Good Things Never Last

Chapter 54

Tommy's POV

"Hey Dream"
As I watched the two men interact, I froze, unable to move.
"Hello"
His voice was calm and sounded a lot happier than it did when we were at war, but the sound of it made me uneasy, like he knew exactly what he was walking into.

"You know how I told you about the whole blowing up L'Manburg thing?"
The masked man nodded, his head tilted ever so slightly so he could look over my shoulder.
"Well I informed Tommy about that"
Will's fingers brushed against my shoulder as he squeezed it. I stood there, still unable to move, staring into the mask's eyes.

"And we all know how he took that. But what we also know is that you enjoy conflict. Maybe even love it, I might say. So let me do it! You have the equipment and I'll be your vessel going into it. I want to set this up. I want to rig the nation"
I took a small step towards the masked man.
"Dream, please don't give it to him. You can't..."
"I have to Tommy"
I could hear the smirk in his voice as I turned to face Wilbur again, gently reaching for the bow strapped to my back.

"I can't let you do this Will"
I brought the bow forward and drew an arrow from my pocket, which I aimed at him. Out of all things, I didn't anticipate a netherite axe to graze the front of my neck. As soon as I felt the metal touch the skin just above my Adam's apple, I let go of my weapon, allowing it to thud to the floor.

I fought to get free from the older man's grip. His muscular arm was wrapped tightly over my shoulder as the axe's dark blade gently bit into the first layer of skin on my neck, causing me to squirm.

My breathing grew uneven as I stared at Wilbur, my former president, my brother, silently pleading for help as I felt blood slowly trickle down my neck. All I could do was stare into his insane eyes while I groaned and shouted as the blade held to my throat was pressed down harder.

The sound of a single leaf being crushed, on the other hand, was something I didn't miss. Most people, like Wilbur and Dream, wouldn't have noticed it, but for someone who had spent most of their time alone in a cave with just their own thoughts and silence as their best friend, it didn't take much for me to notice any disruption.

As the moon hung ominously in the sky, I prayed that my saviour had arrived and that it wasn't just an animal returning to its burrow. I waited for another sound, but it never came, and my hope that I'd just gained rapidly disappeared.

A small sigh escaped my lips as I watched Wilbur's facial expression stay the exact same, completely numb. He didn't care that I was in pain. He didn't give a shit. He was only concerned about finishing what he started.

I felt chills shoot up my skin and a shudder down my spine as the silence around us got unnerving. A few moments later, I felt my head being pushed forward ever so slightly as Dream stilled completely. His axe almost fell from his fingers as his grip around me loosened, but not enough for me to get away.

Silence fell over us as whatever had happened seemed to frighten both Dream and Wilbur. I watched Will's expression change slightly, as if he had finally snapped out of the trance he had been in minutes before. In the silence, time seemed to slow down, but as soon as I felt the masked man flinch from behind me, I knew something was up.

"How about this, Dreamy? You get the fuck away from my little brother or I'll kick your teeth down your throat before slitting it. I'll enjoy watching you choke on your own blood as you bleed out on our floor"

Her words were covered in venom, clearly soaked in hatred and disbelief as I watched Wilbur shudder as he fell under her gaze. I guessed that her face was still calm and stern, the same expression she'd been giving everyone for weeks, making her appear even more terrifying than she sounded.

I could practically hear Dream swallow as he let go of me, making me tumble forward into Wilbur, who seemed to be frozen on the spot, arguing with his own mind. Before I could even say anything, a firm arm was wrapped around my shoulder as its owner led me to the staircase at the back of the small cave.

We descended in silence as the tension in the air could have been cut with a kitchen knife. I knew her blood was undoubtedly boiling, so as we reemerged into the light, I went to calm her, only to be cut off.

"Don't ever trust anyone in this world, even your shadow leaves you when you're in the dark"
She turned and walked away, leaving me frozen in shock on a rope bridge above the centre of the ravine that had become my home.

Y/N's POV

I stormed through the ravine, still trying to refrain myself from going back up there to beat the shit out of Wilbur and the green masked bastard. Instead, I was preoccupied with venting my frustrations on a couple of stones that I kicked along the flood as I walked.

I was obviously too concentrated on the stones, because before I realised it, I had walked directly into the cape that I'd been stealing for the past few months. Stumbling backwards, I somehow managed to stay on my feet as the pink-haired man turned around to face me, a letter clutched tightly in his hand.

When he realised I was the one who'd walked right into him, his hard look softened. As my eyes met his scarlet ones, he grinned just a little.

"Ah, just the person I was looking for"
I just stared at him as he reached his hand out, holding the paper towards me.
"You got mail"
I went to ask how he knew, but he answered me before I could even question it.

"It was addressed to both of us"
I gave him a quick nod while I grabbed the paper from him, looking down at the scribbles that covered the page.

"Dear Techno and Y/N,
You are cordially invited to the Manburg festival of democracy.
Our great president Schlatt has allowed us the honour of hosting a wonderful event to celebrate the removal of Tommy and Wilbur from our great nation"

"Hold the phone"
I looked back at Techno, who was now leaning against the cave wall, awaiting my response.
"Are they just going to ignore the fact that they 'removed' me as well? I didn't even do anything and they sent me away to this shithole and now they want me back!"
The blood god just rolled his eyes at my antics, chuckling lightly to himself.
"Just keep reading"

"You have been invited due to your wonderful personalities and loyalty to the nation"
"Are you sure this is meant for us, cause, I mean none of that applies to you does it? And my loyalty for them kinda went to shit when they kicked me out"
"You keep telling yourself that"

"16th of October, 2020 at 1 pm
Hope you can make it!

-Tubbo"

"Wait... that's tomorrow"
He stepped away from the wall as he stalked closer to me, eventually coming to a halt so he could tower over me like he normally would, but the black shadow across his face made him look more intimidating than normal.

"So you're coming with me whether you like it or not. You don't have a choice. I'll tell Wilbur in the morning and we'll leave around noon so we can get there on time and scope out the area, alright?"
"Alright"
Techno took a step back from me cautiously as he looked me and down.

"Are you okay?"
"Yep, why do you ask?"
"I didn't really expect you to agree that easily"
"Well I don't really have anything to lose at this point, do I?"