Heavy is the Head that Wears the Solemn Crown

Twenty-Two - The Festering Sickness

Tommy

Business Bay was a coastal region. They spent a lot of their time on the water, fishing on boats or exploring coral reefs for fun. As the military leader for the town he protected, he had been on some of those ships before. He was there to help with the heavy lifting, and he had fought against aquatic monsters while the fishermen did their work. He had played in the water with his sister when they were younger, spending their youthful days floating in the Mellohi river. He had gone sailing up and down the bay every summer with his whole friend group. In all that time, Tommy had never gotten seasick. Maybe when he was younger he felt a little off-balance, but he had never puked or gotten so nauseous he couldn't see straight on a ship before. It didn't matter if he was on the desk, beneath it, or up in the crow's nest. Tommy didn't get sick, after all, and seasickness was no exception.

It was now an exception. Something was pounding the interior of his head so hard that he felt like his skull was seconds away from cracking open. If he closed his eyes, he would have told anyone that he was standing naked in the middle of the Antarctic Empire during the harsh winter. He couldn't stop shaking even when his arms had already gone numb from being tied to the roof of the lower deck. He felt every noise reverberate through his body, as harsh as thunder being launched directly into his ear. He had never felt sickness claw at him before, so he knew that he was suffering worse than he should have, but he also knew that the pain he was in wasn't natural. Something was terribly wrong with him, but he was pretending it was seasickness. He was pretending that the fact vomit was leaking from his mouth mixed with bright red streaks that he prayed wasn't blood was from the fact that the ship was tilted forward as it rocked back and forth on the waves of the Mellohi river.

The seraphim were the only bright spot in all his misery. Beau was situated right in front of him, and her stories were the only reason he was keeping his sanity. Even in the darkness, he could see her sharp grin and the defiance in her eyes. Her wings flustered behind her, the smokeless fire casting shadows over her face that truly highlighted her monstrous beauty. She was out for blood and freedom, and Tommy inexplicably felt stronger by seeing that. The call of rebellion warmed his icy skin like a burning sun had been dragged out of the cosmos for his personal wellbeing. She spoke of the sky and wilderness, her home, with such intense longing that Tommy wanted to give her that. He wanted to break the chains holding her down himself so that she may take to the skies again.

Freddie was just as chaotic as Beau. He had been asleep when Tommy first boarded, but he was now awake. He didn't seem surprised when he noticed that they had a fourth person among them. He just smiled at Tommy, cracking a horrible joke that managed to draw a chuckle from Tommy and a groan from Beau. Where Beau was freedom and rebellion, Freddie was perseverance and laughter. He was the light that made the rebellion worth it, the promise that made laymen into warriors. He refused to allow the mood to become as dark at the lower deck area, his wings burning the brightest out of all of them.

Andor was not as boisterous as his companions. The purple fire coating his wings was the dimmest. His smiles were small and sweet. When he spoke, everyone listened because Andor didn't speak to fill the silence, he spoke to fill their hearts. He was a rock poking out of a raging river, a steady force that remained still even when the elements pounded against him.

Tommy, for his part, couldn't do anything. He occasionally spoke, replying to Beau's taunts and Freddie's jokes. He nudged Andor with his leg when he wasn't certain if the seraph was alive or dead. That was the extent of what he could do with the sickness threatening him. He kept his mouth shut and his limbs limp as he waited for the sickness to pass or kill him. He didn't want to die, obviously. He had Kristin, his loving sister who couldn't afford another loss. He had Wilbur and Techno, two people who he instinctively felt close to. He had Phil, Niki, Tubbo, Ranboo, Puffy, and Shrub. He had that promise he made to Wisp, the betrayer who had given his life to give Tommy this one. Tommy knew that he needed to live for them. He needed to live for himself, too, in order to spite the gods of sickness for finally cursing him and the gods of fate for giving him a bad hand in life.