Work Text:
Wilbur could remember a time without Technoblade, but there wasn't much of it. He had burst into existence one day, already knowing the need to survive. His power made it easy to get out of trouble, but Wilbur was starving. Food was scarce in Hell, along with everything else.
He had found Techno sleeping with a bag of stuff. He had just managed to pull out a piece of bread when Techno whipped around and stabbed him in the arm. It had taken Wilbur so much by surprise that he started laughing for some reason. He probably looked like a manic, but Techno started to chuckle too, and they got to talking. Wilbur had told Techno that he knew he was destined for great things. He could feel it in his heart.
Techno taught him how to fight and let him keep the dagger he stuck in him. "For the memories," he had said.
The first time Wilbur had gotten Techno and him out of a messy situation, Techno was so delirious from bloodloss that he just laughed while bleeding out on the cave floor they had teleported to. From then on, Wilbur always seemed to know when they needed an out, and he was happy to provide.
He wasn't sure when; maybe it was a gradual thing, but as the years went on, Wilbur found himself dropping more and more of his selfish nature for Techno. They shared food, water, and company. They protected each other while they slept, and Techno always sat close on late nights. It was them against the world. Wilbur couldn't have found a better partner.
Watching Techno slaughter hordes of demons had a strange sort of beauty to it. The way his blade moved, deadly and swift, never slowed down by the blood. The way Techno would laugh and smile, reign victorious and yell into the void, "Technoblade never dies!" It was strange, Wilbur probably should've felt scared, but he didn't. He never felt scared of Techno.
When Techno told Wilbur he was going to become king, that he felt it deep in his core that he would be victorious, Wilbur believed him without hesitation. It would be easy to feel jealous of Techno or overshadowed, but somehow Wilbur never felt like that. He knew how powerful and robust, how important Techno was. But he also knew how valuable he was in his friend's eyes, and he wouldn't give that up for a petty crown. Instead, he took to comforting his friend on nights where the voices screamed for blood, and Techno had nothing to give. Never did Wilbur think that Techno even considered sacrificing him too.
The two walked up to the entrance of the castle. Techno gripped the hilt of his sword, and his hands shook a little. It wasn't very often that Wilbur saw his friend nervous.
Wilbur gave Techno a playful punch to the shoulder and offered a smile. "C'mon, Tecnoblade," he said. "We didn't come this far for you to pussy out. You got this." We got this.
Technoblade nodded and turned his gaze back to the castle. He took the first step, and Wilbur followed.
Wilbur kept watch as they approached the throne room. Their footsteps echoed across the empty corridor. Techno tossed open the large doors, a cruel sneer spreading across his lips.
"Your majesty," Techno said, words coated in venom.
And then the doors closed, and silence once again filled the halls. Wilbur guarded the entrance. He was aware of how low other demons would stoop for a chance at being king. When this fight was over, he would protect Techno, no matter how bloodied or bruised or broken. He would defend his friend and his title as the King of Hell.
Another figure soon approached, which Wilbur recognized as the king's right-hand man. He smiled, brandishing his small dagger and hiding it in his palm.
"You can't go in right now," he chuckled. "The king is being challenged."
Sapnap's stance hardened. "Watch me."
He threw a fireball at Wilbur, but he teleported away before it could do more than singe the edges of his jacket. He appeared behind Sapnap, landing a quick stab in the shoulder before his arm was grabbed and he was thrown across the hallway. Wilbur teleported before he hit the wall, cutting Sapnap off at the door. His smile was wide and deranged, the other demon's blood dripping from his blade.
Everything was cut short when screaming filled the air. It was desperate and unholy, paired with the sound of nails scraping against the floor. The two flung the doors open to find Techno, blood dripping down his face, standing victorious over Dream, who was clutching his face as it burned away. Techno was smiling, and a quiet, satisfied chuckle mingled with the screams of the fallen king.
Techno stepped away, leaving Dream to suffer on the floor. Sapnap rushed to help his friend, disappearing soon after. Wilbur celebrated so hard he barely noticed Techno pass out from blood loss.
It's hard watching your friend turn into a shell of who they once were. Techno was hardened by becoming king. Every threat on his life made him recoil more into himself. The crown and the cloak he wore looked so, so heavy. He and Wil didn't talk when they ate anymore. Wilbur wasn't allowed to support his friend in battle. He looked so far away, sitting on his throne. Wilbur stood at the base, look up and up at Techno, and wondered if he was still as valuable to Techno as he used to be.
After a particularly rough day, Wilbur and Techno sat at the dining table in silence. Techno huffed out a shaky breath. And then he cried.
It was the first time Wilbur had gotten to touch his friend in almost a year.
Wilbur begged Techno to step down, or at least get away from it all. He couldn't stand to see parts of Techno destroyed as each day passed. Technoblade never dies, but that doesn't mean he never stumbles, never bleeds, and never has to be taken care of by Wilbur late into the night. At some point, it all seemed to become too much for Techno, and he snapped at Wilbur. He lashed out with all the built-up stress and cravings he had filling up in his head, spilling out of his mouth as vile words and his eyes at tears. Techno had cried and begged Wilbur to forgive him as Wilbur clutched his wounds. Somehow, Wilbur did.
One day, Techno came to Wilbur, proposing a plan that was stupid and crazy and disgraceful. It was a plan that would have them shunned from all of Hell as long as they lived.
"Will you follow me?" Techno had asked.
"Anywhere," Wilbur replied.
Wilbur knew he would follow Techno to the edges of Hell. And then out of it.
Earth was beautiful. It was strange and alien, but beautiful . Food wasn't scarce, and neither was water. During their first night together, sat by a fire, huddled as close as they used to be, Wilbur felt at peace. He hummed a little tune into the air and fell asleep.
Things were a little tense after that, it was stressful having to survive again, but Wilbur and Tecno were getting along much better than they had been. It didn't get rid of how they rubbed each other the wrong way sometimes, but it was fine. Wilbur could deal.
It all culminated in them breaking out in a screaming match in the middle of the woods. It escalated until Wilbur threw the first punch. They both stood in shock. Techno touched his cheek, where a red mark was already forming. Techno snarled and pushed Wilbur to the ground, and they fought. It wasn't pretty, not in the way they fought alongside each other. It was all dirty tricks and insults. Scratches and jabs in places they both knew hurt .
Something emerged from the trees, a winged man in a dark green cloak and blooming antlers on his head. He yelled at both of them to stop, demanding to know why they were causing damage to his forest. He was the only reason the fight didn't go any further.
The man, who they learned was named Phil, took them to his house and cleared them, got the blood out of their clothes, and sat them down at the table and made them eat something, despite their protests.
Techno and Wilbur didn't talk until late that night after Phil had set them up in a room to sleep in. It was pitch black, and the only light was from the small candle sitting between them on the floor. Neither of them could sleep; Wilbur's mind was racing with things left unsaid, apologies and pleas he never got to make. The pent up emotions pushed at his eyes, threatening a splitting headache. He'd felt so hurt for so long, and... he regretted punching Tecno. He just missed how it used to be when it was him and Techno against all of Hell. When he knew that they could go through anything and come out the other side as friends.
"Wilbur, I... I'm sorry," Techno said into the darkness, but it was enough to pull Wilbur out of his thoughts. Wilbur chuckled, dropping his head into his hands and rubbing away the tension.
"Me too," he said in return, and Techno chuckled.
It was enough for Wilbur to know they were going to be okay. He reached out his hand, only slightly, but Techno took it and squeezed it tight. Tomorrow they could talk things through, but for now, it was time for them to sleep.