran. He ran as fast as he could, his breaths shallow and pained as the distance made his other tethers all the more painful.
But he couldn't let go of those ones too. He was still fumbling through his head to find Blade's end of the tether.
He heard Blade's footsteps behind him, as Tommy ran past building after building.
The strain from the tethers, as he ran farther, started to feel like it was ripping his brain apart.
But if Angel could fly, he'd rip the others to shreds. And Siren could make the others die in just a word.
They were counting on him.
As he ran, the pain splitting his head open, he was hit with a realisation.
He was going to die. There wasn't any ways around it.
But he'd die a hero, would he not? The Blade would be too far away to get back in time, and they'd be able to kill Siren and Angel.
He was going to die like a martyr. He was going to die a Hero, because even though he was dying he was going to die and Dream would be proud of him.
That was all he wanted. That was all he wanted. That was-
He felt his head hit the ground as he was tackled, and he heard the crack of his mask against the ground, and it partially fall off of his face.
He drew in a sharp breath, the movement making his head hurt even more.
"There you are." He felt The Blade pull on the back of his hoodie, and bring him up from the ground.
This was it. He was going to die, but it was okay. He was okay.
The only thing he regretted was that he was crying. Tears were running down his face, and maybe that didn't make him a real Hero.
He just- he just wanted to help people, to have Dream be proud of him.
Maybe he would be now, maybe-
In the midst of his own circling thoughts, and the pain in his head, he didn't notice the utterly shocked expression on The Blade's face.
"You-"
"Just fucking kill me already," he said quietly. "Before I c-can die any more pathetically, everything- everything-" Everything hurt.
"What."
"Just-" He sobbed. He couldn't hold it in, it all hurt and he didn't want to die-
He was going to die a hero, and that was okay.
He didn't want to die.
He was-
He didn't-
"You're a kid."
He wasn't a kid. He was a hero.
He wanted to say it, but he was trying to focus on keeping the tethers in his grip. They were slipping so quickly.
"You-" The Blade paused. "you can't be a Hero at that age. What is-"
He sobbed again. "I am a Hero, I'm a Hero, I'm g-gonna die and that- that- that's o-okay b-b-because-" He sobbed again, his hands shaking.
He was so scared. He was so hurt. He was so fucking pathetic.
"You'll be a hero." A pause. "But you can't if you are incompetent."
He was incompetent. Who was he kidding? He wasn't going to die a Hero. He was going to die for nothing, because when he died Siren and Angel would just kill Tubbo and Ranboo and Dream.
He couldn't hold in another sob, even more pathetically. He was dooming them all, wasn't he?
"H-how- how old are you?"
Tommy didn't see the point in answering, so he didn't. It didn't matter anyways. He was going to die and kill off everyone he's ever loved with him.
"Phil, Wilbur, get the fuck over to my location right now and don't hurt anyone else-"
The Blade's voice sounded fuzzy. Everything started to feel fuzzy. Had he held the tethers too long, with them struggling against them? Was that why everything felt fuzzy?
Blade wasn't choking him. He could feel that he wasn't.
It was strange. Everything was distant now. Even the pain was fuzzy now.
Someone was still there with him. He felt his surroundings fall like sand through his fingers.
Who? Who was- who was he with?
Where?
Oh yeah, he was dying. He remembered that.
Maybe overusing his powers was killing him. Maybe he should let go of the tethers.
When he let go, there was a wave of euphoria that washed over him.
Half of him was saying that he couldn't even be strong moments away from his death. That maybe if Dream hit him more he would've been better.
The other half was enjoying the fuzziness of it all, of all of his thoughts.
Then, it wasn't fuzzy, it was just dark.
Wilbur sat in the back of the van, looking own at the kid's head in his lap, slowly running his fingers through his blonde hair.
His eyes were closed, and he looked peaceful. It was hard to believe that this- this child was the Hero they had just fought.
The van was silent.
"Were the other two kids as well?"
Techno's question was met with no answer for a moment. Wilbur didn't have the heart to answer him.
"...yes," Phil finally answered. "One of the kids' mask fell for a moment. I thought I'd just been seeing things, but when you called and told us... I can only assume the other one is too, considering they are even shorter than both of these two."
Wilbur was only half listening as he brushed his hands through the kid's hair more.
He was so young, he was so fucking young. He was going to murder Dream, murder the fucker, he was going to give him the most painful death he could imagine.
Self-disembowelment felt appropriate.
"We almost killed three children," Techno spat.
"...yeah." Wilbur agreed weakly, thinking back to the other two he'd fought.
Techno took a shaking breath.
"The kid- Red- when I said he was too young to be a Hero, he just got more upset. He said he was okay with dying because he was a Hero."
Wilbur froze, and then felt anger bubble up inside of him. "There is no fucking way that the green bitch brainwashed three children into dying like a martyr."
"I'm going to fucking kill him."
"I second that."
"I third that."
There was a slight stir, and Wilbur looked down to see the blonde's eyes opening.
"'m h'rts..." He mumbled, his eyes half open. His voice sounded so fucking sad it made Wilbur's heart break.
He saw Phil and Techno look back, like they were waiting for him to answer.
"You're okay now, baby." He said quietly as he kept sifting his hand through the kid's hair. The kid sighed happily, leaning his head into it.
"Who 'r 'ou?" The kid mumbled, blinking slowly like he was trying to wake up.
"Wilbur," he answered.
There was a pause from the kid. "'m, h'rts, Wi'b'r." The kid said, his eyes closing again, his hand weakly tightening around Wilbur's.
"You'll be okay," he promised.
Another pause, as Wilbur saw a tear run down the kids cheek. "'m s'r'y, 'm n't s'ppos'd t' cry." The kid said quietly.
I'm not supposed to cry. Just the fact that the kid thought that made Wilbur want to cry.
"It's okay, you can cry."
"Re'lly?"
"Yes, really."
"Oh. Tha'k 'ou. 'm Tommy."
But the kid never got to, because his eyes closed again, and he was back to sleep.
"He'll live, don't worry Wilbur, we've got healing potions." His dad said comfortingly.
Wilbur didn't respond, staring down at the kid.
Tommy.
A child ready to die.
"We're gonna get the other kids, and then we're gonna- I'm gonna- Dream is fucking dead."
"Save some for me," Techno joked.
"Agreed." Phil said.
Wilbur looked down at Tommy.
"I promise we're gonna get them back, and kill Dream. You'll never have to worry about him again, sunshine."