Three Fates Entwined | Dream Team

Chapter Twenty-Six

George felt more than just a tiny bit surprised and shocked when the assassin jumped out at them.

There was still confusion in his mind about the man he knew as Clay and the stories he had been told about the assassin named Dream. It still baffled him how the two were one and the same, but he didn't have any time to think about it. He knew that he had to act.

Throughout Sapnap's entire talk with the three knights, George had been racking his brain, trying to figure out how to end the chase in a way that didn't result in him dying. Sapnap seemed surprisingly calm, but he was too busy being calm and collected while talking with the effectively freaked-out knights. It was up to George to come up with something.

Unfortunately.

George had looked around. Useless paintings frowned down at him from the walls. The knight that needed to go to the washroom looked like they really needed to go to the washroom.

Then, he spotted it. A rope hung from the belt of the knight talking to Sapnap, a good sturdy one that looked like it could withstand a lot of damage.

But Cla--- Dream has a knife.

What if he didn't?

This is a horrible plan.

It also happens to be the only plan I've got.

So when Dream jumped out and attacked Sapnap, George was ready.

Kind of.

He lunged forward and grabbed the rope from the knight, slinging it across his shoulder. Something whizzed past his head, and Dream's knife narrowly missed his face.

"Get out of the way, George!" Sapnap shouted at him.

"No!" George shouted back. "This is my fight too! I won't sit aside as you put your life at risk to save me!"

He tugged out his sword and, as one, he and Sapnap attacked Dream.

After all the training he had done with Filens, Sapnap, and Dream, he thought that he had improved. And he had. He knew he had.

But as he and Sapnap went against Dream, two against one, he was beginning to doubt his skills.

George jabbed at Dream's unprotected right side as Sapnap dueled from his left, but somehow, Dream managed to block his blow and swerve around Sapnap's sword. George ducked as Dream's knife passed by his head, missing by mere centimeters.

"Stop this, Dream!" Sapnap pleaded as he fought the assassin, sword against knife, friend against foe. "Come on, we're friends! You don't have to do this!"

Dream shook his head, parrying the blow. "I must. I've already gotten rid of the king. It's just you now, George."

George went rigid with surprise. "W-what? What do you mean, you got rid of the king?"

The mask looked eerier than ever as Dream said, "I'm sorry, George."

"No, you're lying!" George shouted. He gripped the hilt of his sword tighter than before, so tight that his knuckles were turning white. "You're better than this! I know you are! Please, Clay, you don't have to do this."

At the sound of the name he had used during his stay at the castle, Dream hesitated noticeably. Hope flared up inside of George. Maybe he's alright. Maybe everything is going to be okay.

Something struck Dream from behind, momentarily distracting him from George. Dream spun around to face the new threat of the three knights, whom had finally come out of their daze and mustered up the courage to face the assassin.

George gaped at the wound on Dream's back. It was long, going from from one shoulder blade to the opposite waist. Blood stained the green hoodie he was wearing, sending a twinge of guilt through George. He knew that Dream loved that hoodie.

A wound like that had to be sapping his strength. But as the assassin dueled against the three knights, there was almost no hint of the pain in him.

He's probably had worse, being an assassin. But at the same time... that looks bad.

"Let's go, George!" Sapnap tugged on his arm again. George threw one last look back at the four fighting figures and followed him.

***

"Wait," George gasped as they passed by the throne room. He peeked inside and glanced around. Nobody was there. Was Dream telling the truth after all? No, it can't be.

"Father!" he shouted. "Can you hear me?"

"George?" the reply came. Immediately, George's insides were washed with a warm feeling of relief. He smiled so wide that his cheeks hurt, but he didn't care. His father was alive.

"Sir, you need to go somewhere safe," Sapnap chimed in. "Run now, right now, and hide far beyond the castle with some of the knights, preferably good ones. There's an assassin on the loose!"

They didn't get an answer back, but George knew that his father got the message and was already heading as far away as possible. Replying would only waste time.

"Thank God, now he's safe," George sighed. "It's just us we need to worry about now."

"And all the people in this castle," Sapnap said. "We need to round up all the knights. Maybe if we can outnumber Dream by a lot, we'll be able to take him on."

"But---"

"No buts," Sapnap insisted. "That's our plan, and that's what we're going to do. We're wasting time just standing here arguing. We're still in danger. Clarification, you're still in danger."

George wanted to argue more, but he knew that Sapnap was right. And by the steely look in the warrior's eye, he knew that going along with what he said was probably the best option.

They headed out into the courtyard. Finally, they were out of the maze of corridors. But George knew that they weren't safe yet.

Sapnap picked up a smooth stone from the ground and examined it, then started sharpening his sword. "You remember all those times that we dueled with Dream, right?" he asked George.

George nodded. He remembered those fights all too well, what with Dream defeating him every time and all that. Dream always insisted that George was improving, but he wasn't quite sure of he was just being modest or if he was lying for George's sake.

"We have a general idea of how he fights," Sapnap continued. He handed the stone to George, who accepted it uncertainly. "That's an advantage that other knights don't have, since he only really dueled with us. That means that we're probably the best people to take him on. It all comes down to us, George. We have to succeed. The only other option is death."