"Tommy?"
The boy lay motionless on the ground, his vision slowly returning through a blurry haze. He had never felt so cold before, the frigid chill feeling like it was coursing through his bloodstream. His back rested against something soft, his aching bones not allowing for much movement.
"Tommy, can you hear me?"
A frantic, muffled voice reached out to him. It sounded as if it were coming from the bottom of a pool, drowned out by the thumping in his ears. His eyelids were heavy, drooping as he fought to open them.
"Oh god, is he dead? I think he's dead!"
"Would you calm down?! He's fine!"
Despite them being right in front of him, he had difficulty differentiating the surrounding voices. A fuzzy, dim light caught his attention as three heads came into focus. They were hovering over him, a look of alarm washed over their faces. He let out a soft groan before slowly opening his eyes, squinting as they adjusted to the light.
"What the hell," he mumbled softly, his eyelids fluttering a few times as he regained consciousness. "What...happened?"
"Tommy!" Tubbo cheered, throwing his arms around his best friend and embracing him tightly. A wave of relief washed over the room as Tommy slowly woke up. "Thank goodness you're alright! We were so worried!" Tommy flinched when he made contact with his companion, his body still sore from the fight.
"How long have I been out..?" Tommy asked warily, his eyes scanning the room. His heart dropped as he noticed all of the injuries littered along the bodies of his friends, recollection of the battle all coming back to him.
"About fifteen minutes," Wilbur frowned as he examined the damage on Tommy, lowering his head. A part of him felt responsible for his brother's injuries. Wilbur took a damp cloth from the sink, wringing it out before gently wiping the blood from his brother's forehead.
"Eret..." Tommy suddenly mumbled, remembering the exchange that occurred moments before he passed out. Tommy slowly rose to his feet, his legs still bruised from his injuries. In the time he was unconscious, the boys had collectively moved him back home. He rested on a medical cot inside of the caravan, Eret noticeably absent.
"Wilbur," Tommy asked cautiously as if he didn't want to know the answer to his next question. "What do we do now?"
There it was, the question he had been dreading ever since Eret had pulled the rug out from under their feet. It would be foolish to Wilbur to say he had any sort of backup plan up his sleeve, especially for something he could never have predicted. If anything, this setback put them even further behind, the group finding themselves in a worse position than they were before the war. L'Manberg's odds slimmed as each second passed, Wilbur knew that more than anyone else. His heart began to race, but he did his best to bottle his panic.
"Tommy, I..." his voice trailed off as he folded his arms tight, biting the inner corner of his cheek. "I'll figure something out, I promise. As of right now, we don't have much to work with."
"We have each other!" Tubbo wrapped an arm around Tommy's shoulder with a smile. It truly was heartwarming to see everyone so optimistic, but Wilbur remained a realist at heart. He knew that surrender was right around the corner unless they played every last one of their cards right. There was no room for error.
Fundy looked down and sighed, a dreary look glazing over his brown eyes. "Why Eret? What did we do that would warrant...this?"
Tommy sealed his lips, a look of guilt written all over him. As he studied his brother's response, Wilbur remembered what Eret had said to him during the betrayal.
Maybe you should learn to hold up your end of the bargain.
Why don't you ask your right-hand man?
"Tommy," he began suspiciously, looking the boy up and down through prying eyes. "What exactly did you tell Eret?"
Tommy, fearing the worst, fixated his eyes on the countertops. He didn't dare to make eye contact with anyone, especially Wilbur. The way Eret had spun things, the blame was entirely on his shoulders. "I told Eret we could probably squeeze them in for a leadership position in L'Manberg- that's it! I suggested it, but I never promised anything! This isn't my fault, okay?!" Tommy suddenly tensed, the boy looking like a six-foot pole had been shoved up his spine.
"Tommy, I didn't say this was your fault," Wilbur spoke gently in an attempt to ease his brother's nerves. "You don't need to get defensive, no one is blaming you for anything."
"So, Eret was only in it for control?" Fundy questioned. It was a rather morose thought to consider that someone who the boys believed was a friend had an ulterior motive, but it was something they would just have to live with.
"Yes," Wilbur sighed with defeat. "And to earn Eret's loyalty, I suppose Dream proposed a better offer."
Tommy huffed, looking down at the tattered sleeves of his uniform. What once was a generous gesture turned out to be some sick form of bribery. "These stupid uniforms were made by a traitor! I bet you she only made these to win us over!" He scowled, now wanting to burn his itchy uncomfortable uniform as he began to forcefully unbutton the overcoat.
"Tommy, wait. Leave it." Wilbur placed a gentle hand on Tommy's shoulder, but it was no good. Tommy's fingers fumbled with the buttons as he desperately tried to rip the jacket off as fast as possible. "No!" he cried in defiance. "I hate what this represents, I hate all of it!"
"Think of it this way," Tubbo chimed in as he combed his fingers through his brown hair. "The herd has thinned. Those who didn't belong here have seen their way out."
"Fine." Tommy spat, clearly riled up. Despite the reassurance from everyone around him, he still felt somewhat responsible for Eret's sudden change in behavior. He was taught to never make promises he couldn't keep. In the real world, it would immediately come back to bite him- and that it did.
Wilbur stepped away, a million thoughts rushing through his head as he rested his elbows on the countertop, staring down as he massaged his temples in distress. Dream had taken everything. Their armor, their weapons, and their hope. Could this really be it? He was humiliated he had thought for even a second that L'Manberg had a chance at freedom. His expectations were too unrealistic, and it only resulted in him having to babysit a bunch of traumatized teenage boys.
He peered up at Tubbo and Fundy who sat on the counters, swinging their legs back and forth. No one had made a peep. The events of the previous hour looped in their heads over and over, making their faces grow a pale, sickly green. How could they have not seen it coming?
"He knows our plans. He's going to share everything with them," Wilbur spoke, a hint of disbelief lingering in his words. It only took moments for his entire plan to flip upside down, and now there was nothing he prepared that Dream didn't know about. Knowing his nemesis, he was probably already three steps ahead.
The tension in the room only grew. Everyone thinking the same thing in unison. Dream was skilled enough on his own to predict the movements of his enemies, but with Eret on his side? They were done for. He could practically be waiting outside to finish the job at this very moment if they happened to be so unlucky.
"What do we have?" Wilbur muttered, meeting the eyes of everyone in the room.
"Nothing," mumbled Tommy.
"Absolutely nothing," Tubbo interjected.
"Nada," Fundy grimaced.
Tommy watched as his leader strayed from the counter, making his way towards the door and tightly gripping the handle. Wilbur was unarmed, and Tommy knew very well if he left the caravan with no one by his side, his brother would be as good as dead.
"Where are you going?" the blonde asked, leaping to his feet. Wherever Wilbur led, he would follow.
"You stay here," he demanded, reading Tommy's mind almost instantly. "I'm going to speak to Dream. Alone." The group watched as Wilbur slammed the door behind him, all eyes diverting to Tommy as he stood inches from the door handle.
"No."
Tommy took a step back, his eyes fixating on Fundy. "Pardon?"
"I know what you're thinking, Tommy," Fundy folded his arms, his eyes darting toward the door handle. Everyone wanted to follow the leader out of pure devotion but Wilbur specifically requested to not be followed, especially by Tommy. "We're under orders to stay put. The answer is no."
Tubbo hopped off the counter, blocking the door with worried eyes. "You can't follow him out there, it's too dangerous!"
Tommy sighed, trying with all his might to not be up in arms. He knew his friends just had his best interests in mind and wanted to respect the wishes of their commander, but the whole situation was utterly ridiculous. It was half-witted of Wilbur to play martyr and walk into the kill zone. "I'm not letting my brother go out there alone, and I will most certainly not let him die at the hands of Dream." Tommy pleaded as he looked desperately into the eyes of his best friend. Tubbo's shoulders sagged in response. "Please, Tubbo. You know this isn't right."
"Fine, but be careful," Tubbo sulked, opening the door for him. Tommy smiled softly, nodding his head in return. "Thanks."
"Page us if you need backup," said Fundy, watching as the boy slipped out the door.