"Don't act irrationally."
Staring at Smiley, so powerless before me, I could understand why Phil would need to remind me of that.
I was so close. There, right before my eyes, was the man who had threatened my brother. A man who had the blood of so many on his hands. I could kill him. I could kill him in an instant. I didn't care if I did it in cold blood or not.
I wanted him gone.
"I can hear a discreet lack of footsteps from you," Smiley spoke up. "Are you going to say anything?"
"No," I said sourly. "Shut up."
There was a moment of blissful silence. Standing was tiring, and a tired Technoblade was a bloodthirsty Technoblade, so I leaned back against the glass wall and slid down to the ground.
"Do you even feel guilty?" I demanded. "You killed so many in cold blood. What's the point in that? All it does is hurt your honor and pride, and it makes you weak."
"I don't do it for the pride," Smiley said with a sharp edge to his voice. "I do it because they don't deserve to live."
"'They,'" I repeated. "Gifted are people too! There's no difference between them and you."
Smiley let out a wheezy laugh. "Ha. There is a vast difference, Technoblade. Just like there is between you and me. But even so, we're still similar, you and I."
"Please," I said. "I'd rather die than be similar to you."
There was a pause. It seemed like he was pouting. "Aw, come on, I'm awesome!"
"You're a killer. A self-absorbed jerk."
"That's just mean."
He seemed so different. I had to keep reminding myself that the person I was talking to was the same guy who I had fought literally a couple hours ago. Now that he couldn't attack anyone, his angry, spastic demeanour had disappeared.
"What's your real name?" I asked.
I could feel Smiley's frown, even without looking at him. "What do you mean?"
I rolled my eyes. "There's no way 'Smiley' is your real name. No parent who actually cares about their child's life would ever do that. What's your actual name?"
"What's your name?" he shot back.
"Technoblade. Duh."
I looked over at him as he spread his arms out. "And my name is Smiley. Duh."
It was useless. I didn't know why I had even bothered to stay back and question him some more. "Technoblade" was an actual name. "Smiley" was not.
"We're like rivals, you know," Smiley spoke up suddenly. "You, me; the best of the best. Defeating every other opponent to even think of challenging us. We're too good. And so we're the only even match."
I scoffed. "Speak for yourself. I could defeat you in a heartbeat."
Smiley shook his head and smiled. "Oh, really? I seem to remember being the one who won."
"Well, you're in the cell now and I'm the one sitting outside of it. Who's the winner here?"
Talking so offhandedly, being so friendly around each other, as if the wall didn't exist... it felt off. We weren't friends. We were never supposed to be friends. And yet there we were, sitting almost side by side, just chatting. It wasn't right. We were supposed to be fighting. Rivals, he had called us.
That was right. We were rivals. I was a bounty hunter; he was merely the bounty.
He was a murderer.
I was not.
That was the difference between us. I was the good guy and he simply just wasn't. It was a line that separated us further than an ocean could ever possibly hope of reaching.
We weren't friends. Not now, not ever.
There was a new tension in the air. I could tell that Smiley felt it too by the way his smile stretched out even further, going from friendly to straight-up psychopath.
"The hero, and the villain," he mused. "What's the difference between the two? Morals? Public support? That's the thing: there isn't any."
"The villain is the one who doesn't deserve public support," I said through gritted teeth.
He barked out a laugh. "Please. It all depends on perspective. Whether you're a hero or a villain is decided without your say in it. You could've been the villain in this story. You very well might be."
"I'm not in a cell."
Smiley spread his hands in welcome. "Things change. You'll find yourself here too, soon enough. We live in a ruined world and there's no one here to patch up the scars."
"Because people like you keep ripping off the bandages," I said irritably.
He laughed. "History is written by the winners. Do you really think you'll succeed?"
Technoblade never dies.
"I'll succeed."
The ghost of a smile flickered across his face. "Then I suppose I should give you fair warning. I will kill Wilbur Soot, and I will do it right in front of your face."
***
Blood for the blood god.
The voice made me flinch. Shut up, I thought angrily as I climbed back up the stairs. I don't want any of your condescending crap. Go away.
He's your enemy, go back, finish what you started.
He's weak now. You're strong.
He threatened Wilbur Soot. Your brother. Again.
We all hate Smiley here.
"Finally, something we have in common," I muttered under my breath.
"What?"
I looked up in surprise. Tubbo was standing at the top of the steps, waiting for me. He was holding two cups of boba tea, one with a pink straw and one with a green one. His expression was one of confusion.
"Nothing," I sighed, accepting the boba tea he was handing out to me. "I'm just..."
"Talking to yourself?" Tubbo supplied. "Don't worry. It happens to the best of us."
"I'm not---"
I cut myself off as I noticed the glowing white wisp floating above Tubbo's head. It had the same glow as the figures I had seen the train station --- purgatory, as Phil said. Semi-transparent. I could see through to the receptionist table in the background.
"Uhh... Techno?" Tubbo asked.
I pointed at the wisp. "Do you see that?"
He looked up at the wisp. "I don't."
"You're looking right at it."
"Am I?"
I stared at it harder. The wispy thing seemed to turn around, revealing three black dots like the face of a bowling ball. A face.
The sudden reveal of a face made me drop my boba tea.
Tubbo lunged forward and caught the cup with expert reflexes, before straightening up again with an irritated look on his face. "Okay, talking to yourself is fine, but dropping boba tea that I paid for is not. What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing," I said, feeling more like I was trying to convince myself. "I, uh... probably need some rest."
I reached out for the boba tea. Tubbo eyed me uncertainly, then handed it over reluctantly. "I will kill you if you drop this again," he said seriously.
"Sure."
"Take me seriously."
"I am."
He huffed and turned away. I looked up at the wispy thing again wearily, but it was gone.
We headed towards the main doors, and after being in the basement of Tryxel for what seemed like a really long time, I was so relieved to see the exit that it was awkward.
"Did you feel like Smiley's attitude had changed?" I asked Tubbo curiously.
He frowned at me. "What do you mean?"
I fumbled with the cup of tea, earning myself another dirty look from Tubbo. "Well... he seemed... different, I suppose. Tamer? That's probably not a good word here."
Tubbo raised his eyebrows. "'Tamer,'" he repeated doubtfully.
"I literally just said that it wasn't a good word here."
"I don't know," he mused, rubbing his chin. "I wasn't really paying attention to that. There was a lack of threats and challenges, I suppose."
"I suppose I should give you fair warning."
"Yeah," I said halfheartedly. "Lack of threats. Right."
I sipped the boba tea. It was pretty good, with the taste of strawberry. The flavor reminded me of Bandanna Guy. I tried not to think about it.
"Did you get any extra information out of him?"
"Nah. He's useless."
"You want to keep trying? You know we're not going to..."
Be able to keep him in for long. He wanted to say it. I knew it was what he meant. Because we all knew Smiley would get eventually. It was just a matter of when.
I was so distracted, I ran into a person.
"Sorry," the guy apologized as I lost my grip on my cup, nearly dropping it for the third time. "Don't drop your tea."
I straightened up again with a scowl. "Tubbo will kill me if I dro--- Naida?"
The dark-haired boy in question raised his eyebrow. "Techno? Why are you here?"
"Why is that always the question?" I complained. "I work here."
Tubbo squinted at the boy. "Is that a friendship necklace?"
I followed his gaze. What looked like a lock charm necklace hung around his neck, the sort that you'd have a photo inside of. It just didn't fit in with his easy-going, goth-ish aesthetic.
"No," Naida snapped, looking red in the face. "Well... maybe. No."
I frowned. "So... yes?"
"No!" he said, more forcibly. Then he sighed. "Yes. My mother gave it to me."
"Your mother."
"She's very loving like that."
Tubbo made a strangled sound, a mix between a sneeze and a laugh that he was trying to cover up as a sneeze. Naida looked like he wanted to disappear into the floor.
"Don't judge it," he muttered, walking past us.
I turned to watch him go. "Do we get a goodbye?"
"Goodbye," he amended, and disappeared beyond the corner.
Tubbo was still snickering under his breath. I glanced over at him. "You're judging."
"Maybe."
"He almost made me spill my boba tea."
"Yep. What a jerk."
"You're still smiling."
His smile turned into a laugh. "Aw, come on, it's funny! He's such a bad guy with his aesthetic and all that and he has a friendship necklace? Please. Don't tell me you're above making fun of that."
I folded my arms and scowled. "I am high and mighty. I would never."
We approached the door. I could see Phil standing in the distance, next to Tommy and Wilbur, who were both also enjoying some tea.
Wilbur...
"I will kill Wilbur Soot, and I will do it right in front of your face."
I had to protect him. I tried, and even though Smiley was in a prison cell, I knew that I had failed. As long as he was breathing, he was a threat.
Did he know about my relationship with Wilbur? Probably not. It didn't seem like our conflict was personal --- to him, at least. To me, I was ready to tear him down completely for even thinking of touching my brother.
A girl brushed past us, blonde hair running across my face like a broom. I choked on my drink. "Hey!" I complained.
"S-sorry," the girl apologized. Her face was obscured by a pale pink mask. Dark eyeliner made her eyes seem larger than ever, though they were scrunched up so it was hard to tell. Oddly, they looked... familiar. "I'm kind of in a hurry... I didn't see you at all! I'm really sorry."
She rushed away.
I tilted my head and frowned. "Are you questioning that too?" I asked Tubbo, still staring at the place she had been.
"The fact that you've ran into two people now and have nearly spilled the drink that I payed for about seven already?"
I scowled. "No. Was that Niki?"
Tubbo blinked. "Niki, as in the Niki? Friend-of-Wilbur and fashion sensation Niki?"
"That Niki," I agreed. "I think that was her."
The accomplice is a girl.
"She's shorter than I had expected," Tubbo said with a frown.
I had lost track of her already, but I was sure that she had disappeared down the stairs. Down to Smiley.
The sound of shouts filled the air. Tubbo met my gaze, his eyes wide.
"Hey!" he protested as I shoved my drink into his hands and dashed towards the stairs again. "Where are you going?"
"Get Wilbur and run!" I shouted over my shoulder, not looking back. "Make sure Tommy stays away!"
"What? Techno!"
We had made a mistake. Of course we had. Tryxel had a policy of not killing any captured bounties, but we should've ended Smiley's life right then and there. He was too dangerous. It was stupid to believe that we'd be able to contain him.
He was a ticking bomb. And we had brought him straight into the heart of our organization.
It was total commotion. Bounty hunters were trying to guard the stairs, but the former captives had the power of fury and pent up rage on their sides. Some were Gifted. The bounty hunters simply weren't ready.
I rushed down the stairs. People ran past me, a stream of traffic that was complete chaos. I ducked as a bounty threw a punch at my head, his eyes wild with adreneline and the joy of being free at last.
It was hard not to trip or run into anyone. There were more and more shouts above on the main floor, but I couldn't do anything about that. The main danger would be below.
Come on... please, please please. Don't let me be too late. Don't let her have succeeded already.
I'm such an idiot.
We're all idiots.
I should've killed him. I've failed twice.
Bodies lay at the foot of the stairs. I recognized them as the hunters that had been tasked with guarding Smiley, all bleeding out on the ground. The cement floor was shiny with dark red blood. All the cell doors were wide open, their former inhabitants fled upstairs.
Standing in the middle of the room was Niki, her eyes wide in shock.
Next to her, his knife at her throat, was Smiley.