Inception {Dreamnotfound}

17 | The Deception | 17

"Now hand over that band, as well as the one you're still trying to hide," they spit, signalling to the way Tubbo clutches his wrist even tighter. "Both of them, now!"

"I don't think that'll be necessary."

I cut in, unable to stop myself after what I just witnessed. I step out of the shadows, entering the building to quickly put myself between the leader and Tubbo. Only Tubbo looks surprised to see me, making me contemplate if I was actually as subtle as I believed myself to be.

For some reason, the leader says nothing. They instead try to step around me, to reach Tubbo and continue as if I'm not there. Anger spikes in my head, and as if by instinct, I reach for my lighter. "Don't even think about it," I warn, sparking a flame to life within their eyeline. "I burnt your last place to the ground, and I'll gladly do the same to this one."

That seems to catch their attention, and I watch in amusement as every member of the group takes a precautionary step back, including the leader themselves. "This doesn't concern you," they spit through what sounds like gritted teeth. "Back off Zak-"

"Skeppy," I cut in confidently, some distant part of me feeling suddenly confident, powerful. "You don't get to use that name with me-"

"-Not anymore."

I briefly turn around to shoot Tubbo a reassuring smile, noticing how the crumpled boy is still quivering behind me.

"Besides," I continue, fuelled by the anger created from seeing what they've already done to him. "Considering one of the bands you're so bothered about is actually mine, I think this does concern me."

There's a sudden pause, the room quickly turning eerily quiet. Then silent, when it stretches on for longer, and I debate if I've scared them all so badly that they don't dare to retaliate. But sadly, that doesn't seem to be the case, and the leader speaks up before I'm forced to step in again.

"What do you do this all for?" they ask, so much quieter than before. Their tone sounds genuinely quizzical, suspiciously, like the question is purely out of personal curiosity and for once, nothing else. "Excuse me?" I ask back, just as confused.

"You lost everything," they state plainly, and I wince at their boldness to say such a thing in this position, trying to act as casual as possible to keep control. "Your status, you job, your friends..." they continue, listing each off on their fingers. "-Even your soulmate. I know you don't care about him anymore, that eye says it all."

"So, what do you do this all for?"

And for a second, they take control over me again.

Suddenly self-conscious, I cover the yellow iris, so out of place next to my normal, brown one. It hurts to know that everything they've just said is true, a projection of the rumours I've heard spread about me, or the things I've been forced to sacrifice for these people. But the remembrance of why is enough to remind me of why I'm here now, giving me enough confidence to spit out a retaliation.

"I do it to stop people getting hurt the same way I did," I tell them, remembering its them, they're the reason why I had to give up everything. "You took everything from me! And I refuse to let you do that to anyone else, especially another innocent kid." Their eyes widen a little after my emphasis of 'another', and I notice Tubbo's breath stutter from behind me.

"I don't know who you are-" I spit, forcing myself to put away my dagger clenched tightly in my hand before I'm too tempted to use it. "-But I know exactly what you do to people. What you did to Techno, to his friends, and what you did to me."

It was never me, never me I should've blamed. Always them, them and everything they do to me, to everyone.

"And I will not stop until I've killed you! Each and every one of you! And when I've done that, I'll kill whichever godforsaken person created you!"

"I think that may come first," they cut in casually, a smirk hidden behind it. "You're going to be the one to kill him anyway." For a second, I manage to stop myself, stuck on those words and what I've failed to see.

"I don't understand..." I manage to admit, choke out in hopes of an answer. The leader only laughs, a sour, bitter sound that fills my ears and makes me feel inferior.

"It's clear to me now Zak, that you never did."

Once more I can picture that smile, how powerful they must feel when they take the upper hand. How their lips curl into a sneer when they tell me, "you know the creator of this group, and you took him from us the very first day you met him." Then an impossibly larger grin, accompanied by that same crazed, maniacal laughter when in defeat I reply, "I still don't understand, I don't even know who you are."

"You may refer to us as The Deception, Zak," they tell me, evidently keeping that proud, twisted smile from the way they speak those words.

"May as well let you make use of the name your boyfriend came up with."

—————

Bad created The Deception.
The cloak thing wasn't a coincidence, it was a hint.

So uh...

Incase anyone was wondering why last book was called Deception: that's why.

The name 'The Deception' is extremely ironic for the group because they have deceived Skeppy, who clearly didn't know as much about his soulmate as he thought he did, making it even more ironic because of who came up with that name.

Also explains why this book is called Inception, meaning 'the establishment or starting point of an institution'.
They're the institution.