"Ok- ok, I'm shooting down at them, I'm shooting down at them!" Tubbo shouted to you, drawing another arrow from the quiver on his back. You nodded to him, aiming at a Dream SMP soldier's chest and firing. Spot on, you thought to yourself as you nocked another arrow.
"Fire, fire, fire!" Tommy yelled at the L'manbergian soldiers. "We've got Wilbur and a few of the others baiting, c'mon!"
"Their arrows can't go up high enough to hit us! We're safe!" Tubbo realized, causing the soldiers stationed on top of the tower to stop and listen. "We've outplayed them!"
Tommy paused shooting as well to listen to Wilbur's message on his communicator. "I'll distract, I'll distract, they can only fire on me and the men down here," his voice said. Tommy nodded.
"Keep shooting, everyone!" you called. "We can push them further back as long as these shots get made!"
"They're retreating, they're retreating!" Wilbur's voice told us again. "Another of several battles we've won, now."
The tower erupted in cheers.
"Soldiers, I think we need to go back to our home," Eret voiced. "That's where - we can regroup there."
"You're right, I think you're right Eret," Tommy said with a nod. "Everyone down, we'll regroup at L'manberg. Do not hesitate to engage against any Dream SMP soldiers."
"If you're injured, make sure to patch yourself up once you get back. We'll need all people on deck for later," you added, helping a fellow teammate with an arrow lodged in his arm.
Once you ensured that he would be fine, you rushed down the tower's stairs to meet up with your friends.
"Tubbo, you did good," Tommy was telling his bee-loving friend. "Please, take a victory carrot, please."
"So did you, Tommy," you commented, falling into step with the two teenagers. They greeted you warmly.
"Y/n! Great job on the shots back there," Tommy replied. You grinned and continued to chat with the boys and a few of the soldiers walking by you.
"Gentlemen - and lady," Eret said. "In L'manberg, I have - I have grinded for a secret weapon. I'm going to need you to join me."
You tilted your head slightly at him, suspicious of the brunette man.
"The element of surprise," he continued. "Wilbur, Tommy, Tubbo, Fundy, Y/n - come with me."
You glanced nervously at Wilbur. He simply shrugged and nodded towards Eret's retreating figure. You joined Fundy as the group of five followed Eret to a seemingly random location.
"This is the moment where Eret is just going to pull out a giant missile," Fundy said dryly, garnering a few laughs. You and the others continued to question Eret, but he simply smirked and continued walking.
"It's not a missile, not quite," Eret said. "But it will help."
You gasped as he pulled out a shovel and dug through the hill, revealing a tunnel carved into the earth.
"I'm excited to show you this, I've been grinding for a long time to get this," Eret said. A sudden realization hit you. This was what he was building earlier. "This is the final room. The final control room."
"What does this button do?" Tommy asked, reaching for the wooden thing in the middle of the room. You pushed his hand away, looking up at Eret. Wilbur began to speak.
"There's nothing in the chests-"
"RUN!" you screamed, when suddenly Eret slammed his boot down on the button. Pistons revealed themselves, pulling the walls back and revealing the Dream Team. All four of them - plus Eret - drew their weapons out and began to fight you.
Punz's almond-shaped blue eyes narrowed as he brought his axe down on Fundy, who nearly dodged it but retained a deep gash on his side.
Eret took out his own sword and turned on Tubbo, the younger male struggling to keep up with his attacks.
Sapnap had a wicked glint in his eye as he began sending blow after blow at Tommy, who deflected them as best he could with his sword.
George's lips curled into a grin as he exchanged hits with Wilbur, blood dripping from both of their weapons.
And Dream's mask hid everything except the dark sneer on his face as he expertly sliced at you.
You blocked and stabbed at Dream, drawing blood with your axe as he did the same with his own.
"Get out through the openings in the walls!" you called desperately, slashing at the weak spot in Dream's armor and opening a wound. He returned the attack that you blocked quickly, before spinning around at the sound of Wilbur's agonized yell.
"Wilbur!" you screamed. George raised his sword to land the killing blow.
But you got there first. The blade pierced through your clothing, striking you directly in the chest as you crumpled to the ground.
"Y/n!"
You faintly felt the push of Dream's boot as he shoved you aside, giving you a second wound in the stomach before leaving Wilbur for George's taking.
"Down with the revolution, boys!" Eret's triumphant voice declared as your vision started going blurry. Your shuddered breaths began getting harder to take.
"It was never meant to be."
-----TIME SKIP-----
Your skin was tainted with red splotches of blood and deep, still-healing scars. A mix of bandages and stitches covered your various wounds.
Dying was not quite what you expected it to be. A lot less painful, mainly. You had hoped not to retain the wounds that you died with, but you supposed that was the cost of coming back. Your bags had been emptied out, most likely by the Dream Team, though you kept the satchel as well as the comm device on your belt.
You glanced once again at the tattoo-like thing that had appeared on your inner forearm. Or, you guessed it was a tattoo. It had shown up on you as well as all the L'manbergians when you regained consciousness, and wouldn't come off after several minutes of scrubbing.
Y/n was killed by Dream, the elegant letters spelled out.
Your hands rested on the floor of the Camarvan, and you gazed silently out the window. At the sound of Wilbur's voice, you turned to face him.
"Dream wants to meet at noon tomorrow," he said. "He says he has an ultimatum for us."
You quirked an eyebrow slightly. "How do we know he won't kill us the moment we arrive?"
"We don't. But what choice do we have?" Wilbur sighed.
The next day, at the sun's peak, you stood with your four companions, looking at the Dream Team across from you.
"Wilbur. Tommy. Tubbo. Fundy. Y/n." Dream greeted.
"Dream. George. Sapnap. Punz." Wilbur hesitated slightly. "Eret."
Eret laughed lightly, causing Tommy to begin swearing at the man.
"Oh, yeah, I bet you're laughing Eret you stupid son of a bitch, I'll kill-"
"Tommy," you said softly. "Don't."
Your eyes flickered from the young blonde to Eret, whose face was a mix of satisfaction and guilt while he looked at you two.
"We've come to offer you an ultimatum," Dream said, breaking the tense silence. "If you do not rescind your ownership of this land, I will light this TNT."
He pulled out a stick of dynamite from his bag as well as a lighter that he held lazily in his other hand.
"I think you all stand by me in this decision," Wilbur spoke. "Independence, or death. If we get no revolution, we want nothing. We would rather die than give into you and join the Dream SMP."
You nodded, glancing at the people beside you. "Blow up one piece of TNT, it means nothing to us," you added on.
Dream cocked his head to the side.
"Then so be it," he said. He lit the tip of the explosive and dropped it on the ground, guiding his men back.
"Get back, don't let this hurt you," Wilbur reminded your own group. You took a few steps back, bracing slightly for the impact.
It was too late when you noticed the TNT hidden underneath the ground.
Screams and yells erupted from the L'manbergians when the chain reaction started. While your friends ran for the lake, you were frozen in shock. You watched the apocalyptic scene play out before you. You watched the blood splatter against the dirt and stone of your country. You watched the pieces of debris fly, some of them cutting through your fragile skin.
The last thing you saw before blacking out was the pair of arms that lifted your weak frame up into the air.
-----
1444 words (not including a/n)
Header by @/floofdifloof on Twitter (ok but how does one shade this well I need to know)
Happy late Thanksgiving to those of you who celebrate it, and thank you for 400 views! Ily all, and I'll see you in the next part!
-Partially Human
EDIT Feb. 6, 2021: I am now using the Three Lives System - a few minor edits have been made to account for this. (Gif made myself with pixilart.com)
EDIT May 16, 2021: I've added a small plot detail that will contribute to later in the story.