\The Dream SMP Novel/

Chapter 16 / The Flag

The small house the two fugitives had built was a few blocks above a ravine. The hill covered it, making it a mere cave that stretched out for quite a while. It was unexplored, dark and full of wandering monsters. Techno fought his way with an iron sword, deftly killing any creature that threatened to attack, in his left hand he held a torch that glowed poorly compared to the darkness of the ravine.

Tommy was behind him, armed with a torch and pickaxe to get the minerals their new home offered. He had long ago taken off his blue jacket, and his white and red shirt was smeared with charcoal, just like his face and hair.

The two were leaving torches around the cave, in order to light up as much as possible, and Tommy was busy building cobblestone bridges to make the area more habitable. They worked for a long while, the tiredness of the previous day had completely disappeared.

At one point the Wilbur appeared on the stairs, with the pickaxe resting on his shoulder and one hand pressed to the wall to keep his balance. As soon as they saw him, the other two stopped working to hear the news <<Hey... Have you talked to Tubbo yet?>> Tommy asked with a slight tremor in his voice. Wilbur nodded weakly, his gaze fixed on the floor <<Schlatt gave his third speech, he said the name of the nation is now "Manburg">>.

<<What?!>> exclaimed the other with his hands in his hair <<Are you kidding? He can't do that!>> Wilbur sighed bitterly <<He's the president, Tommy, of course he can>>.

Technoblade leaned against the nearest wall, an annoyed sound came from his lips <<That's why I'm an anarchist>>. Wilbur gave him a weak smile, then continued with the news <<Apparently Schlatt also raised Niki's taxes>> Tommy gasped <<Why? Why did he do that? Why don't we just kill him?>> the man tried to calm him down <<Tommy I know, I know how you feel, right now I would just like to strangle him with my own hands but->> <<I could do that>>. Both males turned to Technoblade with wide eyes <<What?>> he asked with a shrug <<I'm just saying>>.

Wilbur turned back to Tommy <<From what Tubbo told me, Niki is the only one who is opposing Schlatt's commands. Eret is actually doing it too, but he's the king, so Schlatt can't do anything to him>>. Tommy nodded thoughtfully, then took a few steps back and pointed to a nearby tunnel <<While collecting coal I noticed there was a tunnel, I explored it a bit, it connects to the sewers under the Dream SMP>> Wilbur studied the situation <<So we have a way back>> he said with a smile <<Good>>.

Technoblade started digging a room for his potato farm <<You know... Schlatt had a good idea when he decided to change the name of the country, it put you off because you realized how powerful he is>> he waited a few seconds to hear some kind of reaction, then he looked out of the room and saw that both brothers were listening to him <<We should have a name too>> he concluded.

<<Mmh...>> Tommy scratched his head looking around for some inspiration. His gaze fell on the cobblestone left on the ground after Techno had dug the stone. <<The cobblestone cowboys!>> he shouted with fake enthusiasm. Wilbur burst out laughing and had to lean against a wall to keep from falling to the ground. Techno chuckled <<If that's our name I'll switch sides, just saying. My standards are low, but not that low>> Tommy laughed loudly and the sound echoed in the ravine.

<<It must be something cool>> Wilbur pointed out while walking around <<Something catchy>> Tommy slammed his fist on the palm of his hand <<Of course!>> he exclaimed with a smirk <<This was how I wanted to call L'Manburg, but then we changed it to "burg". We'll be...>> he drew an imaginary line in the air <<Pogtopia>>. He let the words settle down for a few seconds, then looked at the others <<Well? What do you guys think?>> <<I like it>> Wilbur said with his arms crossed. They both turned to Techno who had removed his mask to wipe the sweat from his forehead <<Well, it functions as a name>>.