Chapter Text
Leaving is simple. Too simple. The sun comes up, Tommy shrugs on a cloak, and they walk right out of the front door. It comes with a rush of cold air; the cloak barely helps at all.
But then Wilbur winds his arm around Tommy’s shoulder, and hums a quiet tune. Relief is instantaneous. Yet Tommy does pull away after a moment.
“No?” Wilbur asks. In response, Tommy just shakes his head.
“Not right now.”
They go forward a couple steps, then Tommy just has to look back… The cottage just sits there. It doesn’t get up and walk away. No twisters come to whisk it off into the distance. It’s there, and it’s going to be there for years to come. Or until somebody decides it’s worth knocking it down.
A question arises; is he ever coming back here again? He quickly rids himself of that thought. It’s a useless question, and Tommy doesn’t feel like driving himself mad. He’s asked it before. He’s asked that question about Wilbur’s house. He keeps going back and forth, back and forth, and it has sent him spinning. He doesn’t want to spin. Not unless he chooses to, and he’s not choosing to spin right now.
What he does have to ask is, “Where are we going?”
He still doesn’t know. He hopes that Wilbur has gotten an idea.
“I think I need to tell you what happened with me and… Phil. And Techno.”
Oh, okay. Yeah, Tommy has been curious about this. They keep pacing forward; the motion makes the cold a bit more bearable. He can still see his own breath though.
“I always knew that my father lied to me, occasionally.”
Wilbur’s composure is perfect, his face set in stone as he speaks.
“He’s the god of deceit. To a certain extent he’s a compulsive liar. If he lied about something simple, I wouldn’t care. I would find it funny, in fact. He would tell me he had the vision of a hawk, or that he could hear frequencies that nobody else could. Techno would always set me straight. Eventually I caught on and started specifically asking him questions just to get a ridiculous answer. ‘Hey dad, why is the sky blue? Well, it’s because there’s a sphere of paint floating around the earth.’”
“That doesn’t even make sense,” Tommy says.
“I know, and he knew it too. He couldn’t stop laughing even as he said it. But he would always think of a little white lie. I knew he was a liar, I just didn’t know to what extent.
“Honestly Tommy, I don’t even know where to begin. I guess… I guess I’ll tell you that when I got home from that battle, I wasn’t about to let things go easily. I wanted to know what was up.”
“What the fuck they had done to you”
Wilbur nods. “Yes, I wanted to know what they had done, and why everything happened. You know, they were always so careful to make sure I never bled more than a drop.”
“Why?”
“Well, they told me that I was a demigod. I sang a song so sweet that the mountain recognized my power, and decided that I was destined to be one of its great protectors. And they said that demigods bleed both red and gold; a mixture of their original peasant’s blood and the blood of gods.”
Red and gold pouring out of the same wound, coagulating into a brownish-orange mixture that stains one’s clothes and the ground beneath them.
Tommy has seen that before.
“But they told me it hurt. It was the toll of being something I wasn’t born to be. They said that a mere papercut would feel like my finger had been cut off. So I took care to never bleed. I believed that– I must have believed that my whole life, holy shit. But then…”
Wilbur suddenly stops in his tracks. His hand raises towards where he was injured. Tommy feels a sharp shock of guilt as he remembers pushing Wilbur into that battle. It’s quickly washed away with Wilbur’s next words.
“It barely hurt at all. The shock of it was worse. Looking down and seeing nothing but red.”
Red is Tommy’s favorite color. At least, it used to be. He’s starting to get a little bit sick of picturing it. Gold as well. He would much rather appreciate a soft blue.
“I think some part of me knew that if I didn’t act fast I would fall right back into the trap. My father’s magic is strong. He’s not a god for nothing. His ruse was up, but he wasn’t about to let that be. If I wanted to keep what I had learned, I had to sing.”
That’s when Wilbur carries on his stroll. He quits talking, and instead begins to whistle. His tune falls in line with the beat that his feet set as he marches forward.
“I kept the song in my head,” Wilbur says quickly before going back to whistling. After a moment, he stops to speak again. “At first I sang, then I whistled, then I just had to remember. That was the most important part. As long as I could use my own magic, I could keep myself safe. I wouldn’t hear his lies.
“What I did is I caught Technoblade alone. Tough to do, but I waited a couple days…”
“Wait, didn’t you say that you were singing the entire time?” Tommy asks. But now Wilbur’s saying days…
“I was.”
“What?”
“I had that music in my mind the entire time. Every waking moment – which was all the time, because I didn’t let myself sleep until I got answers. I kept using my magic.”
Tommy imagines trying to hold out a scream for that long. Attempting to make himself heard, no matter what. Pushing himself to the brink of insanity just to keep the magic going continuously.
He would not look like Wilbur does now. He would look like a husk; not like somebody strong. He would not have been able to walk all the way from Wilbur’s house to Dream’s and then some.
“I was finally able to get to Techno while Phil was sleeping. And I asked him all of the questions I had thought of. Because those sleepless nights gave me a lot of time to think, between the lyrics I made up on the spot. I asked him everything I could.
“Technoblade is not a good liar. He did try, but I learned that I was not a demigod like they said I was. I learned that they didn’t want to be alone. For ages, it had just been the two of them. Long ago, there used to be others that lived on this mountain. Entire villages. I don’t know where those went, I just know they’re long gone. But Dad– Philza saw all the mothers and fathers chasing after their children and he felt something like envy.
“I don’t know what took him so long. I guess he just got tired of waiting. But eventually he decided to take what he thought was his. So he found me, and when I said I was my own person, with a life and a little brother… He decided to make me his.”
“He…”
“He took me from you,” Wilbur finishes. “He erased every memory I had of you. And I’m betting he did the same to you.”
It feels as if Tommy is walking on air, he’s not tethered to the ground. His heart is beating a million times per minute, it’s too much, but he has to ask… has to ask, “Why just you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why not me?”
He can’t even begin to imagine why they would want him again, after all of this time.
Wilbur struggles to answer. “I– I think I was what they were looking for at the time. I don’t know, I’m extrapolating this from everything Technoblade told me. If I had to guess though?...”
“If you had to guess?”
“I think that you were too much for them.” Wilbur begins to smile. “They knew you would’ve fought back.”
Now it’s Tommy’s time to stop in his tracks, just to wonder if he’s hearing things correctly. He stops and the wind begins to circle around him. He sucks in a sharp breath and clenches his fists, pulling the wind in towards him. The wind brings with it Wilbur, who comes a little closer. Good.
“What about now?” he manages to ask, albeit with a shaky voice.
“Well, maybe they got a little too greedy. And I had complained a lot about how I wanted a younger brother. Deep down I knew there was something missing.”
“I did fight back,” Tommy says. “I– at least I tried to, I swear I tried to, Wil–”
“I know. And thank you.”
Tommy just has to take in those words. Thank you. That feels foreign to his ears.
“Without you, we wouldn’t be here. I would still be stuck back with them, buying into their lie. I would know nothing about my history. I wouldn’t have an inkling that anything is wrong.”
“Do you remember any of our childhood now?”
Wilbur shakes his head. “Not right now. I’m hoping that it might come back to me though.”
It’s coming back to Tommy. He’s able to put a face to it now. This loose collection of thoughts he has, buried in the back of his mind. The figure in his dreams gains a name, he gains eyes, he gains a smile and a laugh and humor. He morphs into somebody that Tommy once loved. That he’s always felt drawn to.
“I think you used to sing to me,” Tommy says.
“Maybe I did.”
He’s starting to remember. At long last, he’s finally starting to remember. His history is more than just a blank slate. It’s more than the months that he spent aimlessly wandering around in the woods, with no purpose to his life and nobody to guide him but himself.
Now that he remembers what it was like to be set on a goal, he doesn’t want to go back to the directionless lifestyle he lived in the summer. He wants a life to look forward to.
They have to make sure they have a future to count on. They need some sort of shelter. Tommy isn’t dumb enough to wander out here anymore.
“Come with me,” Tommy says, taking hold of Wilbur’s wrist. “I know a place where we can stay.”
“What?”
“I know where we can be brothers again. I just need you to follow me.”
“... Lead the way.”
Tommy didn’t consider a crucial factor when leading Wilbur to this place.
Ranboo and Wilbur stand across the room from each other, staring intently. Tommy’s never seen Ranboo looking into somebody’s eyes for this long before. It seems like Tubbo hasn’t either; he looks just as lost as Tommy.
The silence stretches on and on. Tommy inches further and further away from Wilbur. The tension has to break at some point. Tommy knows that better than anyone. He’s not looking forward to the moment that it does.
It doesn’t go quite how Tommy expects. It doesn’t start off with a bang.
“Hello, Ranboo,” Wilbur says eventually. “Do you remember me?”
It’s nearly too quiet for Tommy to hear, but he just barely makes out, “You’re one of them.”
Wilbur takes a step forward. Ranboo a step back. They both freeze up with hesitation.
“I– I’m not the one who wiped your memory,” Wilbur starts. “In fact, they did the same thing to me. I only just realized. How much do you remember from my home?”
“I don’t… I don’t know what I remember.”
Wilbur sighs, nodding in what must be sympathy. “Ah, I understand. Funny how these things work, isn’t it?
“Yeah, funny…”
Something loosens in Ranboo. His shoulders fall. Wilbur takes a step back and even more tension is released. It isn’t a perfect cure to his nerves, it still looks like Ranboo’s teetering on the edge of a breakdown. It’s only when Tubbo steps in front of him that Ranboo closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.
Tubbo. This is Tubbo. His childhood best friend. The kid who took him in after everything else was taken from him. The kid who was eventually taken just like Wilbur. Only he was taken by a different beast, for different means.
That brings up all the questions that he has about Dream, and he doesn’t know how to answer any of those right now. He shelves them for another time. This is about Tubbo. And it’s about Wilbur, it’s about Ranboo, and it’s about figuring out where the hell they go from here.
“Who are you?” Tubbo asks, voice sharp. He’s so much shorter than Wilbur, yet his spirit is the largest in the room.
“I’m… I’m Wilbur Soot. And I am…”
Wilbur glances towards Tommy, and Tommy realizes a second too late what he’s trying to ask.
“Why are you here? What the hell did you do to Ranboo?”
“Tommy lead me here–”
Tubbo rounds on Tommy. “Why? Tommy, this was meant to be a safe place for us to gather–”
“He needs a place to stay too!” Tommy shouts, shutting Tubbo up for long enough that he can make his case. “Wilbur is my brother, Tubs.”
“What?”
“He’s my brother.”
And that starts the long winded explanation of everything that has happened over the past week. It’s all dredged up yet again. It’s this repetition that drills it into Tommy’s brain that this is real. This is what’s happening.
Wilbur is his brother, Wilbur and Tommy were both lied to, their memories wiped, and…
And Dream is not Tommy’s brother.
He knew this, he knew this before Wilbur started telling his story, but only now is he starting to put together the pieces.
So Wilbur continues his explanation. He tells Tubbo and Ranboo all about his sleepless nights and the magic of his music. Explains some things that he didn’t even get around to telling Tommy, but Tommy’s not there to hear it. He stumbles back, until he’s hit the stone wall of this cavern. He brings his hand up and he clutches at the clasp of his coat as he lets it all dawn on him.
Dream helped him dredge up the memories. He helped uncover crucial details about Tommy’s past, he made everything a bit clearer. He took Tommy on a journey through the parts of his memory that were kept under lock and key. But he was no perfect guide. He was there just to watch, yet he laid his hands on the exhibit and began to mess it all up. He took Tommy’s memories and twisted them into something they were never meant to be.
He inserted himself in Tommy’s childhood, literally rewriting his history.
He became Tommy’s brother. He was not Tommy’s brother from the start. He stole that role.
The Why is still a big, gaping hole in this puzzle. Tommy’s closer to solving it than he’s ever gotten. There was a point where he was ready to flip the table and let all the pieces he did have become lost to time and sofa cushions. But he’s so close now, he just needs a couple more pieces.
He watches on as differences are reconciled and fragments of memories are exchanged. He’s in a room with the people who have been taken from him. It’s like some sort of family reunion and Tommy is leaning against a wall in the corner of a circular room. He’s so quiet, all the noise in this room is coming from people other than him…
He crumples in on himself a little bit. Looks down towards his feet.
After all this time, he still doesn’t feel like himself.
Dream is still out there. Philza and Technoblade as well.
He knows sure as hell that Dream will be looking for him. And there’s no way in hell Philza and Techno will let Wilbur go so easily.
This isn’t over. This is far from over.
They have to get ahead of it.
They have their plan. They know what they need to do. It’s taken precious hours to figure it out, but at long last, Tommy and Wilbur are sure of what needs to be done. Well, at the very least, they know what the next step is.
What comes after? Well, they have a vague idea. It’ll all come together with time.
One thing is for sure. Once they leave their hiding place, it’s only a matter of time before they’re found. They need to act fast, but their departure need not be hasty. As long as they’re here, they’re safe.
That gives Tommy time to say some words to Tubbo. They’re not parting words. Somehow though, they feel like they are.
“You’re always doing this risky shit,” Tubbo tells him. “You always have. You were always the kid to try and jump across the rocks instead of walking to the bridge.”
“I don’t remember that,” Tommy says. Tubbo could very well be lying to him.
Tubbo shakes his head. “Oh come on, you’ll remember someday. But Tommy, be safe.”
“How do I be safe? It’s not like I’m trying to get myself into trouble, big man.”
“Just be cautious,” Tubbo says as he begins to step away. “I want to see you again, alright?”
“You’ll see me, you’ll see me.”
“You promise?”
Tubbo’s so worked up over nothing. Yeah, what he and Wilbur have to do is going to be a pain in the ass. He doesn’t quite know how it will go. If there’s one thing he’s learned about Dream, it’s that he knows how to alter the shape of the world into what he sees fit. And Philza? Well, lying is his expertise.
It’s tough to go up against that. Especially tough for two little mortal men like him and Wilbur. No, that’s wrong. They’re both big men.
They’re big men that these two forces want. He’s still not entirely sure on what Dream wants from him. But Dream’s longing for him is strong, as is Philza’s.
Those two care so much. A little bit too much.
They’ll do anything to get back what they feel is theirs. Even rip each other to shreds.
“Oh you’ll be seeing me big man, I promise you. This isn’t the end of us. It never was.”
Tommy will be lied to no longer. It’s time for him to stand up and grow some sense of judgment.
Tommy and Wilbur climb up the mountain at the same time as the sun. The sunrise is a beautiful sight. Almost enough to distract Tommy from the event yet to come.
They’re returning to this place to find an artifact that Tommy had no time to study. The book, which Tommy swears up and down will tell them everything they need to know. It has to. He can’t explain to Wilbur why… but he still remembers the illustrations. The tingle that ran through his hands as he ran his fingers over the delicate pictures.
“A book like that in the Gods’ temple… that sounds like a good enough place to start.”
So here they are, just cresting the top of the mountain with the help of a little bit of magic. He’s clutching Wilbur’s hand tight. Wilbur is gripping back even tighter. It’s obvious that he’s a bit afraid, unused to being carried around by the wind. That fear serves to make Tommy laugh a little bit. It’s somewhat funny to see Wilbur so frazzled.
Tommy sets them both back down on land. Wilbur lets go of his hand and stumbles out. He takes a deep breath, and quickly starts to cough. What’s wrong? Is he okay? But then Wilbur holds out his hands, choking out, “Thin air up here.”
Yeah, it is a bit hard to breath up here. When he looks away from Wilbur, Tommy stares up towards the sky. The clouds were all blown away by the force of Tommy’s wind, but they’re starting to congeal into a thick fog around them.
He likes that fog. It’s a small distraction from the fact that this place… well, this place is what it is. And he doubts that all the blood has evaporated off the ground, with how cold it is up here. If anything, it might have frozen.
This time it’s Wilbur who pulls Tommy away from his stupor. “Let’s go and find that book.”
With the fog, it takes a bit of stumbling around. Tommy’s squinting, maybe if he waits a moment the fog will clear enough for him to make out the outline of the temple–
He walks straight into one of the pillars.
He does not scream mind you, nor does he curse. Wilbur would say otherwise. Tommy very calmly enters the temple, calling Wilbur to his side. He finds the book just where he left it, laying on the steps outside of the temple. He leans down and dusts off the cover. He flips it open.
He looks up at Wilbur to gauge his reaction, only to see that Wilbur isn’t even looking at the book. He’s staring up at the temple, jaw just a tiny bit dropped.
“Why’re you looking at it so odd?” Tommy says. “It’s like you’ve never seen it before.”
“Well I didn’t exactly get a good look when I was here last. What, with the battle and all.”
“You’ve never been here outside of that though?”
Wilbur shakes his head. “I’ve asked. D– Phil always said ‘When you’re older.’”
Isn’t Wilbur an adult already? And he’s never seen this? To be the child of the gods, adopted or not, and to have never seen their temple…
“What does the book say?” Wilbur asks.
“I don’t know, let’s look.”
They may not be able to read it, but it’s clear that the illustrations depict some very specific scenes. Wilbur easily spots which illustrations are of Technoblade and Philza. A figure in green and one in red raising their hand up to the sky? Yes, that’s them. That’s them indeed.
“I can read a little bit of this,” Wilbur mentions when they’re about halfway through.
“You can?”
“Not enough to really decipher anything,” Wilbur says. “But Techno did teach me a little bit.”
He pushes Wilbur a little bit further, asking him what this word meant, or that word meant, but it became clear that Wilbur wasn’t kidding when he said a “Little” bit. So they carry on with the illustrations, until they reach one near the back of the book.
It’s Philza, he can tell by the green cloak. The background is colorful and he is outlined in white, unlike the other pictures where the other predominant color is black. A bit odd. But then Wilbur drags the book a bit closer to him. He turns the page.
The next illustration is in the same style, except this time, Philza has strings descending from his fingers as if he were some sort of puppet master. Then on the next, there’s a crowd of people, all with strings pulling them up by their arms.
Wilbur turns back to the previous page. “The– The small– no, the fearful…. The insecure godling.”
“Godling?”
“Demigod,” Wilbur quickly supplies.
“Insecure demigod?”
Wilbur sits back on his heels. His eyes go wide. “I think I remember this story.”
“You do?”
Tommy already has an idea of where this is going. He swears, if he is actually right about this…
“There was a god called ExDee who left this mountain long ago. But before he left, he declared that if one of the mountain’s residents could impress him, he would leave the mortal with half of his power. He would create the first demigod.
“All of the people in the village flocked to ExDee’s temple to try to impress him. They all fought and quarreled amongst themselves. The only impression they left on ExDee was that mortals were foolish, petty beings. But there was one man who approached him. This man came from the middle of the woods, far away from everybody else. This man challenged the god to a game – he said, ‘Catch me if you can. If you can’t, then you must give me your blessing.’
“ExDee must have appreciated the mortal’s bold stance, because he agreed. And somehow, the mortal tricked ExDee. That’s the part that I don’t quite remember. But legend says that ExDee passed on half his power to that mortal, however… Okay, this is the part I don’t quite remember.”
“That’s Dream,” Tommy says. He looks back down to the book, and he sees now that the figure isn’t Philza. “Woah, that’s clearly Dream. Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
“My father told me a lot of stories, I assumed that this was just another one that he made up. There was something about it that seemed ridiculous to me. I think– I think it was that the new demigod wasn’t able to even use the power he got. Because he was self conscious. Of all things, self consciousness did him in.”
“What?”
Wilbur points down to the crowd of people, all held aloft by strings. “When he got the power, everybody who was seeking it for themselves descended upon him. They all berated him, telling him he was nothing. That he was not strong enough to use the god’s power. When it was just him and ExDee, he was in his element. He had no time to care for the words of others. But with everybody around him, well… he found that his magic would not come to him.”
“So what did he do?”
Wilbur looks up at him through his lashes, and his eyes narrow. Nausea sinks through Tommy’s gut.
“He thought to himself, If I can best a god, I can do anything to them. So he took control of them. He made them into his puppets.
“He began to draw his power through the control of others. ExDee was the god of magic itself. In essence, ExDee was the god of the mountain. So the new demigod decided that everything on the mountain was his. Including its people.”
“Dream told me that– that he was weak. He told me that he needed me to help him. He needed to steal my magic.”
“Dream is more powerful than Philza and he’s not even a full god,” Wilbur says. “That’s how powerful ExDee was.”
It was all a power play.
All the pain that Dream put him through. All the sleepless nights. All the headaches and exhaustion. All the turmoil and his fight to get just a little bit of control over his own magic. It was all in the name of a power play.
Dream wanted to use him, simply because he was there to be used.
“If I get away from him…”
“Take your time,” Wilbur says, and Tommy doesn’t want to take his time. He wants to grit this out. He wants to gain control over his own tongue. So he does.
“If I get away from him, once and for-fucking-all, then am I more powerful than a god?”
The great big grin that sprouts on Wilbur’s face tells it all. “Demigod, but yes. I suppose you would have bested him.”
Tommy doesn’t want to best a god. Or a demigod, whatever. That’s not what he sought out to do. All he wants is a safe home to sleep in.
But if he gets to do something fucking awesome like that along the way… he’s not going to complain.
It’s not long after that revelation that finally, their overlords catch up to them.
They stand up together and plant their feet firmly on the ground. For extra stability, Tommy latches onto Wilbur’s hand tight. Wilbur squeezes back. They watch as Philza flies in from the distance. As Technoblade climbs up to the landing. And as together, Dream, Sapnap, and George all appear in a flurry of ice and fire.
They all come to a stop on opposite sides of this thin, rocky ledge. Sapnap and George turn their heads sharply to stare at Tommy. Tommy takes a step back. But Wilbur holds right onto him.
“Wilbur,” Philza calls from his perch on the highest point of the rocky mountain. He unfurls his wings, and offers out his hand. The offer is clear.
Wilbur merely shakes his head.
Techno begins to stalk forward. “Oh come on, Wilbur, you know it’s just us–”
“I know the truth now.”
“Look, you think you know what’s going on, but it’s really all more complicated…”
“I think I’m viewing things crystal clear.”
Wilbur continues to argue with Techno and Phil. Tommy shrinks back, just trying to avoid Philza’s hawk-like gaze. It isn’t really working but at least he’s sending the message of where he stands…
There’s a tap on his shoulder.
Tommy turns around, and finds himself face to face with Dream.
Well, face to mask. He still won’t take that damn thing off. Not unless it’s all part of some elaborate lie.
Dream holds out a hand. “Have a little bit of common sense, please?”
Tommy extracts his own hand from Wilbur’s, only to ball both of his into fists.
“If you want me, then go out and win that fight. Then we’ll see.”
Dream sighs. “I’m fine with doing things the hard way.”
Tommy turns back towards the clearing just in time to see the first strike.
It’s a blast of fire, headed straight towards Philza. Phil launches into the sky, only to swoop down on Sapnap. From there, the fight is on.
If the last fight was a pain to look at, this one is blinding.
Tommy thinks quickly, running into the temple. He pulls Wilbur after him. Then he collapses by the wall, turning away from the sight. He shuts his eyes tight and raises his cloak up to block out even more light. He peeks out, and sees that Wilbur is beginning to do the same thing.
When he closes his eyes again, he still sees. The fantastical images of Dream’s illusions are burned behind his lids. It’s certainly better than staring at the battle straight on though.
What nearly gets him is the sound.
The screaming. The spit of insults and cries of pain. All amplified by Dream’s illusions.
When Wilbur begins to whisper in his ear, it should all get worse. Somehow though, it’s a great comfort.
“The stories say that there was once a demigod who harnessed fire,” Wilbur says, softly, just barely loud enough to be heard. “He sent it roaring up into the sky. For a split second, he covered the entire sky in a dome of flames. Then there was the one who copied him, doing the same thing with a dome of ice. Although less original, his feat was still impressive.”
Occasionally the ice will stretch so far that it has Tommy shivering and leaning into Wilbur’s shoulder. Other times, the fire will nearly lick their backs..
“They’re certainly a force to be reckoned with. Phil once mentioned that if the mountain were to ever fall, they would be involved in its destruction.”
“To fall?”
“Oh, did I not tell you the story?”
Tommy shivers. Behind him, the screams reach new heights. He quickly glances back – it’s red and gold, nothing but red and gold, except for the occasional flash of gray from rubble flying by.
“You didn’t.”
“It is said that this mountain will come to an abrupt end – it will cave in on itself.”
The ground rumbles. A shock runs through Tommy’s body. He quickly stands, leaning against the wall, realizing that they may need to run. Wilbur stands as well.
“It will come when the gods get too greedy.”
A laugh permeates the constant background of shouting. The laugh is somehow more piercing.
“They will tear this place apart, and the only ones who benefit will be the mortals who have been pushed aside for too long.”
Tommy snaps his eyes open wide. “Does that mean-”
“This entire place is going down.”
Again, he grabs Wilbur’s hand. He looks down at his feet, just in time to see a crack run through the ground beneath them.
“A little bit quicker than I thought,” Wilbur says.
Tommy gathers his magic about himself. He screams, adding to the cacophony. It all comes quickly; a rush that threatens to overwhelm him. But these quakes keep happening and then it happens. The roof splits. It’s all going to cave in on them.
So he releases the energy he’s been holding, and he blasts himself and Wilbur as far up into the stratosphere as they can go.
They hold each other. Each other, because that’s all they have as they watch the world beneath them crumble. The sides are equally balanced. Dream’s unable to get up to his full power. Sapnap and George are trying to fight against gods. They’re going to tear each other apart – they’re going to tear the mountain apart until it’s nothing but rubble and dust.
And that’s exactly what they do.
They probably don’t see it themselves, but from up here, Tommy can see perfectly the fissure beginning to split the mountain in two.
“The myth says that the gods don’t make it out of there,” Wilbur says. “There’s no way to kill a god, but well, they can be trapped.”
The fog and dust parts for just a moment, enough for them to witness as George backs up towards the fissure. His foot must slip or something. But he goes plummeting down that ravine screaming.
Not too far after him are Technoblade and Sapnap, grappling with each other deep, deep down into that fissure.
“The only people who get out are the mortals who never took more than they were destined to have.”
It’s just Philza and Dream, their might against each other, and the mountain is only continuing to collapse.
“The mortals are the ones who are destined to be truly free.”
Together they watch as the mountain that has caused them so much pain collapses.
Then, and only then, are they free to have each other.
The mountain falls and makes way for new life.