The Quiet of a Melancholic Moon

Anonymity

"We got our first mission!" Dream said as he rushed into the apartment with a paper in his hands. Tommy looked up from the book he was reading on the couch to see what Dream was excited about. Dream laid the paper down on the coffee table. It was an official document from XD regarding the status of the hero Dream and his unknown sidekick. They were entry level with a basic mission to tagalong with pros for a raid. It would be happening later that night.

The way their society worked was that heroes would get missions that matched their status. If they continued to do excellent work, they could be granted a higher ranking. With this process, it didn't take long for heroes to find their place on the food chain. Those who were efficient found where they belonged. It was unlikely that a hero would receive a job they weren't prepared for. With the low odds, hero society was able to function without error. The heroing world wasn't without fault, though. It was easy for the towns at the edges of L'Manberg to be neglected. Because the system could change drastically in an instant, most heroes went out of their way to improve the odds of them staying on top. Tommy knew how some heroes had done terrible things to themselves and others in order to become more powerful. They had paid off people to make sure they stayed in power. Dream told Tommy he wanted to be on top to change that. Tommy just wanted to stay by Dream's side, society be damned.

"Once they see how amazing we are, we'll definitely become the top fucking heroes!" Tommy said as he went over the details. He grinned at Dream who was wearing a proud smile himself. Tommy could get used to that smile. He wanted to make Dream proud of him. His mother had always seen his accomplishments as the bare minimum of what was necessary. Dream thought Tommy's simple actions like walking or smiling were something to be amazed at. Tommy hoped he could continue to live up to that confidence Dream placed in him.

"That's the idea. We need to do as many things as we can on this mission. Volunteer for every odd job you can. That will rack us up more points in XD's eyes. If he knows we have a variety of skills, we can get many jobs. With more jobs comes a faster process of getting to the top. Once we make it, we can start leading by example. We'll show the world the principles of being hero," Dream said with a determined glint in his green eyes that he got every time he discussed his lifelong ambition. Tommy didn't question it. He didn't care what drove Dream to this extreme of justice. Dream was just there, and Tommy couldn't do anything but support his mentor.

"I was actually thinking of forming a team with George, Sapnap, and Bad. If we all five work together, we can rise together instead of individual. It will be slightly tricky since hero teams aren't well known. A lot of heroes like to work alone. We don't see teams often so we don't know how ranking works with them," Dream continued to explain. Again, Tommy didn't care. He liked the people Dream was talking about. They brought a similar level of comfort Dream did. Tommy wouldn't mind watching their backs along with Dream's. That was the responsibility of a sidekick. They remained in a hero's shadow to protect that hero from what aimed at their back. That's how Tommy saw it, anyways.

"I never told you this, but I met George and SapNap when I was at my Angel education program. We were under the same Angel. We were drawn together because we all shared a passion for heroics. George wanted to save people who were a danger simply because they couldn't control their power. SapNap wanted to be the one that illuminated the dark alleys to keep the murders of society's outcasts from going unnoticed. I wanted to reform hero society as a whole. Bad agreed with us when we passed the program. He trained me in my Ender magic," Dream continued in a whisper like he was telling a secret. Tommy leaned in with wide eyes. Dream rarely talked about his past. More than Tommy, obviously, but so few times that Tommy took notice. Dream never spoke about his youth. Not a single word was uttered about young Dream.

"I've never had a wish like that. I've never had a wish for the future at all. I'm a live-in-the-moment kind of Big Man, y'know?" Tommy responded back in his own whisper. To Tommy, this was like a secret. It was a piece of information about himself that he wouldn't dare tell anyone else. Was that enough to make it a secret? "I have a dream, now. I want to follow you on your path to being the greatest damn hero you can be. I want to stand on top of the whole fucking world, by your side, and not stop until everyone is safe and sound."

"I thought you would be the rational one out of the two of us!" Dream started laughing. It wasn't a malicious laugh but a joyful one that Tommy had to giggle with. Dream took a deep breath as he settled down against the couch. He leaned his head back to stare at the roof. "It's impossible to save everyone. Someone is always going to lose, and every moment someone is dying. It might not be murder. It might be a sickness I can't heal. Still, even when I know there's only so many lives I will be able to save, I want to rescue them all. I don't want to look at anybody and give up on them. The heavens gifted us with these powers. I'll use them to save every person in front me. Are you saying that you will follow me on this path of hardship? Our story will not end happily if we live like this, Tommy."

"Dream, when you found me, you told me a lot of pointless things I didn't pay attention to. But from what I remember, you held out your hand, promising a better world for the people who had suffered like I had. If I were to have any doubts, I would have had them when I didn't know you. I know you now. I believe in you, Dream. Despite everything, I'm still fucking here, aren't I?" Tommy said as he completely turned to Dream with a slight frown and drawn together eyebrows that added an edge to his resolution. "As long as you hold out your hand, I will always take it."

"What did I do to deserve you?" Dream muttered as he rubbed his face with a sad grin. He wrapped an arm around Tommy's shoulder, pulling him into a hug. They were nestled between the couch and the coffee table on the floor so the pseudo was uncomfortable in a physical standpoint. But it wasn't awkward. Tommy melted into the embrace. Dream held him tight like Tommy would disappear. Tommy didn't know what had made Dream worried. Tommy had made it clear where his loyalty lied. Tommy wouldn't leave Dream's side until Dream sent him away or one of them died. If Dream fell into tyranny or villainy, Tommy would become a henchman instead of a sidekick.

"There's one more thing I wanted to talk to you about. On the paper, you were called an unknown sidekick. That's because you don't have a hero name. You can't go as Tommy, so what name do you want? It could be related to mine like Nightmare or Vision. It could be something completely different. Whatever name feels like it matches you," Dream said as he tapped the paper. He kept one arm around Tommy's shoulder, and Tommy leaned against Dream as he thought about a name.

What was Tommy? What fit him? What name could summarize Tommy's abilities, morality, and loyalty? The blonde hummed as he tried to think of something good. He didn't need a name that would disrespect Dream. Tommy needed something perfect. Tommy needed to ask himself what would best fit the image he was going for.

Tempestas

A word from a language lost to time. Few people knew the language's name, much less how to put a definition to the string of letters. Tommy knew what it meant. It was Latin. It meant 'storm'. Tommy considered himself similar to a storm. He was unpredictable and all over the place. He was a force of destructive brought to guard the stars from the queries of mankind. Tommy's power created a vital aspect of storms. If the man beside Tommy was the dream that unified the people out of a shared passion, Tommy would be the storm that drove them together because of a shared will to survive.

"Tempest. Call me Tempest, bitch."

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Make sure to check out The Tranquility of a Solemn Night!