Archive of Our Own ^beta

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It's almost ironic when a god of life and revival decides that he must control Death as well. It would almost surely conflict with his morals- the very powers that he holds. Well, this god seemed void of morals, void of compassion. He possessed nothing in his arsenal of emotions or capability that could even be described as morals. But how would the polar opposite of Death be able to control a matter that he had no say or power in? The Goddess of Death herself wasn't particularly fond of him, he had meddled in her affairs and the affairs of mortals far too many times for their unstable cordial "friendship" to continue. So it wasn't a situation where he could ask politely. Not to mention the amount of rules that had been placed to keep the worlds in order: dabbling in another's art was something that was frowned upon, but creating an actual object that was directly linked to another god's realm of power was an illicit act at best. 

And somehow XD's actions had gone unnoticed when he created these Books of Revival and Death- if he had simply kept them in the blurred area between the mortal realms and Purgatory, that would've been excusable to a certain extent. But he didn't. Instead he dropped them right in the middle of an unstable political conflict- setting forward a series of events that the gods most certainly noticed. They had been trying to stay away from that conflict, allow it to play out in a mortal fashion, but when supernatural objects, with the most definite touch of godly interference begin to appear in all or nothing wars- and when one of those supernatural objects is wielded in a manner that directly affects those closest to a god- your secret cannot be held. 

Sure, XD never planned for his homicidal and psychotic brother to use his creation of revival against several members of Kristin's family, or for him to traumatize and permanently scar her son, but when his secret had been exposed- that had been the last straw for Kristin and several of the other gods. XD had remembered when they had summoned him to council- he already knew what was most likely bound to happen- he had seen the Eggpire incident. But this wasn't a relatively harmless prank (at first) that resulted in a god's grandson getting killed; this was something that had been done with manipulative tactic, something that was supposed to cause mass chaos. This was something that was the only reason that a god's mortal family couldn't end their suffering, close the book and move on with their shattered lives. 

They had given him an ultimatum: he would dispose of the books in the mortal realm, and manage those who could possibly know of their existence, and the contents, or be permanently stripped of his godhood and condemned to an immortal life in the Purgatory. But before his decision was made, he fled to the plains of the mortal world- leaving behind the order of the gods and starting his own chapter in the history of disgraced gods. And where did that begin? 

Surprisingly- it began with the person XD had least expected. 

Fucking Sapnap. 

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"Interesting." XD tilted his head slightly, observing the mortal before him. "I never expected it to be you-" he trailed off, smirking inwardly. Sapnap looked confused, not that anyone could blame him, a literal god had just appeared in front of him after he had written in a death book. But XD wasn't prepared for the questions. 

"Who are you?"

"Why didn't you expect it to be me?"

"Wait, is this book real?"

"You're flying- are you God?"

XD resisted the urge to smite the man on the spot. This wasn't how he had expected any of this to go. And it wasn't the reaction he had expected either. Most people would fold at the simple vision of a glowing humanoid being before them, fear or awe was usually expressed- not.....whatever this was. He had been expecting someone who had been serious about summoning him- a person who had been serious about seeing someone erased. Not someone who was apparently hell bent on killing fucking Johnathan Stewart. Mortals and their antics. But he decided to grit his teeth and bear it. This might be his only chance for a while to test his creation. And here was the chance to do so. To test his control over Death herself. To rub his success and betrayal in Kristin's fucking face.

"Yes.....I'm God." he spat out, words heavy with bile.

"I tricked God." Sapnap chuckled in amusement, cocky and brash.

XD could imagine snapping Sapnap's neck in half right there and then. But he stayed silent, clenching his fists slightly- silently hoping that he wouldn't have to deal with this foolish mortal anymore. And deep down in the recess of his godly mind- he hoped that the mortal would be easily led, easily convinced; it would be easier to drive his point home to the other gods. Especially Kristin. 

"Well......you hold the power in your hands to eradicate anyone. So write your request." XD hissed, watching Sapnap intently as he seemed to think long and hard about the name residing in his head. He watched in cruel glee and excitement as Sapnap picked up the feathery quill, scribbling a name in the pages.......XD's smirk and exhilaration could barely be contained as he plucked the book from Sapnap's hands. MICHAEL was written in large letters right under Jonathan Stewart. "Are you fucking kidding me?" XD felt like bashing his head against a wall. 

"What? It's the name of a person." Sapnap scoffed. 

"So allow me to understand. You have the only object on this entire godforsaken server to utterly obliterate someone from both this world, the afterlife, AND the fucking Purgatory- and you write the name of a piglin pet?" XD growled. So much for impact. 

"Uh...." Sapnap scratched the back of his neck, shrugging nonchalantly. "Yeah." 

Needless to say, XD had never wanted to throttle someone more than he wanted to throttle Sapnap in that moment. Why; why of all people who could've written names in his Death book- did XD get stuck with an absolute imbecile, an absolute heathen, a moron of a mortal. 

"Well- the rules don't allow me to kill pets." XD grumbled irritably. His patience was running thin.

"That wasn't in the book." 

"Well- just because a rule isn't written doesn't mean it doesn't exist." XD scowled. "So choose a person to kill or just give me the damn book." 

"Jeez dude. Give me minute." Sapnap rolled his eyes. He didn't seem to need much time to think about- and this time he seemed serious at least. Slowly he handed the book to the god, who practically ripped it from his grasp, eyes scanning the page and widening in horror. 

"You want to kill Dream?" at that moment, he knew his plans had gone awry. 

"Yes. And don't try and worm your way out of this. He's a person, and he exists." XD cringed internally- killing his own brother; and he knew that Kristin and the other god wouldn't give two shits about Dream's death. But the alluring chance to test his own creation was beginning to grow stronger. And then it struck him. The cycle of Death would be reset after the knowledge of the Revival Book had passed from the world: an unintended side effect that he had only found out recently, and since the abnormality of the Death cycle in this world was the only thing keeping the Death Book in his power- he couldn't risk that. 

"You know I can't do that. I cannot kill Dream."

"Why? I followed every single one of your bullshit instructions- is this just some prank now? I wrote Dream's name in the book. Now kill him." Sapnap hissed furiously. XD tutted, amused greatly. The mortals now were so much different from the ones of the past that he had previously met. Getting angry at gods, misusing powerful creations and artifacts, forgetting roles and powers assigned by the gods, screwing around with things beyond their control, killing god's family members- it was really quite strange to see. XD redirected his attention to the practically flaming Sapnap in front of him. 

"You forget your place. And do remember- that if the owner of the Revival Book was to pass on from this world- whether by a mortal hand or by supernatural force, even the simplest reason; the cycle of Death will reset- rendering both objects essentially useless- as Death will now be permanent. No hope of revival. No eradication from the Purgatory or afterlife necessary. But then again-"

"Then that's good. This server was better before all of this revival and death bullshit. So kill him."

"You misunderstand me. Those dead, will remain dead. Those who have been revived or are currently alive, will remain revived or alive until ultimately killed-"

"I understand that part."

"Spirits will be torn from the living plain and spend the eternity of their lingering days in a painful and dark Purgatory." XD ignored the interruption, continuing. "Those who are killed will never see the light of the living realm again-" XD looked at Sapnap intently, waiting to see his expression, waiting to see the horror flicker in his eyes. But they remained cold and determined. Oh well- might as well drop the next few bombshells and see the reaction. "Oh, I almost forgot to mention- there are no more of what you fools call your 'canon lives'. So, if you die, it could be an accidental fall from a cliff, a friendly punch gone wrong- you're dead. Permanently." 

Sapnap's eyes went wide- contemplating the risk. This decision would literally mean the difference between life and death- the future of everything. And with Dream on the loose and hell bent on destroying the people he believe to have wronged him..........no: it wouldn't matter right? Dream would be dead if he made this decision- everyone would be safe right? Right? No.....there was a nagging doubt in his mind- reducing everyone back to one canon life; a life that could be taken by any means possible- no longer the brutal and emotional deaths in planned explosions, betrayals, executions. Anything that could kill you, would spell the end of your time in this world, sending you to the Purgatory. 

"Not to mention you'd be bringing some heavenly wrath down on your head." XD chuckled darkly. Sapnap looked up at the glowing god, eyes squinted in concentration. 

"I thought you were God."

"Oh I am. That doesn't mean there are others."

"Then who would be bringing the 'heavenly wrath down on my head'"? 

"The Goddess of Death. She doesn't really take appreciation to me assisting in her affairs. Not to mention she doesn't really like mortals messing around with powerful objects of Death. So, if you and I were to hypothetically reset the Death cycle, she would notice."

"Okay and? You're the one doing all of this."

"She won't care about that. If you do choose to do this- as in have Dream killed- the only person she will hate just as equally as me, will most likely be you. And considering you're just a mortal....things aren't going to look very good for you. Just saying." XD smiled with a gleeful cruelty in his voice as he watched the possibilities practically tear apart Sapnap's mind- and then he came to decision. 

"And that's worth it." 

"Oh? You're really choosing to murder your best friend-"

"Former friend." Sapnap hissed. "He's a fucking psychopath. He's a murderer- he traumatized and terrorized a fucking child, he made all of our lives hell, he's ripped apart everything on this server. He deserves to die." XD sighed. He had no choice now. His own creation would be his downfall- he wished that he could say no, he wished he could do something. But the book had bound him by his own laws of magic- the world wasn't big enough for two gods of Death, and if the wires of magic somehow got crossed; if Kristin found out that the book was actually being used; XD would most likely find himself in more trouble than if he reset the Death cycle. So he took the book from Sapnap's hands, tracing his finger over the Dream scribbled on the page- turning it a bright, glowing gold. 

The name slowly began to turn a bloody red- XD watched, and waited for the black line to messily desecrate his brother's name, the message to appear that Dream had been slain- that everyone would finally be "safe" in the eyes of Sapnap. He watched, with fixated intent, as the name suddenly glowed a bright gold again, and disappeared from the page, vanishing without a trace. Hurriedly, XD closed his eyes and attempted to locate his brother- and he found him. Breathing and alive. 

"Well?" Sapnap's voice was harsh. "Is he dead?" XD's voice caught in his throat in a panic as he turned back to the book, watching in horror as all the writing in the book; the rule, Jonathan Stewart, MICHAEL; everything vanished. XD dropped the book- fear and fury seeping from his veins. The book slammed shut, almost taunting him; in that moment- he knew that all of his pain, all of his time, all of his power was being mocked by this inanimate object- the one of his own creation. A brittle laugh forced it's way from his throat. 

"I told you. He holds the Revival Book. He cannot die. But you still have to pay the price." anger was taking over him, he didn't care who it was- he just wanted someone to die, someone to pay. XD began to advance towards Sapnap, a golden orb of energy in his hand. Sapnap almost immediately drew his sword, backing up slightly, a fierce look in his eyes. 

"You're wrong."

"Well- those are the rules mortal boy. That's how the world works."

"Your end of the deal was never completed, therefore leaving it null and void." Sapnap hissed triumphantly- his eyes almost seemed to be flaming. XD stopped walking forward- he unfortunately had to admit it- the mortal was correct. Angrily picking up the fallen book on the ground- XD glared at Sapnap- who sheathed his sword and watched as XD vanished in a flash of golden light- returning to the place he had created for himself. 

His plan had been foiled. Why didn't it work- XD asked himself relentlessly. He had originally thought it was because of the Revival Book and knowledge that his brother possessed- but it had to more than that. It had to be connected to something else. Every bit of writing had vanished from the pages, his rules, the names, everything. And now his own creation had locked itself- it refused to open, it refused to activate. It's allegiance had changed- he could sense it. It had been too far from his grasp, too far for too long. But the real mystery to him was where it's allegiance had gone- he only had one idea; Kristin. And if she had the book's allegiance, there would be no hope for XD to reclaim it. Magical things  and objects tended to gravitate towards the controller of their power: the source of it all. 

And he was no Death god. It filled him with anger. All he wanted was his creation to obey him, his creation to finally return to his hands. And as he festered in fury and frustration- a seed was planted in his brain. Maybe he could reclaim the Death Book. 

After all- only a God can kill a God.

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Would he be able to do it? Could he be able to do it? The thought had nagged at him all throughout the punishing night- it had crawled from the darkest recesses of his mind- steering his thoughts to that of Death. Consuming his very soul until only one though was able to force it's way through. Kill her. 

But it wasn't as if XD could simply just walk up to Kristin and stick a knife in her back. Her guard had to be down. And it wasn't like he could kill her in the gray area either: that would be invoking an even greater problem then he already was dealing with. So in the darkness of his mind and the violent night- a plan began to formulate. Because surely she would meet him in a neutral ground- especially with the premise of an object of Death being returned to it's proper owner. It might be slightly shoddy- but it was the only way that XD could think of luring his nemesis into a trap. 

Lure her into the mortal realm with the guise of returning the Death Book to her. Finish her off and reclaim his creation. Watch the world grovel at his feet. Slowly, XD summoned his messenger bird, a fine golden hawk- with glowing green eyes. With great care, he tied a roll of parchment to the bird's leg, releasing it to the heavens. Now all he had to do was wait.

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"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT HE COULD DO WITH AN OBJECT OF THAT POWER IN HIS HANDS?" Kristin yelled angrily, slamming her fist down on the table. "If he was able to replicate MY magic and powers, able to somehow compress them into an object that can be used by mortals- there's no telling of what he could do next. We need to make a plan of action-" rage and fury filled her voice, ripping apart the silence of the Council. 

"We all made an agreement- hell it's part of our vows and law. If a god pushes the boundaries of what can and cannot be allowed- they are to be disposed of. I couldn't care less about the Revival and Death Books he made: I care about the fact that instead of keeping them in a place where they could be monitored- he allowed them to fall into the hands of mortals. And we all know what happened. And what will happen." Kristin sat back down, watching as her fellow immortal's faces contorted with the weight of her words. 

"And you know as well as I- we have those who we love there. Children, partners, lovers, family. They're all down there. And they might pay the price if we do nothing! We all saw what happened with Acacia's little creation- it cost Harpocrates' grandson his life. We don't need another Eggpire incident. We don't need another L'Manburg war thrown in the favor of magical artifacts. Those books have to be reclaimed. And I personally believe that we eradicate any trace of XD's influence here and in the mortal plains, after the Books are destroyed or deactivated." 

Kristin sat back down in her throne, glaring around the Council table, waiting for the other gods to speak. After a while- Harpocrates finally rose from his seat. 

"I'm inclined to side with you here." He said, gesturing towards Kristin. "I can understand your concern. But we cannot risk entering the mortal realms: especially now. There is too much instability- we need to formulate a plan that doesn't involve us entering mortal plains." The Council began to buzz with hurried suggestions called out, yelling, and general chatter. Finally, God of the Heavens and ruler of the gods- Zeus sent a crack of lightning through the room, silencing the others. 

"Silence please." his voice boomed in the Council chamber as he stood up. "I do agree with Kristin for this matter. I also agree with Harpocrates' statement of divine interference not being an option with the current state of the world in question. We will vote on the suggestions that are presented- and suggestions will be given by Kristin, as this is the mortal realm she is most associated with." Zeus gestured for her to stand. She stood immediately, a purple fire in her eyes. 

"Since we cannot risk a divine intervention- the thing I'm going to propose may be controversial to some, but I remind you that the situation that is occurring now is far graver than any previously seen." Kristin looked at the faces that surrounded her, their faces and eyes reflected worry and a deadly sort of seriousness. "I suggest we consider notifying the bloodlines. I know we've only called on the assistance of the bloodlines once in our history, but I believe XD has crossed a threshold that we can no longer defend." Kristin waited- she waited for the chorale of protests to occur- but shockingly, her words were met with a quiet agreement. Zeus nodded- carefully and slowly looking around the room.

"If there are any opposed to this solution or prevention method- speak now or forever hold your peace." silence filled the chamber- things had gotten too serious to even contemplate letting the mortal world be. "So there are none opposed. This is your last chance to speak before this decision is to be made." there was no movement- no response. Satisfied, he sat back down and gestured for Hermes. Hermes appeared at his father's side, eyes glinting. "You know what you need to do. But under no circumstance are you to enter the mortal realms."

"Understood." with a wink and a flash of silver- the winged messenger was gone, spreading the call to action. With that- the Council dispersed, vanishing into their realms. Kristin returned to her realm, a slightly happier and brighter version of the Purgatory. Also occupying this realm was her dear friend and pupil of sorts, Hecate, who greeted her with a somber smile. 

"Hello dear." 

"Greetings." Hecate's black eyes were filled with an unreadable expression. 

"If you have something to say Kate- please say it." Kristin said softly, sitting down. 

"You got a messenger today." her tone was flat.

"I'll read it later Kate." Kristin began to walk away, her raven quickly flitting over to perch on her shoulder. "I need to decompress for a little." Hecate followed her- fast paced steps echoing.

"You might want to read this now."

"Look Hecate-" Kristin turned around, slightly irked. "Unless it's from Zeus or my family- just leave it on my desk." Kristin was about to storm away- but the words that left Hecate's mouth shook her to her very core. "No.....repeat that."

"I said that it's from XD. Dated today in mortal time." Kristin's demeanor changed from tired and irritated to slight panic and pure, unfiltered rage. 

"Where is it?"

"I locked it up in the basement dungeon." Hecate said matter of factly- taking the key out of her pocket. Even in her anger- Kristin had to laugh. "It was a bit too friendly to be trusted. And it's coloring is obnoxious; clashes with the decor and vibe a little bit too much." the two gods reached the door, hearing clattering and barking from inside- Kristin raised her eyebrow as she looked at Hecate, amused. "Thana ran out of chew toys too." Kristin had to laugh when they opened the door- Hecate's sacred dog Thana greeted them with a mouthful of golden tail feathers- while XD golden messenger bird stayed up in the rafters, green eyes flaring. Once it caught sight of Kristin standing in the doorway- it flew down, hovering in front of her- roll of parchment extended in it's beak. 

Kristin took it from the bird- who fluttered away, sending a disgruntled look towards Thana- who just barked and continued to spit out feathers. Kristin and Hecate returned to the main area of their home, just staring at the role of parchment. Slowly, with fingers shaking slightly (whether is was fear or anger she would never know) Kristin unrolled the small scroll. Her fingers clenched as she read the swirling dark green writing. 

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Kristin, Goddess of Death and Protector of Souls,

I write to you, begging of your forgiveness and pardoning. I, in the past few months, have found that my meddling in your fields of power and throwing the balance of the mortal world has greatly impacted those who I have held dear. I now realize I was foolish to even think I would be able to control an element that not only opposes the very depths of my ideals and morals- but one that I hold no sway in. But even as I realize this- I cannot bring myself to destroy the Books. We have both suffered far too much, (and I have worked to hard) for these objects to be destroyed. Instead I propose a compromise: I will remove both books from the mortal realms (and all those with the knowledge of the contents will be taken care of). I will keep the Revival Book- but I shall bequeath the Death Book and all of its power to your holding. These books not only work against each other at times- but in conjunction. We will have to work together at times to 

But, this compromise will not be without some terms of agreement. You are not to involve any other gods or outside powers- otherwise this compromise will be null and void. Before you scoff and ignore my offer- there is something in it for you. I give you the following (should you choose to accept)- I will ensure that no harm will come to your family: either by Dream's hand or mine. I will hold the Revival Book; and be the only one to wield its power: but you will get to choose when it is necessary or not. I also ask that you simply request that I be exiled from the world of gods- rather then my powers revoked. 

I suggest you take this offer while I'm still willing to make it. I know that my actions will eventually catch the attention of other gods and maybe even more: there is limited time Kristin. You can either have me dead; and the books knowledge released into the mortal worlds. Or you can have me alive and well, but with the books safely reclaimed into the world of the gods. I'll tell you this up front: you cannot have both. 

You can find me by the river. You know where.

XD, God of Life and Revival

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"What does he want?" Hecate could see the look in her friend's eyes: a look of pure contemplation and clearly lost in deep thought. Kristin stayed quiet- she needed to make a choice, and she needed to make it now. She could practically feel the sands of time slipping through her fingers- but this compromise would be her best shot, maybe her only shot even, to keep the peace and help stop the impending disaster. But she would have to go about this carefully. And alone. 

"Nothing." Kristin felt terrible lying to her friend- but her decision had been made. "He was just asking for forgiveness." Hecate chuckled wryly. 

"Like he thought you would forgive him after he made your family's life hell." Kristin nodded, a grim look appearing in her eyes. "Well, I'll leave you now. I'll be gone for a few days. I wish you luck with this whole situation." 

"Thank you." Kristin watched as her friend and pupil melted away into the shadows, vanishing before her eyes. After Hecate's departure- Kristin went to her office. Sitting down, quill in hand, inkwell opened, and mind ready. There was no more time for formalities, for titles for any of that. Quickly unrolling the sheet of parchment that lay ready on her desk, she dipped her pen into the swirling dark ink, and began to write. It was quick letter- barely two sentences long. But the message and the intent behind them was clear. Kristin snapped her fingers sharply- and in an instant her raven was by her side. It's dark eyes smiled with understanding as she gave it the small scroll, watching as it took off- glistening feathers shimmering with the ethereal light of her home. Slowly the goddess rose, and retired to her chamber, sleep beginning to close her eyes.

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It was as the mortal sun set- a brilliant display of golden-orange light, that a small roll of parchment floated down into XD's outstretched hand. He briefly saw the blackened shadow of the messenger who had brought him the response he had been hungering after for the entire day- the sacred raven, who swooped down, before vanishing into the approaching nighttime. Gleeful cruelty, smeared with a viridian spark, filled XD's soul as he read the neatly scrawled writing. 

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I accept your compromise. You'll see me when the night falls. 

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A purely evil smirk crept its way onto XD's face as he turned to the sinking sun. 

"Oh how the mighty fall."

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It had been another long and boring day at the Burger Van: the sun and heat were relentless- not to mention business had been slow. But it fortunately (or unfortunately) gave Wilbur a long time to spend in his own head and thoughts. But if the history of the server had shown anything: letting Wilbur come up with an idea was going to lead to destruction. The sharp taste of nicotine and smoke lingered on his tongue as he glared angrily at the glowing lights of Las Nevadas (which always seemed to glitter brightly, even in the sunlight). The acrid scent of burning cigarettes was comforting in an almost sick way- it was a plain reminder of everything that had gone wrong. But this time was different right? It was going to be different this time. But Wilbur's thoughts were quickly interrupted by a gentle tap on his shoulder. 

"Hey Wilbur!" Ranboo smiled brightly. Wilbur sighed irritably and flicked his dwindling cigarette to the floor, stamping it out with the toe of his boot.

"Hey Ranboo." his tone was bored. "Did you screw with the Quackster's precious little burger place like I asked?"

"Yup!" Ranboo's tone was cheery, like he hadn't just committed a crime. "I blew up some of the kitchen, and the edge of the fish tank. There's water all over now." Wilbur chuckled lowly, smirk traveling up the side of his face. "But you're going to clean it up later right?" Wilbur was amused. Ranboo was quite a gullible soul at times. 

"Yes Ranboo. I'm going to clean it up later." Wilbur muttered, rolling his eyes. "Just leave already. Go home." Ranboo flinched slightly at the edge in the last word, before soundlessly slipping away into the nightfall. 

Home. Wilbur thought bitterly. He could barely remember the last time he really had a true semblance of home. He briefly ran through the list of past residences he had occupied: a drug van, the Camarvan (also that same drug van)....then there had been post war L'Manburg.......(where he still technically lived in a drug van), a ravine, and then an abandoned subway station of death and gloom where-

"And now you've gone back to your roots. Another van and criminal activity." Wilbur startled slightly- turning to face the person who stood behind him. 

"WHAT?" Wilbur yelled angrily. "It's a business this time! I don't live here!" a light chuckle met his ears. "You're being unnecessarily judgmental." 

"Considering your last idea that formulated from a van ended in you becoming a crazed pyromaniac- I think I have a point here." 

"Yeah- but that idea was illegal last time! This is a legitimate business-"

"Honey- legitimate businesses don't send their employees to ignite explosives in rival burger restaurant locations." Wilbur hid his face in his hands as he sulkily slouched to the floor. 

"Mom!" Kristin laughed- patting her son's head as she stood next to him. Wilbur looked like he was trying to disappear into the floor- cheeks a raging pink. Kristin chuckled softly, sitting down next to her son. "You're still being judgmental." 

"Well, then I argue my judgments are justified." Wilbur grumbled angrily- muttering obscenities and curses under his breath as his cheeks flared an even more vibrant pink than before. Kristin sighed as she stood up, extending a hand to her son- who was hiding his face in his hands, sinking into the floor. "Wilbur for crying out loud- you aren't a child anymore stop sulking." Wilbur shot her a death glare before begrudgingly taking her hand. Kristin smiled gently, pulling her son up to his feet. "How about we sit down- and actually catch up a bit, and properly this time?" she offered, smiling. Wilbur avoided eye contact- looking anywhere but at his mother. 

"Wilbur?"

"Hm?" 

"How about it?" Wilbur looked up at his mother, whose face was wrought with concern. "If you want to of course." Wilbur let a soft, and rare smile appear- it seemed to foreign to him, the simple act of smiling. There had been a happier time in his life- but like every good thing to happen to him- it had gone up in flames, death, and destruction. This wasn't a smirk or cruelly amused grin- it felt more genuine to him- more alive. 

"Yeah. Why not?" Wilbur shrugged and opened the door of the burger van, following his mother outside to the small grassy square that basically was his property. "I don't really have a table or anything-" he was interrupted by a small spark of light- courtesy of his mother- and saw a small table and two chairs appear in front of him. Wilbur turned back to his mother- face set in mock annoyance. "You know- I think that you just do that to show off." 

"It would be funny to you as well if you were me." 

"Yeah but I'm not. Techno got stuck with those genes." Wilbur plopped down in his chair- rooting around in his pockets for his box of cigarettes and lighter. Kristin sat herself down, her mouth pressed into a disappointed line as Wilbur exhaled a cloud of acrid smoke. "What?! It's not like I had much entertainment in the Purgatory! It's a force of habit now." a scowl and stern glare was sent his way. "Fine." Wilbur muttered, dropping the cigarette to the ground and stomping it out. 

"That's better." Kristin smiled, Wilbur smiling wryly in return. "So- how have you been?"

"Better I guess. I have some sense of stability." Wilbur scratched at the fraying cuffs of his trench coat before looking up at his mother- who simply tilted her head as if she hadn't received the answer she truly wanted.

"How about personal relationships?"

"Still the same. Divorced. Hated by most of the general populace. Pain in Quackity's side is a new one I've added though." Wilbur fiddled with one of the buttons on his coat, feeling eyes practically burning into his body. He dared to look up- his mother's face held the same expression. "Look- I don't know what you're thinking-"

"Wilbur. You're avoiding my question."

"I'm not fucking Quackity if that's what you're asking. Why are you so interested in my love life anyway? Have a blind date set up for me or something?"

"I never said romantic relationships."

"You implied it." Wilbur stuttered out. 

"Wilbur." Kristin's eyes took on a more stern glare. Wilbur on the other hand was looking everywhere except for his mother's eyes. He knew what she was trying to ask. "How's it going with the rest of our family?" Wilbur looked at the ground, face hot with panic. "I'm sorry. But I need to ask. It worries me Wilbur- how distant you are from our family. Have you improved things with any of them?"

"I.........." Wilbur looked up- feeling his eyes pool slightly. "I don't know. The last I knew was that Tommy was getting better- he's doing better now I think." if you could choke on lies, Wilbur was smothered in his own lie. He hadn't talked to Tommy at all. He had barely checked in . His mother had picked up on that already. And he knew that she knew. He knew that historically he had been a pretty shit brother, father, and friend. But that was then- this was now- no. Emotional attachments on this fucking server made you weak: and Wilbur knew that he had to learn that the hard way. With Fundy, Tommy.....L'Manburg. All of those things made him weak- and if he was going to make anything out of himself he needed to sever those- he needed to-

"You're afraid." his mother's clear voice cut through the wave of conflicting and fighting emotions like a sharp blade, slicing cleanly through the cloud- forcing him to face the light.

"What?!" Wilbur stood up- throwing his hands out in shock, trying desperately to disguise it as anger. "I'm not afraid-"

The waver in his voice betrayed him. 

"You are." Kristin's voice remained calm, as she looked at Wilbur intently, gaze piercing through the carefully constructed facade of uncaring coldness and sarcasm that her son had been living behind. "You're afraid of what's going to happen if you decide to let people back in. I know you haven't talked to Tommy Wilbur; and I know it's because you're scared about the things that could happen. The things that have happened. I'm not expecting you to listen to me Will- but I know that Tommy, Techno, Dad, Fundy, they all still love you. But you won't realize it until you confront what you fear." 

Wilbur stayed facing away, breath heaving slightly. He had always firmly believed that what life taught you would stay- that those lessons would be the truth- but if this life and the past had taught him anything: it was that emotional attachment was weak. It was the one thing that people could wield against you, the one thing that you could cave under, the one thing that would make or break you, the one thing that could mean the difference between life and death to some people. He didn't need to be told twice. So you just shut down right? Kill the infection before it spreads. But if the time between his revival and now had shown him: emotion isn't something that you could just easily smother with a blanket. You could make it seem that way- but Wilbur knew that psychopathic Dream probably had some type of emotional connection, even if he seemed above it. 

"Phil always said that life was the soul's best teacher." Wilbur glanced back at his mother, before staring up at the tauntingly bright lights of Las Nevadas. "And life taught me that loving anyone doesn't go anywhere, you just lose in the end." silence rang in Wilbur's ears. Kristin sighed softly, eyes lowering to the table in the grassy clearing. A surprisingly cool breeze hummed in the air as mother and son stayed in silence- both waiting for the other to speak. It was Kristin who finally shattered the painful, strangling silence. 

"That was that life. Now it's this life." Wilbur turned around- shock apparent in his eyes. "You have a chance to start again. A rare one at that. You shouldn't allow the lessons that one life taught you to rule this one. I can't change your mind Wilbur- no one has the power to do that. Except you. It's up to you to make the choices for yourself, it's up to you to decide if you want to let people back into your life. Sometimes the best lessons are taught from the heart." Wilbur sat down in his chair again- eyes red rimmed and pooling with tears. 

When was the last time I cried?

Kristen looked up at the sun- nearing its cycle into sunset. Gently, she set her hand on top of her son's hand, eyes sympathetic- but a sad smile reflected in their depths. She knew she had to go- as much as she wanted to stay and talk longer with Wilbur- she still needed to see her husband and other children, maybe even visit Fundy before the sun sank into the horizon. 

"I'm sorry Will. I need to go."

"I know. I understand."

"But I want you to think about it- please. Just give it a try." slowly the two rose, Kristin opening her arms for a hug. Wilbur accepted- smiling, trying to hold tears and a full on breakdown at bay. It was a short, brief, gentle, and loving hug- it pulled at Kristin's heart to leave, especially now: but if she went through with this deal- she would be able to visit her family all she wanted, be able to help mend the broken foundations of their relationships. "I love you okay? I don't want you to forget that Will. You are loved."

"I know........."

Kristin began walking away- before Wilbur called out behind her. 

"You can take your chairs and table with you! Techno probably needs a new one for target practice or something!" Kristin smiled, turning back around. 

"Keep them Wilbur- you need some outdoor furniture to get some business over here." Wilbur laughed as he watched his mother open her dark wings- taking flight into a rapidly descending nightfall. Maybe if either had known that what laid ahead would change their lives in ways unspeakable: their last words wouldn't have been about outdoor dining furniture. 

But once a deal is made- it's made. Such is the way of the gods. 

Chapter Text

Nighttime was already upon her. Far earlier than normal. Darkness approached with a swiftness- something that Kristin could already sense reeked with an outside interference. Wings spread, she swept through the icy air- scanning the ground below for the river that she knew XD would be waiting by, if he chose to keep up his end of the deal. The quiet sound of  burbling  water caused her to slow to a stop in the air. A harsh wind was howling- snowstorm building by the minute. With the grace of a god- she slowly descended into the clearing- where she caught sight of her bitter rival and enemy. XD stood at the other end of the clearing- wrapped in his golden and emerald finery, white porcelain gleaming in the blurred moonlight. Black sandals touched the snowy ground, wings folding elegantly to their owner's sides. Snowflakes whirled around the pair- who remained in silence, waiting for the other to speak. 

"So you actually took my offer." XD chuckled- striding towards Kristin, who almost immediately had her staff to her side- inlaid crystal glowing a bright purple. XD stopped short- holding his hands up in a mock surrender. "Calm down. I'm not armed. You seem a bit jumpy though. Relax- let's face it; anything I do to you will bring a hailstorm onto my head and a legion of gods to this server. Neither of us want that correct?" Kristin remained silent- eyebrows furrowed and staff still in hand. XD tutted in exaggerated disappointment. 

"And here I thought we were trying to resolved a conflict with peace."

"That was the deal I agreed to." Kristin's voice was calm- but with a heavy layer of distrust hidden beneath. "You know what I'm here for. And I know you only as a thief and trickster. So forgive me for being suspicious of your sudden morality and conscience." the last few words were practically spat out. 

"Well- it seems you've upheld your end of the deal......does anyone even know you're here? I can't imagine that Zeusie would just let you fly down here, especially since I'm considered 'rogue'. And you couldn't exactly tell Thunder Boy about my little offer. How are you planning to explain that when you return with the book-"

"How I got here is none of your concern XD. I can handle my own affairs. And besides, once the deal is completed- either one of us is free from magical bonds and whatnot." 

"You really think Zeus is going to just pardon me after you probably swore vengeance and death on my head?" XD scoffed. "I want to ensure I keep my godhood-"

"This deal you proposed is one completed in stages XD. I can't advocate for you in the Council without the Book. I can't ask for outside help until I get the book. We both know what we promised; what we both agreed to. Now, if you want me to declare this deal null and void and take the book from you by force- I will not hesitate to do so."

XD merely shrugged, splaying his fingers out, a bright flash of golden light occurring with the action. Suspended in a golden bubble of magic- were two books. One shone with the light of life, the pure essence of revival. The other looking like it was straining to escape- to fly to the one it's loyalty belonged to. Kristin had to admit to herself that even though XD had no control over the Death Book- he had done well. Too well perhaps; well enough that the book knew where it's loyalties laid. 

"With a snap of my fingers Kristin- the book will go back to you." Kristin remained silent- scrutinizing the other god. 

"And how do I know that's the Death Book XD? This could be an illusion for all I know."

"You really think so low of me?"

"Considering what you've done: yes." XD snapped his fingers, breaking the bubble and sending one of the books hurtling across the clearing into Kristin's hand. The second the black leather cover touched her hand- it was like a wave of power. Pure and undiluted, but so artificial to her- it was wonderfully intriguing, but horrific to her. How a god of life had been able to trap something so dark and powerful into a mortal object was beyond anything Kristin had seen. Cautiously, she opened the cover, empty pages met her eyes. But she could sense there had once been writing of some type, (either by XD's hand or another's she didn't quite know). She opened her mouth to ask what had occupied the pages- only to have a screaming pain shoot through her body. Crying out in pain and shock, she fell to the ground swiftly. A second blow connected with her back. A vicious snapping noise accompanied it this time- horror pooled in her eyes as she realized immediately what had happened. 

Her wings. XD smirked as his gaze met Kristin's.

"Don't have anywhere else to run do you?" Kristin reached for her staff, but XD ripped it from her grasp- slamming the crystal into the ground- shattering it completely. "You're defenseless."

"You.....you can't do this-" Kristin was crawling backwards, XD slowly advancing- blood already smeared on his porcelain mask. 

"Well- seeing as no one knows you're here, and you have no way to escape or fight back-"

"W....we....made...a deal...." Kristin choked out- struggling to pull herself to her feet. XD only laughed. It was shrill, cruel, purely cold. 

"Mmmmm. You see- I never said no harm would come to you." XD watched with an amused glee when Kristin's eyes widened in pure horror- the weight of his words crashing down upon her. "I just said no harm would come to your family. Now- I may not like you very much, but I don't intend to drag this out any longer than it needs to be." slowly, XD drew a knife from his belt, smirking as it finally sank into Kristin's eyes. "I think this needs to be symbolic. I think an example needs to be set. And that starts with you."

XD leapt forward, burying his knife deep into Kristin's stomach. There was a moment of contemplation- a moment of possible regret, but once that moment faded- the last bit of logic and reason vanished from XD's mind. Raising the knife, he sent it on a downward trajectory yet again- then again, and again, and again. When he finally snapped out of it, there was no way to describe the scene. It was just blood......so much blood...

He expected her to be dead- but somehow, Kristin was still alive, her eyes open, still conscious, still breathing. XD carefully lifted his mask off of his face- smiling cruelly. 

"I would say sorry Kristin. But I'm not." her mouth opened in response, a choked reply drowned by blood and the haze of pain. 

"W......why......" 

"Well- there's only room for one God of Death Kristin. And you were getting in the way." XD would never understand, couldn't understand where Kristin found it in her to force a laugh past her bloodied lips.

"You're never going to succeed." it was clear- so coherent. Anger swallowed any thought of reason left- replacing every word in XD's head with just one thing: kill her. 

Swinging his arm back- XD slashed his knife down in a deadly arc, ripping into his greatest enemy's throat. He watched as blood erupted from the pure force of the blade. He watched as Kristin's hand went to her throat. He watched as pale fingers dropped to the ground. He watched as her breathing slowed, finally stopping. He watched as the blood from her body drained onto the white snow beneath her. He watched as the snow stained red. He watched as the light of life in Kristin's eyes slowly seeped out, just the blood dripping from her neck. Even though he despised this woman from the very base of his soul- he would always wonder where she found the strength to not scream. Slowly, he picked up the Death Book, it laid still in his hands. 

He had done it. Picking up his mask- XD went to the nearby river, and threw the knife as hard as he could. He glanced down at his clothes- stained with blood. No matter, it would wash. XD left the clearing with a smirk- returning to his home. Once he got there- he went straight for his quill. He swirled the tip the quill into a nearby inkwell, watching as the ink stayed among the pages of the Death Book. It was his. Slowly he turned to the window- watching as the clouds outside floated by. He wondered if anyone would find Kristin's body before it rotted into the earth- leaving the bones to the elements. 

He would still get the last laugh though- the Goddess of Death unable to be buried properly. Oh- Former Goddess of Death. He decided to wait to drop the Death Book back into the mortal realm- he needed to lay low for awhile- maybe celebrate his victory.

But Kristin's last words haunted him- they echoed in his ears until he couldn't think about anything else. 

You're never going to succeed. 

But those were just words. 

They were just words.

Until they weren't anymore.

Chapter Text

Wilbur exhaled a stream of acrid smoke in frustration. Here he was- flopped the ground, just staring at the star studded sky- like that would do any good. He was pissed. Everything felt so conflicting, so confusing. Not to mention his head hurt like hell. Wilbur felt like he was about to explode from the amount of tension running through him. It was so stupid too: one little talk about feelings and shit had made him question his entire existence. Maybe he should just suck it up- suck up the fact he was a shit person, and an even shittier brother-

"GOD FUCKING DAMMNIT!" Wilbur slammed his fist into the metal side of the burger van- immediately regretting his decision as a surge of dulled pain followed his outburst. It wasn't that he didn't want to see Tommy, Techno, or Phil- it was just..........

"You're afraid."

Was he afraid? Wilbur couldn't even answer that. He knew the truth- but was far too prideful to say it. Yes, he regretted almost every decision that had led to his family and friends getting pushed away, but there was always some reason why he never attempted to reconcile with them, why he never attempted to reach out. They all probably saw him as a lost cause anyway: just a crazed and far gone leader. The world had moved on without him, but had his family done the same? Had his friends? He couldn't truly blame them if they had; he hadn't been an amazing person while alive- and thirteen years on a desolate train station platform didn't help. His return had been anything but welcoming, and he had only really succeeded in making sure that those who had cared for him didn't anymore. 

Wilbur blinked blearily- trying desperately to clear his head. He sat up, fiddling with one of the loose buttons on his coat. Minutes slowly drained by like hours, until finally within Wilbur- his outward facade finally crumbled. Standing up- Wilbur looked towards the expanse of the desert and forest before him. Might as well start walking. 

Trees, sand, water, mountains, everything started to become a blur as the journey just melted into one painfully long journey. And for better or for worse: it gave Wilbur more time to spend inside of his head. What would he even say? What would Techno even say if Wilbur just appeared on his doorstep? Would Tommy even want to acknowledge him or his apology after all of this time? The questions slowed in his head as he took the first step into the snow covered tundra. It would be another painfully long walk- but maybe it would be worth it in the end. 

And then the snowstorm hit. 

Sleet and ice stung at Wilbur's cheeks, turning them a burning shade of pink. His eyes remained squinted- walking forward as fast as he could, trying to keep his gaze ahead- waiting to see the outcrop of trees that signaled he was almost at Phil's house. As the world around him continued to swirl with white- Wilbur kept his thoughts focused on what he would even say. Hopefully, his family would be willing to talk to him. A small part of him hoped that his mother would still be there- he hoped that she would be able to see that he wasn't afraid, that he would be willing to correct his mistakes. Wilbur didn't realize how far away he was from Techno's house until he smacked right into a tree. He stumbled backwards into the snow, righting himself quickly. Carefully he wiped the snow off of his face, looking at his surroundings. Even over the howling of the snow and wind- he could hear a faint- but muffled burbling of water. 

Stepping over fallen branches and snow covered leaves, Wilbur stumbled into a clearing- immediately spotting the now freezing river. Just a little bit farther now. The wind had picked up speed- swirling and blowing the snow around in a vicious way- it was a full blown snowstorm now. Wilbur knew it would be nearly impossible now to walk in the open. But at least the trees offered some type of shelter from the storm. Wilbur after a while decided he would just follow the river most of the way to Phil's house. Staying close enough to the churning waters to keep them in sight- but far away enough to avoid possibly falling in. 

It had felt like hours of walking at this point, Wilbur was getting tired. Fatigue, the cold, and emotional exhaustion had blended together into a heaviness that seeped into Wilbur's bones. But he tried his best to ignore that- instead moving closer to the trees- hoping they would shelter him from the snow spiraling in the air, whipping stinging sleet against his face. He steadied himself against the trunk of a tree- shivering miserably. After taking a few moments, Wilbur continued on his way, trudging through the snow drifts that had begun to pile up. The ground nearby the river was becoming icy- Wilbur had almost slipped several times: and now as the night was upon him- it was even more dangerous. Wilbur had taken to cussing out almost everything in sight- irritation building. It got even more profanity laced as Wilbur slipped in a patch of ice- landing roughly on the ground. 

"GOD FUCKING-"

Wilbur's voice trailed off as he looked at his hands. They were coated in something dark. Wilbur in a panic fumbled in his coat for his lighter- frozen fingers trembling as a small flame burned to life. His palms were coated in red. Bright, bloody red. Wilbur nearly dropped his lighter in horror as he hurriedly tried to scrub what he now knew was blood; from his hands. The flame fizzled out as the wind harshly swirled snow around him. Wilbur dragged himself to a nearby tree, leaning against it as he inspected his hands for cuts- but found none. Slowly his gaze met the snowy ground- stained red with blood. Hyperventilating- Wilbur struggled to his feet- eyes practically scanning the ground for the source of the blood. Wilbur's eyes caught a bit of movement-

A dark black feather being swept across the ground by the wind. 

Fear was filling Wilbur's eyes as he saw the figure slumped on the ground, unmoving- with blood pooling beneath them. Instinct was telling him to run, to get out of there- but something told him to go forward. Approaching with a cautious step- Wilbur knelt beside the body- hesitantly reaching out to turn them over. Wilbur heard a horrified scream echo in the howling emptiness of the tundra around him- only to realize it was in own. He pulled back in pure shock- blood practically dripping from his hands now. 

It was his mother. Her eyes, wide, dark, empty stared glassily at the snow filled sky. His legs shook once before giving out completely. Wilbur screamed. He screamed. It would've been an earth shattering heart breaking scream of anguish and pain for anyone who could've heard it- but no one did. Soft utterances of 'no ' left Wilbur's lips as he reached out two shivering fingers- closing his mother's eyes- a last rite of the dead. Wilbur sat in shock- tears falling and freezing on his snow stung cheeks as he sobbed over his mother's body. Everything was bubbling over- anger, fear, grief; bubbling over in torrents of salt tinted tears- sobs drowning in the cruel winds. 

But there was no time to mourn. 

Within an instant- Wilbur could feel a red hot burning sensation in his hands. Then it erupted into a ripping, stabbing, red hot knife type of pain; as Wilbur looked down at his hands- only to find them covered in fresh blood. His blood. A scream of choked pain remained stuck in his throat as he watched the skin on his hands be ripped apart by invisible blades. The wounds were morbidly elegant- Wilbur could only watch in horrified fascination as a wither skull was carved deeply into both of his hands. The pain was only getting worse, and Wilbur was stuck in a haze of cold and shock. Before he knew it- he was stumbling through the woods- unaware of what direction he was even going; maybe it was an hour- maybe even more- but whatever amount of time it was, it was painful. Wilbur was practically shocked back into a bloodied reality when he stumbled into a shallow pool of iced over water- his eyes going clear almost instantly; the fog lifted from them. But then he crashed. The adrenaline rush was gone, memories were starting to come back- and voices were screaming in his ears-

That was all Wilbur could process before he blacked out.

Chapter Text

It was the dark hours of the next morning when Wilbur finally regained consciousness. At least physically. Wilbur was nowhere near being conscious mentally. He was a trembling, shivering, bloody mess, partially submerged in a freezing river. How he wasn't dead was beyond anyone. And gods it hurt. It all hurt. Slowly dark brown eyes began to clear- the fog that had enveloped Wilbur's head began to lift. But clarity didn't come with it; instead it was a searing bolt of red hot pain mixed with shock- terror- whatever he had seen. 

"Mom......" Wilbur croaked, throat raw with unheard screams and sobs. Everything was so red now, Wilbur's hand shook as he lifted his palm to eye level, a soft cry leaving his lips as he saw the somehow still bleeding wounds; wither skulls brutally yet gracefully carved into his fucking skin. It was so tauntingly clear- it did nothing but remind him of what he had seen- even so, Wilbur could barely comprehend anything he had seen. 

Then the first wave of pain slammed into him. 

Wilbur fell back into the freezing shallow water- writhing in pure agony. Something was wrong- horribly wrong. Tears began to stream down his face- freezing almost the second salt laced water hit the air. Every nerve in his body was screaming with the same red hot burning pain that had ripped through his hands only hours earlier. He stopped writhing- he just stayed still in the shallow water- crying silently as pain wove an intricate web across his skin. Finally- it faded, but remained with aching twinges of pain whenever he moved. Wilbur pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms tightly around his legs. He felt like a child again; weak, helpless, crying. He was utterly alone in the middle of a snowy forest in the early hours before dawn. No one knew he was here- and he had to be even farther away from Phil's house than previously. 

One's resolve could only last so long.

Wilbur had seen his dreams shattered right before him- in violent sprays of blood and violence. He had seen and felt betrayals that had shaken him to his very core, seen people walk away from him and to his enemy, held his life's work in his very hands and destroying everyone's hope along with it. He had been killed by his own father- condemned to a hellish nightmare of an afterlife for thirteen years. He had been fragmented- came back to life briefly as a kind ghost- before being dragged back to the world of the living- only to find a world that had long moved past his memory. He had pushed away those he loved, blamed others for things he had done- ripped his family apart, turned friends into foes- doomed his younger brother for a life of trauma and pain-

But nothing could've prepared him for stumbling across his mother's blood drenched body in a forest. Nothing could've protected him from that sight. 

And now that memory; that sight itself was permanently scarred into his mind- and carved into his very being. 

Quite literally. 

He kept stealing glances at the bloody, scabbing mess that covered his hands- the water hadn't done his cuts any good- it had only frozen in them- Wilbur could still feel the cut on his lip from trying not to scream as he separated his hands from the ice. And he had no one this time. There was no one who knew anything. And the pain kept resurfacing- bubbling back in painful waves, and leaving just as quickly as it presented itself. But the more time past- the waves were more frequent: and each was even more cruel than the last one. It had been a horrible process attempting to get to his feet- but he had managed to do so. He had no sense of direction- felt nothing but the haze of adrenaline and shock that was keeping him alive at this point. 

He stumbled through trees, fell into snowdrifts, damn near collapsed at times- but eventually he reached a suitable place to rest. It was an abandoned village- broken, empty, infested with mobs; but it was better than staying yet another night in a pool of iced over water. By the time Wilbur crawled into a cobweb filled house, collapsing against the wall- breath struggling to crawl its way from an exhausted and overwhelmed system; the horizon was a thin blue line- with golden rays waiting to fall from the heavens. He reached into his pocket- waiting to feel the cold chill of his lighter beneath his burning skin, desperate for any type of former habit to ground him to reality- but his hands closed around nothing. Wilbur's eyes fluttered as they grew heavy with exhaustion- his mind trying to no avail to keep him awake and present. But sleep won over the mind- dragging Wilbur down to the ground into a black pool of empty dreams. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Something feels off." Techno remarked as he walked into the house, shaking snow off of his boots and cape- turning to Phil who was sitting at the table, a hot cup of tea in his hand. "I keep getting this feeling that something isn't right. It's like a balance had been thrown off. That's the only way I can describe it." Phil looked out of the window- where the first rays of sunlight had broken the horizon line. 

"Hm." Phil stood up and walked to the window- the sun had a different tint to it. It dripped with a reddish orange- not the pale yellows and pinks that were custom among the tundra's sunrises. "Maybe it's the sun." Phil offered. Techno scoffed as he walked over to the window as well, crossing his arms across his chest. Phil turned to his oldest son- grayish blue eyes clouded with thought. "You know what the legends say about blood skies. Blood's been spilt in the night." Phil joked- going back to the table and sitting down. "You loved those stories as a kid Techno-"

"I'm being serious Dad." Techno glared at Phil. "Something's wrong."

"Techno- relax, it's just a legend-"

"I'm not talking about children's stories!" Techno slammed his fist on the table, knocking over his father's cup of tea. The mug shattered on the floor- sending ceramic splinters and hot tea all over the floor. "I want to do a perimeter check."

"Technoblade-"

"I'm not making a request Phil." Techno glared. "Something's wrong, or something happened. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong Dad- and if there's nothing out there or wrong- then you can make fun of my instincts and my intuition. But if it's something, or even someone-" 

"Okay, okay." Phil held up his hand. "I get where you're coming from. Get Carl saddled up- pack the things you need. I'll meet you outside in a few minutes. Let me just tell Tommy and Niki we're leaving." Techno headed out the door- kicking aside snow as he reached the small stable where Carl and his other horses were kept. Carefully checking to make sure he had all of his weapons and such- Techno led Carl out of the stable, just as Phil came out of the house, ash gray wings folded neatly against his cape. "You ready to go?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." Phil quickly leapt into the oncoming horizon, wings spreading in an elegant fashion. Techno spurred  his horse forwards- following the winged man above him. The first hour passed without incident or discovery- but Techno couldn't shake the feeling that there was still something out there. He stopped Carl as Phil swooped down from the sky. 

"There's nothing within the perimeter Techno. We should probably go back now-" Techno held up a hand to silence him, a familiar feeling filling his soul. Slowly Techno dismounted and reached for his sword- the sharp hiss of steel echoing as he drew his blade from the scabbard. He recognized the simple feeling around him. The sun had been correct. 

"Blood. There's blood."

"What?" Techno turned back to his father- eyes alight with a ferocious glow.

"Blood's been spilt. We need to go farther." Phil's eyes took on a blazing blue glow as he shot right back up into the sky, quickly gliding through the sky. Techno followed him remarkably fast, running after him, scouring the landscape for any possible sign of bloodshed or violence. Then Techno heard a cry. Immediately he stopped where he was- looking around his location. Then he saw his father flying back, panic alight in his eyes. 

"Dad? What the fuck's going on?!"

"Go back to the house." Phil's eyes looked so empty, badly hidden shock lining his face. "Now."

"I'm not going back-"

"Go back now." Phil hissed, turning to look back over his shoulder. Techno's eyes narrowed as he followed his father's gaze to the nearby grove of trees by the river. Almost immediately Techno bolted towards the tree, hearing his father's panicked yells following closely. "TECHNO!" 

Techno didn't listen. He entered the clearing, eyes almost immediately focusing on the amount of red that filled his vision- before he was practically tackled to the ground. Dazed, he looked up and saw Phil, holding on tightly to his collar- wings blocking the sides of his vision. 

"Let go of me." Techno attempted to pull away, but was surprised at the iron grip his father had on him. 

"No." Phil's eyes were filled with something indescribable. Pain shone through like a beacon in his eyes, Techno recoiled slightly. "Techno, go home."

"I'm not leaving-"

"Go. Home." Phil's voice was a weak attempt at getting the final word- the waver and pain in his voice betrayed him. Phil's grip on Techno's shoulders slackened- just enough for Techno to break free and push past. A howl of pure pain ripped the air apart- Techno fell to his knees in shock- tears of anger pooling in his eyes. The scene that greeted his eyes was purely horrific. His mother's body lay, shattered bone and bloodied feathers surrounding her. But no simple wing injury would've killed a god. Techno crawled closer, sobs beginning to echo in the chilled air; a sound that surprised even himself. Her throat had practically been slashed open in the most brutal manner. Techno sobbed. He screamed until his throat was raw. Behind him, his father had tears running down his face- attempting to keep tears and shock at bay. Slowly, Phil sank to the ground, soft sobs breaking the hearts of any nearby as he reached for his wife's hand- weathered fingers running over the silver ring on her hand. 

Techno stood up, walking away- desperately trying to clear his head, when he saw a bloody trail, snaking through the snow and trees ahead.

"Dad....." his voice was hoarse from the crying. Phil looked up with red rimmed eyes, tears trailing down his face. "There's a trail." that almost immediately snapped Phil into action, standing up and going to his son's side- eyes tear filled and blazing with a cold fire. Two cold steel blades glimmered in the dead sunlight- as two men, father and son on a mission of revenge. The trail continued- until Techno and Phil stumbled out into a clearing- where the blood trail finally dissipated into the icy water of river runoff. A sinking hope had settled in- a black hole of disparaging grief and pure agony. A soft crunch of metal echoed under Techno's boot as he angrily began stalking off- which cause him to stop short. Digging through slush, sleet, and fresh snow, his fingers grazed cold metal. It was small- and familiar. 

"What is it Techno?" Phil walked up behind his son- his face paling almost the second he saw what Techno was holding. "No-" Phil whispered- shock painting his face again as he snatched the silvery metal lighter from Techno's hand. His hands shook with rage- fists clenching in pure rage, Techno was no different. Phil began walking back towards the clearing, Techno following close behind. "We're taking her body back Techno. She deserves a proper burial instead of being left to rot in the snow."

"What about Wilbur-"

"We'll deal with him when the time comes." 

Chapter Text

"Kristin?" Hecate pushed the door to her friend's study open- eyes narrowing as she saw an empty room. The hearth in the main hall had been cold- no ash strewn from remnants of past fires. She never recalled Kristin mentioning leaving at any point. It was strange, Kristin was not one to just up and vanish into thin air- sure, she could make herself disappear if she wanted, but not without some riddle or clue as to her whereabouts. Always leave an idea as to your location, Kristin had said. You never just disappear. Hecate weighed her options- reluctantly, Hecate walked around the desk, and began to go through Kristin's papers. A soft padding of footsteps caught her attention, and Hecate looked up to see her dog standing there with a golden feather clutched gently in her jaws. Hecate chuckled, kneeling down to remove the feather from pointed teeth. 

"Had another run in with XD's messenger bird did you now?" Hecate spun the golden feather between her fingers. The soft feather spun into a blur of gold as Hecate gently let it fall to the stone ground. "Not that I mind. XD's messengers always......" Hecate felt like she was repeating herself. Then realization hit. Hecate quickly went back to the neatly organized papers- searching for a scroll of parchment with emerald green script. And she found it. Neatly tucked away in the back of Kristin's desk drawer. "Clash with the decor." 

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"Are the bloodlines mobilized Hermes? It's been a few days and we need to formulate some type of plan or idea. Do you have any idea where Kristin is? She's gone a bit off the radar if you will." Zeus sat back in his chair, looking over long scrolls of parchment with his son. Hermes sighed heavily before responding. 

"We haven't managed to track all of them down yet, some have abilities, others don't. Some would be liabilities to the bloodlines by familial connection to XD-"

"I asked for your progress, not an analytical essay on who is eligible or not." 

"Sorry." Hermes pulled another scroll out, running the point of his quill across a few lines of writing before looking back up. "Truth is, the bloodlines are disorganized. Some aren't aware of godly parentage or relation. But I have notified Hephaestus' family down in the mortal realm in question. I believe that also includes his son's husband who is-" Hermes grabbed another unrolled piece of parchment and tapping a name scrawled on the side. "Theia's son. I've been waiting for Kristin to give the pass for me to add her family to the list. Considering that they've been the ones to suffer the most at XD's hand, I'm hesitant to do so." 

"And of Kristin?"

"Well, I sent a missive to her, but as you said; she's kind of been off the-" the door to Zeus' study flew open, Hecate immediately entering with one of the nymphs scurrying after her, trying to stop her from entering. "Um. Hi Kate?"

"No time for formalities, there's a serious prob-"

"I'm so sorry Sir, I tried to tell her that you two were busy!" the nymph beside Hecate yelped, attempting unsuccessfully to drag Hecate out of the study. Zeus raised his hand, dismissing it. 

"It's fine. Just go now, please." Hecate watched the nymph leave before turning to Zeus and speaking.

"Kristin went down to the SMP." 

"What?!" Hermes jumped up from his seat, shock apparent. "No one was allowed to leave! Kristin herself suggested that! Just because she made the rules doesn't mean that-"

"If you say one bad thing in her name Hermes, I will make sure you don't see another day." Hecate hissed, glaring at Hermes, parchment scroll clenched in her fist. Hermes laughed uneasily and slowly backed away. "And besides- I don't think that she chose to go down by her own volition. I think she was lured." Hecate flicked the scroll towards Hermes, whose eyes widened as he took in the contents of the letter. "It's from XD." Hermes handed the letter over to Zeus, who quickly scanned the contents, eyes clouding over. 

"Do you know where she might be?" Zeus' voice held an edge of thunder to it. Hecate shook her head. 

"I got back today. The hall was empty, hearth was dead with no ashes. I can only assume she's been gone for a day or two. But I can't be sure." the room fell into a deep, roaring silence. "We need to find her Zeus, and fast. XD's been silent as well- no messengers, nothing. I don't think we should panic her family either, they have enough to deal with." 

"How do you suggest we go about finding her though? There's no safe way for us to enter the SMP to look for her, and the bloodlines are a mess." Hermes looked up from the unrolled scrolls of parchment he had been hurriedly scribbling on. 

"I would suggest going to Persephone. But going directly to the Fates might be a quicker path."

"Why the Fates?" Hermes muttered as he continued hurriedly scribbling.

"To see if her string of life has been cut." Hermes and Zeus both look up at Hecate in shock. 

"Immortals can't die Kate-"

"Only a God can kill another God." Hecate crossed her arms. "We're wasting time right now. XD isn't known for his benevolence or being trustworthy. So are you coming with me or not?"

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Being subtle in celebration wasn't exactly a learned behavior for XD. But currently he didn't have much of a choice. He had been surprised that his deeds had gone quite unnoticed by those in the immortal and mortal realm. It had been a few days- and XD had been just staring the the Death Book sitting on his desk. He hadn't even dared to open it- doubt and failure had nagged at his head- even though it had been days, Kristin's words still echoed in his mind. The bitch was dead. So why was XD still haunted by her. Well- he would prove her wrong. He would succeed. 

XD grabbed the book, feeling a surge of power. Slowly, breath hitching he grabbed the front cover and turned it over. 

It didn't open. 

The Death Book remained tightly closed as horror and realization began to sink into XD's brain. XD let out a horrific scream of pure anger- grabbing something from his desk and throwing it into the wall- smiling in angered satisfaction as it shattered. Before he knew- glass and shattered crystal, splintered wood, ripped paper and books- all decorated the floor of his study; destroyed in a furious rage. There would be no possible way for the Death Book to have changed it's allegiance. It had resigned itself to XD's hands, he had made sure of that- there would be no other power source that it would be allied with. Persephone and Hades weren't Death itself- but rather gods of the element- which thoroughly eliminated them from possibility. XD was desperately trying to figure all of it out- had he really gone through all of that just to find that the cursed object he had created no longer owed its allegiance to him. 

Anger surging in his body- XD decided that desperate times called for desperate measures. 

It would be time to find his brother.

But not to kill him.

"Time for a family reunion don't you think?" 

---------------------------------------------------------------------

The Underworld, or Purgatory as the gods now called it was a dim and dark place. While in ancient times Tartarus and Elysium had both existed alongside the Asphodel Meadows- the Asphodel's ghosts had taken over both Tartarus and Elysium- simply merging the three lands into the same graying, misty plane. The gods hadn't the energy to restore it- so thus the Purgatory had come into existence. Hecate led Hermes through the misty planed, until she reached the rocky cliff with a large entrance carved elegantly in stone. Hermes watched as she stopped short- waiting at the entrance almost cautiously. 

"Kate, what are you-"

"It's too loud." 

"Loud?" Hermes scoffed. "There's nothing here but a desolate empty land with the ambiance of howling wind. Has Hades entered his- what do those mortals call it? Goth phase?"

"There isn't wind in The Purgatory Hermes." Hecate looked back at her fellow god, a darker look entering her eyes. "Those are souls."

"Souls?" Hermes laughed- the sound bouncing off of the cliff face. "Look Kate- I know you and the Death gods love to lurk in darkness- but I don't think wind sounds like-"

"If you were wise Hermes, Son of Zeus, you would listen to your familiar." a voice echoed from behind Hermes, mist parting slightly to reveal a woman. Hermes backed away, confusion apparent in his expression.

"Clotho." Hecate stepped forward. "We need to see the threads. The cut ones specifically."

"I wish I could do that for you Hecate-"

"It's not a request."

"You misunderstand me Hecate." Clotho gestured the two gods forward, leading them into the cave of the Fates. Hecate looked confused, but followed. Hermes just lingered behind the two- cautiously walking behind them. 

"Is there a problem?"

"It's more than a problem now." Clotho led them into the main chamber of the cave- where the other two Fates, Lachesis and Atropos bent over a string of thread. "Sisters." the women looked up from their work, standing and observing the gods silently. "Hecate has asked to see the cut threads." Atropos spoke, voice laced with confusion. 

"Clotho- you know that-"

"I think it's better if they see for themselves." Clotho gestured for Hecate and Hermes to follow her. The gods hesitantly followed- the Fates, eyes widening when they saw the sight in front of them. "Now do you understand?" 

The threads of fate, life, death, all lay jumbled on the ground- grayed out and tangled. Hecate turned to the sister in shock- eyes wide. Hermes looked like he was about to be sick. 

"How did this happen?"

"We don't know Hecate." Lachesis came forward, tangled threads in hand. "But it suggests a severe and dangerous change in power. We know what XD did- but that shouldn't have caused all of this. It started about a day or two ago. Clotho couldn't spin the threads, I couldn't determine the contents of a life, and then Atropos could no longer cut the threads. Some have begun to disintegrate, we've lost hundreds already- and the immortal ones are turning white-"

"Except for these two." Atropos handed two threads to Hecate, one a blood soaked red decaying into gray, and the other one a pale gold. Hecate opened her mouth to ask a question, but Atropos shook her head. "Don't waste your breath. We have no way of telling who they belong to. Life, Fate, and Death itself have a dangerous and delicate balance and relationship- we would normally be in charge of this cycle, but our system has been corrupted. If the threads cannot be spun or cut- Death and Life converge on Fate. Death and Life are making their own paths now, untamed and in foreign hands. Kristin was the only person to set the cycle, but we haven't been able to locate her. If you know where she is, tell her we need to see her urgently."

"That's why we were here." Hermes murmured. He picked up a handful of disintegrated threads, watching as it disappeared into thin air. "Kristin went down to the SMP. XD proposed some sort of deal with the Books." Hecate held up the red thread. 

"You need to find her quickly then." Clotho said, looking around the cave. "We can't even begin to predict what could happen if this continues for much longer." 

"I don't think we'll be finding Kristin. Not alive at least." Hecate whispered. Everyone turned to look at the goddess, an immortal dying was practically unheard of. "I hate to say it. But I think we need to start preparing for the worst. The bloodline won't be enough this time-"

"The bloodlines are being summoned again?" Lachesis looked shocked. "But that hasn't happened-"

"Since The Purgatory came into existence. I know." Hecate handed the threads back to the sisters, and turned back to Hermes. "You need to go back to Zeus. Tell him that the Threads of Fate have fallen. We must assume the worst for Kristin's fate, and we need to hunt that fucker down. If anyone would have reason to harm her- it would be XD." Hermes fluttered into the air on winged sandals, readying  his leave. 

"What about you?" 

"I'm staying here. Instability will descend soon; Persephone and Hades won't be able to handle it themselves, and heavens forbid Kristin is here.....I can try to find her."

"Godspeed Kate."

"Godspeed."

Chapter Text

A red sunrise had risen high above the desolate landscape. Wilbur blearily opened his eyes- wincing at the bright sunlight streaming through the holes in the wall of the old house. The rest had helped- but it hadn't numbed anything. And he couldn't deny that something felt strangely different. The aches of pain, cold, and numbness had settled into his body- making any small movement painful. Every minute clawed its way by like an hour- and with each passing second Wilbur could feel the sharp slice of slashed skin, scarring wounds. His blood seemed to pulsate, elongating his suffering. He could just barely feel the warmth of salty tears trickling in a continuous stream down his face. He brought his ragged sleeve to his cheek, wincing as frozen tears broke away from his skin, leaving his face just as raw as his eyes. 

Wilbur tilted his head back against the wall- biting his tongue until red hot iron spilled across it- muffling any scream of pain or hurt that could be heard. He had suffered in silence for this long, and he couldn't take it anymore. Was he dying? Wilbur didn't know. Everything that he had seen and gone through in the past.......how many days had it been? Gods- it felt like years. But Wilbur wasn't sure if he would even have time. All he knew was that he needed help. And there was only one place close enough.

Bloodied fingers clawed at weathered spruce wood walls, Wilbur wincing as he pulled himself to his feet. He stumbled out into the snow, cringing at the feeling of ice under his palms. It was agonizing at this point- the waves of adrenaline were gone, and desperation and panic were setting in. Wilbur barely made it out of the village before collapsing onto his knees, sharp ribbons of pain practically clawing at his insides. He knew that making all the way to Phil's house on two feet was going to be practically impossible now. But he was determined to try. It quickly became a fruitless effort, with Wilbur stumbling over his own feet, landing roughly in the snow. Eventually, Wilbur stopped getting up. There would be no other way to get to the safety of Phil's house. He would have to drag himself the rest of the way. 

Freezing fingers buried themselves in the snow as Wilbur pitifully pulled himself across the tundra. It was a torturous journey now- the pain in his hands reigniting with a fierce burn, slowly beginning to pulsate underneath his skin, making every small movement, breath, or pitiful cry roar with a clawing slash of bloodied pain. Time seemed to simply drain into a melting pot of an empty void- energy drained from his already exhausted limbs, simple movements screaming in a morbidly harmonious symphony of aches and pains. His head seemed like a cruelly edited echo chamber, Wilbur's thoughts amplified and distorted within his own mind- his inner voice- was it even his inner voice anymore- taunted him relentlessly. Wilbur had been practically driven to the edge of insanity before; but this was something completely different, something impossibly more crushing. 

He just hoped that at the end of it he would get far enough to see the spruce fences of Phil and Techno's property. But mere hope wasn't going to be enough. Hope had been bleeding from Wilbur for years- it would've been laughable in this moment- if he hadn't been so desperate. Doubt and time were powerful tools of destruction for one's mind. A cloud of woe was practically hanging over Wilbur's head at this point. He stopped dead in the middle of nowhere, fingers frozen and bloodied, hope and any semblance of happiness utterly sucked out of his body, misery and the chill of the tundra, the pulsating pain- and laughed. 

It was a bitter one. 

A brittle one. 

Wilbur laid on his back in the drifts of snow- gazing up at the reddish blue sky- and chuckled. He tried to think of the positives. At least if he were to drop dead right here of cold and exhaustion- he would have a beautiful sky to look at, and two more lives. So what was the point? Just end it all right now and make it easier on your pitiful self. Phil couldn't help him. Techno couldn't help him. He was utterly lost in the middle of a frozen, desolate place. Yes, end it all and leave her alone and dead in the snow. Wilbur could've sworn he was going insane in this very moment. Voices- not his own, not anyone he knew- were inside of his head. As much as he wanted to just end it, end this pointless amount of suffering: his mother was still lying dead in the snow. And he knew that the place where she had met her fate was not going to be a place anyone would think to check. Not that anyone on the server would be actively seeking out a goddess. 

Y ou could just die now and tell the others later, why make this harder on yourself?

Who's going to believe you when you just show up ranting and raving about your mother's dead body? You don't exactly have a trustworthy reputation around here. Why would anyone believe you pitiful excuse for life?

Just die.

End it.

No one cares.

Don't pay attention to them-

No one asked your opinion.

Death is the easiest way.

Die.

End it.

End it.

END IT.

"JUST SHUT UP AND LET ME THINK FOR MYSELF!" Wilbur practically howled at the.........empty air. Anyone who would've seen him in that moment probably would've thought him mad- screaming and howling at the empty tundra air. Not that that opinion would've been unpopular to most in any way. For the first time in what felt like forever- Wilbur's head was finally clear of any unwanted intrusion. Wilbur felt nothing but pure exhaustion, here he was- so close to giving up, taking the easy way out, letting Death take him; but for what seemed like the hundredth time- he talked himself into living. 

You're just prolonging the inevitable........

Wilbur flinched, gritting his teeth as he buried his fingers in the snow, dragging himself forward yet again; a mocking symphony taunting him as he continued onward. 

----------------------------------------------------

Phil slowly shoveled the last scoop of dirt onto the freshly dug grave before him. The smooth plaque of stone had been hastily made- but it was better than nothing. There would be time for a proper headstone and ceremony- but only after Wilbur was six feet in the ground or left to rot in the open as Techno had angrily proclaimed. He felt a hand on his shoulder- turning around to see Connor awkwardly standing behind him, red poppies in hand. 

"Niki and I.........we.......got some flowers....for the grave...." Connor mumbled, extending a neatly woven wreath to Phil. Niki stood some feet behind the two, Tommy pulled tightly to her side in a protective embrace. She attempted a weak smile, eyes red from unshed tears. Phil was touched, he smiled gently- nodding slightly towards the two. He took the wreath from Connor's hands, kneeling down to place it on the cold earth. He remained there for a few minutes before finally standing again. Techno, Connor, and Niki were all there- almost shielding Tommy from the outside world. Tommy hadn't cried- he seemed utterly numb to it all, lost in the shock and violence of it all. Neither Techno or Phil had told Tommy or the others that they believed the culprit to be Wilbur. 

"Tommy; Techno and I need to talk to Niki and Connor for a few minutes."

"Okay." Tommy's voice seemed so small, so empty. "Can I stay out here?" 

"Don't leave the property. And make sure to stay close to the house." Phil pulled him into a hug, gently kissing him on the forehead before ruffling his hair. Tommy's gaze remained empty, no emotion showing. Slowly the adults reluctantly returned to the house, Niki taking a spot by the window- her gaze never leaving Tommy as he sat down in front of the grave, tucking his legs up to his chest and staying there; completely still. "He'll be okay for the time being Niki." Phil said softly, his gaze momentarily flicking to the window and back to his friends. 

"He's not okay Phil." Niki took a seat by Connor, trembling slightly. "He hasn't been okay for a very long time." Phil offered her a mug of tea, which she gratefully accepted. "He's in shock- and he just keeps shutting down. This isn't helping him." Connor nodded in agreement, watching out the window as Tommy absentmindedly scooped snow up and placed it back down. "I think he's in shock."

"Maybe we should take him back to the main area." Connor offered. "I think he needs to be near his friends." 

"That's too much of a risk with Dream on the loose." Niki said softly, taking a sip of her tea. Her eyes were scrunched in thought. "Maybe this was Dream. Maybe it's some type of ploy to force us to move Tommy to a place where he's more accessible." 

"It wasn't Dream." Techno's voice was monotonous. "He couldn't have killed my mother. He may be a fighter- but he's not strong enough to kill an immortal." 

"Aren't his brothers gods?" Connor questioned, looking around the room. "Foolish and XD."

"I'm not sure about Foolish. But XD definitely is." Niki interjected. "So conceivably Dream could be a god of some type. Maybe only with immortal blood, but still technically a god."

"Then maybe it isn't safe here anymore. Especially if Dream is-" 

"It's not Dream." Techno interrupted Connor, his tone laden with annoyance and anger. "I know that. I highly doubt Dream even knew that the Goddess of Death was my and Tommy's mother."

"Wasn't Kristin also Wilbur's-"

"It doesn't matter. All Phil and I know is that it wasn't Dream."

"Then who do you think it was? Because Dream is the only person who I can think of." Techno went silent, exchanging a dark look with Phil. 

"Did you tell Wilbur yet?" Niki asked, turning back to the window. She turned back to the group after seeing that Tommy was still safely sitting in the snow. "Because maybe we should have him come here, it might help Tommy-"

"He already knows." Techno said bluntly. 

"Was he here this morning?" Connor looked confused. "I thought he was in Las Nevadas doing that burger van thing with Ranboo. Did he pay a visit or something-"

"He already knows and he doesn't care." Techno spat out. 

"Techno-" Phil began.

"WHAT?" Techno whirled to face his father, glaring. "I'm telling them the truth."

"Techno." Phil shook his head. He looked at Niki and Connor- who just looked concerned and worried. "Just tell them. There's no point in keeping it from them now."

"Keeping what from us?" Techno turned back to Niki and Connor, casting his gaze down. The words lingered on the tip of his tongue, but bile rose in his throat at the thought of saying them. He had never imagined that one day he would be uttering those words. "Techno?" 

But they needed to be said. 

"It was Wilbur." a loud crash startled him as Connor accidentally elbowed Niki's mug of tea onto the ground. 

"Wilbur killed her?" Niki sounded like she couldn't believe it. "How can you be sure of that?" Techno dropped something small and metallic onto the table by her. The shattered mug lay forgotten on the floor as Conno looked over her shoulder as Niki picked up the silvery lighter. Niki and Techno exchanged a look- Niki flipping it over to reveal the neatly engraved W.S. on the lighter before handing it to Connor. 

"Phil and I found his lighter not too far away from where her body was. Walking distance."

"How do you know it wasn't just a coincidence?" Connor placed the lighter back on the table. He didn't really sound like he particularly believed that finding Wilbur's lighter was mere coincidence- but more like he was hoping that it was a lie. 

"Maybe because the only reason we found it was because we followed a blood trail to the riverbank and then it stopped?" Techno's voice was laced with sarcasm. Niki and Connor remained silent. "We know he did it. We just don't know why." 

"I don't think I want to know." Phil muttered from his seat. "And he managed to convince us that he was changing. Once a psychopath, always a psychopath." Silence roared in the room, quickly broken by a panicked yell from outside. All of the adults in the house quickly stood up and rushed outside onto the porch, finding the grounds empty, and Tommy gone. 

"Niki, Connor, armor up and check around front, Phil and I will check around back. If you see anything, don't engage unless someone's in serious danger. Call for help first, fight later." Techno and the rest quickly dispersed, swords and armor at the ready.

---------------------------------------------------

It had been hours at this point. It was almost nightfall- and Wilbur could barely keep his eyes open anymore. And yet again- a relentless chant of voices had returned, practically splitting his skull open. The stars had begun to shyly peek out from behind the misty clouds, the trees hiding their glowing pinpricks of light from view. Exhaustion was beginning to get to him again- Wilbur couldn't give a shit at this point if he were to just collapse from exhaustion- the sleep would be welcome at least. Not that his own head was helping- he had found himself talking to nothing but the empty air- hallucinating about having a conversation with himself. The faint glow of the sun teased his eyes as it began its slow descent below the horizon line. 

"I swear I'm going to go insane." 

Hah. As if you haven't already.

Going insane? You don't know anything about being insane. 

Wallowing in self pity again. 

Pitiful. 

You won't make it to the next sunrise. 

"Wilbur?" a soft voice cut through the bitter taunts of his own head- it was much clearer than the muddle of voices he had been suffering with for the last day or so. 

"What?" Wilbur scoffed, flopping onto his back, chuckling meanly. "I know I'm pathetic, I know that you're just waiting for me to drop dead, so shut the fuck up and let me enjoy my final moments in peace- you don't even exist outside of my own head-" 

"Wilbur...it's me..." there was no taunt, no cruelty to the tone. Just worry and pure confusion. "Holy shit.....are you okay? Why are you all covered in blood?"

"Do I look okay to you? I've just spent the last few days suffering in pain so unless you have some magical remedy- get the fuck out of my head and leave me alone." Wilbur spat. He felt two hands grab the collar of his trench coat, too weak to even attempt to fight back. He was basically in an exhausted, sarcastic state- the lines between reality and Wilbur's own head had blurred into some type of horrific nightmare. 

"Are you even awake right now?"

"I don't know, am I?" Wilbur laughed maniacally. "You tell me-"

A sharp slap was delivered across his face. Wilbur blinked his eyes in shock, snapped back into a muddled reality. 

"Oh god. I'm so sorry Wilbur....you.....you.......you were just talking all crazy and I-"

"Tommy?" Wilbur rasped. Wilbur's voice was softer, more confused. 

"Will?" Tommy reached out for his brother's hand, squeezing it tightly. Wilbur flinched, eyes struggling to stay open. "Are you okay?"

"Tommy." it wasn't a question. Wilbur could've cried in that moment if there was a tear left in his eyes. He was here- and he was safe. "Tommy I need to-"

"Wilbur." Tommy tightened his grip, worry and panic flooding his body. "Why are you bleeding so much? What the fuck happened to you man?"

"A lot." Wilbur croaked out, trying to sit up, but not having the energy to do so. Tommy quickly noticed, and with as much strength as he could muster- dragged Wilbur to a nearby tree, propping his older brother up against it. "Are you actually real?"

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure I'm real." Tommy carefully sat down next to him, keeping him from falling back down onto the ground. "You look like shit." Wilbur laughed weakly; barely even a laugh- it was practically just an exhale. 

"You would too if you dragged yourself across the tundra." Tommy's eyes widened. "Look Tommy- I need to tell you something-"

"You dragged yourself all the way here...." Tommy looked down to his brother's hands, bloodied and slashed, and then saw how much blood was soaked into Wilbur's coat and dress shirt. "Look- whatever you have to say can wait- you're bleeding a lot Wilbur."

"No- I'll be fine- its been like this for a few days-"

"A FEW DAYS?" Tommy practically jumped to his feet in shock. "They could be infected Wilbur- I need to get you to Phil-" Tommy tugged on Wilbur's arm to no avail.

"Tommy.....stop." Wilbur pulled Tommy back down to the ground, wincing in pain as he struggled to sit upright. "I need to tell you this- and I need you to know that I actually, truly, mean it."

"Okay...." Tommy looked unsure. "But the second you're done telling me- we have to go get help from Phil. You're practically knocking on Death's..........never mind." Wilbur heard the hesitation in his voice, but pushed it to the side. 

"Look, Tommy- I'm sorry. I fucked up- with L'Manburg, Pogtopia, everything. I fucked up. I let people down- and most of all I let you down. And....I know that there's no excuse for any of what I did to anyone- but I need you to know that I'm sorry.......and....." Wilbur's breath was beginning to get more labored. "And......"

"I forgive you Will. I mean that too." Tommy said quietly, pulling Wilbur into a gentle hug- being mindful of the fact he was in a lot of pain. "But we need to get to Phil now." 

"Help.....me....up then..." Wilbur was practically choking on his own words now. Tommy quickly offered him a hand, pulling him up to his feet, and slinging Wilbur's arm across his shoulder. Wilbur's legs were practically jelly- and Tommy noted he could barely move without wincing. Soon they were at the property line, marked by the spruce fences. "Tommy....."

"Yeah?" Tommy was basically dragging Wilbur towards Phil's house at this point. "It's just a bit farther."

"I don't think I can go anymore."

"No. You can and you will." 

"Tommy. Just leave me here."

"No. I'm not leaving you here so you can go off and die in the woods at night. I'm staying with you."

"I'm slowing you down."

"I'm not the one who's dying Will."

"Just go Tommy. I can make it by myself." 

"No. You can't even walk. You already dragged yourself most of the way here."

"Tommy...just-"

"Shut the fuck up Will. I'm not leaving you out here alone. End of conversation." 

"TOMMY!" someone yelled, a bright blaze of light suddenly came into view, with two people illuminated in it. Tommy looked up suddenly, recognizing the voices.

"Niki! Connor!" Tommy yelled, quickly lowering Wilbur to the floor. "I'm over here!" He gently sat down next to Wilbur, suddenly becoming very aware of how warm he was. "Wilbur, can you hear me?" 

"Yeah...." Wilbur's voice was a rasp now- his breathing heavy and labored. His eyes were struggling to stay open. Tommy reassuringly squeezed his brother's hand. 

"Help's going to be here soon. Don't worry."

"TOMMY!" Niki and Connor came running over, swords drawn, enchanted armor glowing. "Oh my god...." Niki whispered, shock and horror laced into her tone. "Tommy- get over here now." Tommy looked at them in confusion, not moving from Wilbur's side. 

"Go get Phil. We need to get him back to the house-"

"Tommy get over here now." Connor's voice was stern. He turned to Niki. "Tell them that we found him." Niki nodded and quickly lit a firework, watching as a bright light illuminated the sky for a few seconds. "Tommy we need to go."

"But Wilbur needs our help." Tommy refused to move. Wilbur was practically burning at this point. "He's hurt and I think he has a fever-"

"That doesn't matter Tommy." Connor looked cautious as he and Niki approached the two brothers. "We need to get you back to the house."

"I'm not going unless Wilbur comes with us." Niki knelt in the snow next to Tommy, placing her hand on Tommy's shoulder. 

"Techno and Phil want you back at the house." Niki said gently, attempting to steer Tommy away. "I know you don't want to leave Wilbur- but we need to go now." Tommy shoved her hand off of his shoulder, angrily turning back to Wilbur. 

"I don't care. I'm not leaving him out here-"

"You found him?" Phil and Techno suddenly appeared in the area, lanterns in hand. "Is he hurt?" Techno quickly walked over, but stopped dead when he saw Tommy sitting next to Wilbur. 

"Phil!" Tommy jumped up and ran towards him. "We need to help Wilbur- he's hurt really badly, his hands and clothes are all bloody- and I think he had a fever but Connor and Niki keep saying we need to go back to the house- and I'm going unless Wilbur goes too." Niki carefully came up behind Tommy, setting her hands on his shoulders. "We need to help him Phil-"

"We're not helping a murderer!" Techno yelled, stalking over to where the group was standing. "He deserves to die out here for what he's done!"

"Techno- not now." Niki's tone was warning and cautious. 

"I know that Wilbur's made mistakes Techno! It's not like you're any better! You've killed without remorse or feeling!" Tommy yelled angrily, tears springing to his eyes. 

"THAT WAS MY PAST!" Techno yelled furiously. 

"It was his past too!" Tommy attempted to tackle Techno- but was held back by Niki, who had a worried look on her face. "And at least he's actually sorry about it as opposed to you!" Techno was in a furious rage- practically spitting out his next words. 

"You really think he's so innocent. Tell that to our mother Tommy. Tell that to her. Your perspective might change then." 

"TECHNO!" Niki yelled, pulling Tommy back, eyes wide with horror. Tommy's eyes had gone wide with realization. Niki tried to pull him back, but he shoved her away. Wilbur while this had been going on had painfully gotten to his feet, leaning heavily on the spruce fencing. 

"That's not true....you're lying." Tommy sounded so small, so unsure.

"I'm not." Techno growled. He saw that Wilbur was standing and almost immediately slammed him back to the ground, ignoring Tommy's yells and cries as Phil attempted to hold him back. "How about you tell him Wilbur?" Techno hissed, pulling his swords from the scabbard, shoving Wilbur back down into the snow. "How about you tell him how you brutally stabbed our mother to death in the middle of a tundra and left her bleeding on the forest floor?" Techno kicked him in the side, ignoring the pathetic cry of pain that Wilbur let out. 

"TECHNO STOP IT!" Tommy was howling as Connor and Phil were using all of their strength to keep him from running away. "HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! YOU'RE HURTING HIM!" Techno swung his arm back, preparing to slash viciously across Wilbur's body, but was stopped by a death grip on his wrist. Niki glared back at him, eyes hard and cold. 

"What are you doing?" Techno hissed, yanking his arm away.

"Not here Techno. Don't do this here. Not with Tommy right there."

"He needs to pay."

"Don't you think Tommy's been through enough already?" Niki's voice was angry. "He found out his mother was brutally murdered in the forest, saw her get buried, found Wilbur bleeding and injured in the forest, found out that Wilbur was the person who according to you murdered his mother, and his now watching you beat the hell out of him. Tommy isn't like you. He's not desensitized to violence. And he still thinks Wilbur is innocent- you're not going to do this now, not in front of him." Niki stepped back slightly, gaze hardening. 

"Fine. Get him out of here then." Techno had no sympathy left in his voice. Every cell in his body was practically screaming with the red hot desire for revenge. The voices were calling for blood again. And he would make sure it was Wilbur's. Niki walked back to where Phil and Connor were, gently taking Tommy's hand in her own. 

"Let's go Tommy."

"No. I won't go." Tommy was sobbing uncontrollably. Wilbur looked up, wiping snow from his face. "He didn't do anything Niki- I won't just leave him-"

"Tommy." Wilbur spoke, and almost in a flash Techno's blade was at his throat. Niki sent a warning glare his way, and the blade slowly fell away. "Just go."

"Wilbur-"

"Tommy...please just go...you don't need to see me like this."

"But-"

"Niki take him back. Get him out of here." Niki nodded, placing her hand on Tommy's shoulder and turning him around. Tommy made no movements to struggle, he just left. Wilbur closed his eyes, not wanting to see his little brother leave. The group watched as Niki's lantern light vanished into the distance, and there was another burst of light as a light pink firework shot into the sky where Phil's house would be. Connor looked pale, almost like he was about to be sick. 

"Phil- I don't think I want to stay here right now-"

"Leave then." Connor nodded and practically ran away as fast as he could. Phil turned back to Techno and Wilbur, silence growing heavy between the three. "Techno put the sword away."

"No."

"Techno. We don't need a sword to have a conversation."

"How do you know he won't just run or try and kill us, and then go kill Tommy?" Techno's taunt was almost as sharp as his blade. 

"Bold of you to assume I can run." Wilbur muttered, attempting to sit up but instantly having Techno kick him in the ribs to keep him on the floor. "And I would never hurt Tommy. I've done that enough already." Techno sneered as he pressed the tip of his boot into Wilbur's side, watching as his flinched in pain, attempting to squirm away. 

"I bet that's exactly what you said to our mother." Techno delivered another sharp kick to Wilbur's side. "Before you stabbed her hundreds of times and left her bleeding out-" he punctuated his sentence with another brutal kick to the side. 

"Techno. That's enough." Phil grabbed Techno's shoulder and shoved him away from Wilbur. 

"I didn't kill her." Wilbur winced as he sat up, leaning against the fence for support. "She was already dead when I found her." 

"Oh so you admit you were just casually walking by when you happened to find her dead. Did you get lost on your way to go fuck Quackity? The tundra is a bit different than the desert." 

"How the fuck do you think I would even be able to kill our mother? You or Phil would have a higher chance of being able to kill her. And I was going to go get help from you."

"So what? That doesn't explain why you ran. Why you washed the blood off and continued on your merry way. Why you showed up here days after she died. You killed her." Wilbur held up his hand, showing the scarred carvings on them. 

"I fell into the river and was unconscious for hours. And you want to know why it took so long for me to get here Techno? These scars probably go all the way down to bone. Do you think that I would be perfectly aware of my surroundings after being on an adrenaline rush for days, in pain for even longer, and witnessing my own mother bleeding out in the forest after she just visited me? I'm not like you. You wouldn't have been able to function either."

"All I'm hearing is excuse after excuse and not one bit of evidence out of your mouth."

"And what evidence is so strong that you think I did this?"

"Fine. I see how you want to play this. Number one; we found your lighter where the blood trail through the woods ended. Number two; it would've been easy for you to get our mother to trust you and let her guard down. A sneak attack. She was stabbed in the back Wilbur, wings ripped out. Number three; just because you aren't a god doesn't mean you can't kill one. You could have gotten your slimy little hands on some type of object powerful enough to kill her. Number four; you've been what I would call a 'Dream apologist' ever since you got revived. Now- it just so happens that Dream happens to have an older brother who's a god. And finally, you expect me to immediately trust you after everything you've done. You have done nothing except betray people who trusted you. It's happened to me, to Tommy, your friends. And there's nobody else that I could think of that would kill our mother Wilbur."

"You should really hear yourself. It sounds so foolish from where I'm sitting." Wilbur spat. It wasn't even a second later that Techno's sword collided with his face. Blood dripped onto the snow, a cry of pure agony ripped itself from Wilbur's throat as Techno grabbed his collar and threw him back into the ground, almost immediately landing another cruel kick to his ribs. 

"Techno! Stop it!" Phil immediately stepped in, pulling Techno away. "You need to get yourself under control. Violence isn't going to solve this." Techno looked disgusted as he pulled himself out of his father's grasp. 

"You really believe him don't you."

"I don't know what to believe anymore Techno." 

"He murdered our mother! Your wife! And he left her to die! He deserves-"

"You need to go back to the house. You're taking this to a completely unnecessary level." Techno looked completely disgusted as he backed away from his father- eyes cold and filled to the brim with fury. Phil stayed where he was standing, hands balled into fists at his side. "Go. Leave Techno. I can deal with this myself."

"No you can't." Techno glared but began retreating towards the house, lantern in hand. "You're getting too soft." Phil looked down at his middle son, shivering in pain on the ground. 

"Maybe that's what you see Techno. But I couldn't care less about that." Techno scoffed before vanishing into the night. Phil finally turned back to Wilbur on the ground. "I'm sorry about that."

"It doesn't matter what I say does it?" Wilbur looked utterly defeated and lost. "You both are going to think I'm guilty no matter what I say to you." Phil avoided eye contact- the truth was basically out in the open- the truth that no one wanted to say, the truth that resided deep within everyone's minds. Wilbur laughed. It was empty sounding- more a laugh of defeat than anything else. "Just kill me Phil. I don't care anymore. I just want it to end."

Phil turned back to Wilbur- eyes ripping him into shreds. 

"I can't. Even though you murdered my wife, and your own mother in cold blood, have the audacity to show up here begging for help, I can't say goodbye to another son again. And I'm not giving you the easy way out again. You deserve to live with what you've done. But you lay a finger on Tommy, Techno, anyone- I'll fucking kill you." Phil dragged a sleeve over his eyes. "I killed you once Wilbur. And I can't bring myself to do it again. You can suffer for the rest of your life- it doesn't matter. Because at the end of the story you're just going to find yourself back at the beginning again:" Wilbur looked down at the ground- tears running down his face. 

"Completely alone."

And with that, Phil picked up his lantern and turned away, ignoring the emotion that threatened to rip his very soul in half. Wilbur was plunged into darkness, even the stars up above him had faded back into the mist. A part of him was practically ripped out- and it couldn't be replaced. He had reached the threshold of having no tears left to cry. He had always started with nothing- and now he was left with nothing. Hope had deserted him yet again, Pandora's gift and curse to humanity- had completely abandoned him. 

And once you've hit rockbottom? 

You can only go up. 

Chapter Text

The walk back to the house was painful for Niki. Tommy just walked slightly ahead of her, hunched over, trying not to cry. She couldn't even imagine what was going through his head at this point. Snow crunched under boots as the pair continued, quickly arriving at the front door of Phil's house. Niki opened the door and walked inside, but Tommy didn't follow. He stayed on the porch, staring back at the property line where muted lantern light showed where the others were; tears running down his face. 

"Tommy, come inside. You're going to freeze out there." Niki tried to keep her voice cheerful, gently resting a hand on his shoulder and attempting to turn him towards the house. Tommy didn't move at all. He just stayed, watching the muted light of the lanterns become even more obscured with the descending clouds of nighttime mist, until from his vantage point they finally fizzled out. "Tommy. Come inside." Niki attempted to grab his shoulder gently and steer him into the house, but Tommy flinched away. She retracted her arm, worry beginning to settle in. Tommy was slightly hunched over, hands rapidly closing into fists and opening again. Something was practically ripping him apart on the inside, the two sides inside of his mind; emotion and logic clashed into a melting pot- sending a tidal wave of the concoction they produced to flood every thought that dared to pass forward- 

But they left nothing clearer in their wake.

"Do you actually think......" Tommy started a sentence, but almost immediately cut himself off. He sounded like he was about to start sobbing uncontrollably- choking on unsaid words. Niki felt her heart sink. Tommy just stayed outside, completely quiet. Even the normally whispering winds of the night had quieted, dying down into a barely noticeable breeze. "Do you think that Wilbur....." a choked sob ripped itself from the depths of Tommy's throat, he slowly sank to the floor, wooden boards creaking slightly. Niki could feel her eyes tearing up as she gently patted Tommy's back, trying to calm him. "He couldn't have done it Niki! He wouldn't have done that!" Tommy buried his head in his hands, curling his legs back up to his chest and hunching over, muffled sobs and tears ripping through the snow filled silence.

There was no consoling him- tears and sobs wracked his small frame, every emotion he had been unable to show coming undone- spilling over in torrents of tears and cries. Niki could only whisper comforting words and hum softly, but it pained her every time Tommy shuddered to take another breath. It took some coaxing, and a fair amount of physical strength; Tommy was basically dead weight in her arms as Niki essentially dragged him into the house, setting him down on the sofa. She sat next to him, trying not to cry as Tommy's sobs began to become more choked- his random outbursts of incoherent words became more impassioned and wrought with emotion, she could only do so much. Hours dragged by as Tommy cried; for everything, his mother, his father, Techno- and Wilbur. Opinions and reason went out the window- replaced by nothing but pure emotion. 

Everything was just a mess of death and tears, a swirling whirlpool of confusion and hurt threatening to pull his head under its waters. Choked back words and tears were suffocating him- guilt and confusion weighing on his heart and mind. It was almost painful for Tommy to choke out the next sentence. "You don't.......you don't think that Techno's actually going to kill him?" Niki froze. She couldn't find words in her brain to even try and explain what Techno had threatened to do if he got his hands on Wilbur. Tommy didn't need to hear that, that would only make this situation so much worse. "Niki?" Tommy's voice was more harsh this time in its questioning. The words stayed caught in her throat. 

"I.......I don't know Tommy....." she whispered as she quietly looked away. Doubt was surging in the back of her mind- if Techno had been willing to brutalize Wilbur right in front of Tommy, there was no real telling of what he could or would do with only Phil there. Tommy knew- she could tell by the way his eyes widened, his sobs stopped dead in their tracks. Tommy knew. But her words were the only affirmation that he needed to form his own conclusion. Niki's eyes pooled with tears as she took in the pained expression on Tommy's face. "I'm so sorry."

"No." Tommy shook his head. "They wouldn't. Phil wouldn't let him." Niki didn't respond. She simply looked away. The screaming, roaring silence told Tommy enough. Realization flooded through his face. He stood up, wiping tears away. Wilbur was going to be dead before the morning sun even had time to rise. But there wasn't a bone in him that believed that Wilbur could've actually had the ability or will to brutally murder their mother in the snow. But his train of thought was interrupted by Techno storming up to the house, closely followed by Connor. Niki practically ran down to the two, telling Tommy to go inside. Tommy didn't move, staying on the porch, observing the three. Techno looked pissed, eyes burning a forceful red. 

"Techno- why can't you just answer my question-" Connor was cut off. 

"I told you already. Phil's taking care of it. He said I was getting too emotional to handle the situation properly and without violence."

"That doesn't tell us if he's alive or dead." Niki muttered under her breath, loud enough for Techno to hear. "And keep your voice down. Tommy's literally right inside the house."

"Look- Phil's getting weak. If he doesn't end up killing Wil-"

"I told you to keep your voice down!" Niki hissed. "Tommy doesn't need to hear you making graphic death threats against a person he loves and believes is innocent-"

"Well then he should know that if Phil doesn't end up killing Wilbur then I personally will. And since I'm not like Phil with the whole painless death courtesy- the punishment is going to fit the crime or be even worse-" Techno was practically yelling now. 

"Techno shut the fuck up!" Niki was trying to keep her voice down, eyes flaring. "For the millionth time, that kid is not like you or Phil. He may seem desensitized to violence at times, but he's not. He's seen and heard far more than he should've tonight, and you aren't going to make this any better for him if you don't shut up now."

"I think he deserves to know-"

"KNOW WHAT TECHNO?!" Niki sounded like she was about to explode from pure anger. Her voice quieted when she saw Tommy standing on the porch, face blank and emotionless. Shock threaded through her face. "Tommy I told you to go back inside the house." Connor's eyes widened in horror, seeing the tears and look on Tommy's face. Tommy looked like he was about to start crying or go into shock again. "Tommy go inside." Niki said urgently. "Go inside- you don't need to hear anymore of this-" her voice was pleading, but Tommy stayed where he was. Techno just looked impassive to the situation unfolding around him. 

"If he wants to stay, he can stay." Techno said angrily. "He needs to know that he looks up to a murderer and psychopath." 

"Techno, you're taking this way too far. Not in front of the kid." Connor hissed, attempting unsuccessfully to shut Techno up. "Tommy, go back inside please." Connor attempted, but Tommy still stared blankly at the trio, hands clenched into fists and tears spilling down his face.

"He still thinks that Wilbur's innocent-" Techno started angrily. 

"Because he is!" Niki and Connor looked shocked as Tommy's voice pierced the air, angry and shrill. "Because Wilbur never would've killed or even hurt Mom! Every bad thing he's done has been in his past! You don't have any proof!" if looks could kill, burn, and destroy anything in their path, the look that Techno gave Tommy would've reduced him to a small pile of ash. He began walking up the steps towards his younger brother. Niki and Connor both immediately ran forward, attempting to pull Techno back. Techno however simply threw them to the side. When he was in front of Tommy, he bent down on one knee, anger flowing into his words as he gripped Tommy's shoulders and spoke. 

"I don't know how many times you need to hear it, or see what I saw for anything to sink in. But the Wilbur you look up to and think that you know- he was the one who plunged a knife into our mother's back, ripped her wings to shreds-"

"Techno stop it!" Niki pulled Tommy away from Techno's grasp, arms wrapping protectively over his shivering shoulders. Connor was at her side, blocking Techno from Tommy's view, hand held out in an attempt to stay the anger festering in Techno's eyes. "You need to stop. You need to calm down and leave him alone. This needs to stop right now." Techno scoffed, crossing his arms across his chest. 

"You think you know everything. You think that you can just make everything better by just keeping the truth from him. Well you need to wake up- and so does he." 

"I'm not saying I understand the pain you're going through right now, I'm saying that you are taking your anger and grief out on Tommy for absolutely no reason. If he believes in innocent until proven guilty- let him believe that, but I swear to the gods I will not let you traumatize him even further." Niki hissed, pulling Tommy behind her. Now the look in Techno's eyes was practically murderous. He let out a low, dark, chuckle, a cruel smile curling up the side of his face. His hand lingered on the hilt of his sword, almost like he was considering the possibility of striking down Niki and Connor right there. 

"Fine." it was a cold, almost taunting word. "I'll let him live and wallow in his happy little delusions- there will be a time Niki, there will be a time where he begins to see the truth- and there will be a time where you can no longer protect him from it. If you're even still around to see the day it happens. You've let your emotion rule your logic." it was with those words that Techno turned back around and vanished into the snowy mist, chucking cruelly. Niki stayed standing still- purely in shock. Behind her and Connor, Tommy was trembling. The adults exchanged a look, one that Tommy couldn't decipher. It felt like hours before they even stepped into the house and shut the door. 

"I'm so sorry you had to hear any of that Tommy." Connor said softly, gently patting Tommy's shoulder. Niki was in the kitchen, boiling some water for tea. Tommy just stared blankly at the floor. Everything was more muddled than it had been before. A deep sinking feeling had made its home in Tommy's stomach, salt laced tears had made their home in his eyes. The shock was fresh for him. He could still hear Techno's cruel, biting words echoing in the recesses of his already cluttered mind. He could never remember a time where Techno had gotten physical with people who weren't enemies. But he had so easily thrown Niki and Connor to the side- and with no thought behind it. And earlier he would've had no problem slashing open Wilbur's throat in front of him if Niki hadn't intervened. Tommy felt faint, his legs wobbled and he crashed to the floor, bile rising in his throat. 

He could hear muffled voices, but couldn't place who they belonged to, what they were saying, or even where they were coming from. A darkness began to open up, and Tommy found himself being sucked into an abyss of hurt and fear; he had no energy left to fight the oncoming feeling and might of unconsciousness, instead he just gave in, letting the darkness fall and take him down with it, filling his mind with nothing but broken feelings and doubts. 

Chapter Text

Most normal (or abnormal) people would seek out another family member for other reasons. Forgiveness after a feud. Death of a family member. Inheritance. Just because you want to see how your family is after a while. Seeing the siblings. But as far as Dream could remember- he had never heard of someone seeking out another family member because they had killed a god and needed help to reclaim an object of death. At least that was all that Dream could really comprehend. XD hadn't really explained much, and just seemed more insistent on taking him back to his realm. So that's where Dream was now, standing next to his brother looking at two peculiar books. Life, Death, and Revival all lingered at his fingertips, the perfect trio. Dream had actually laughed when XD had told him that he had created the Revival and Death Books- assuming this was some type of joke. Sure, his brother was a god, but Dream had highly doubted his brother's creative ability. He had stopped laughing when XD had shown them to him. 

He had stopped laughing when he could practically feel the pure, undiluted power at his fingertips

"So." XD muttered under his breath. "Do you believe me yet?" annoyance laced his tone.

"Yeah." Dream mumbled, fingers grazing the golden gilded cover of the Revival Book. "I believe you." both books dripped with power, a power that Dream had sorely missed in his days in prison and on the run. "Tell me why you decided to find me. I know you want my help- but why me of all of the people you could've gone to. Foolish would know more about this than me, and Mom is always an option-"

"You seem to forget how alike we are at times Dream." Dream had to laugh. That had to be the most ridiculous thing that he had even heard. 

"I'm nothing like you-" Dream started, but immediately stopped when he saw XD's face.

"Oh really?" XD raised his eyebrow in amusement, chuckling lightly as he paced around the room in circles. "We're both disgraced by those who used to respect or follow us, feared by those same people, we've both killed, been regarded as tyrants, and have enemies that we wish to see dead. Although, I will say that in my case I've already accomplished that last one." Dream just stayed silent. "Our family has long moved past us. Foolish has begun to deny his more godly instinct- it's quite sad. He was so powerful, but he's really chosen a mortal life above the one he had before."

"Foolish is mortal now?"

"Somewhat at least. I may have had a little something to do with helping him retain some level of immortality. Not sure how permanent it is though."

"And what about Mom?" 

"Our mother is quite literally a half mortal daughter of Harpocrates. I'm quite sure she's very aware of what goes on in the realms of the gods. I don't think she would hesitate to turn me in- especially now- killing a god is a cardinal offence you know." XD laughed lightly. "Mother moved on." XD set a hand on Dream's shoulder, offering a smile with many hidden layers beneath it. "We are now part of a world that wants to see us dead Dream. You are part of a world that has long moved past your rule and legacy. And I am part of a world that is growing increasingly soft and weak. But it doesn't matter the difference between our experiences and lives Dream; because the worlds we hail from both despise our actions, even if we were just trying to do the right thing." Dream stayed silent, fingers tapping lightly on the table. XD could feel his younger brother's thoughts swirling by in a whirlwind. 

"So we are much more alike than you think." Dream looked like he was contemplating everything that he had just heard from his brother's mouth in the past few minutes. But XD didn't give him much time to think, quickly interrupting his brother's train of thought. "And because of that, I want to offer you a deal Dream."

That got Dream's attention. 

"A deal?"

"Yes." a purely evil smile crept up the side of XD's face. "I have a proposition for you." XD walked over to the window, smiling at the sinking sun. Dream trailed behind, hanging on his next words. "We both want similar things. You want your control over the server back, and I want control over Death itself, from which I can then control the Underworld. But in order to do that I need to find out how to get the Death Book to obey me. We already possess the knowledge of Life and Revival, we just Death to complete the trio."

"What does any of this have to do with me?" Dream scoffed. XD turned back around, flashing a toothy grin. 

"You help me get Death under my control- you get complete control over the server again. We would both be unstoppable; masters of Life and Death. You could be a god Dream- you would never have to worry about losing control again. You would be able to get revenge. You need me to help you gain control over the SMP again. And I need you to help me find the answers I need in the mortal world. The secret of Death is hidden somewhere in these mortal plains, somewhere I may not be able to reach. Not to mention that I can get my revenge against the gods, many of their loved ones reside here." XD smiled, waiting for an answer. Cold, chipped porcelain met his gaze. "So, do we have a deal?" XD extended a hand to his brother. 

Dream looked at the extended hand. It was so tantalizing, this offer would be a direct ticket to achieving server wide dominance. It was far too good to turn down. He took XD's hand and shook it- smirking under his mask. The comeback and revenge he had longed for, lusted after for days, months, years, all of it would finally be achievable. He could make people pay. All of the time he had rotted in prison, all of the times that people had disobeyed his authority, all of the friends and family who had turned their backs on him- all of it would finally be brought back to the surface. 

"We have a deal then." XD smiled again, a positively malicious intent behind his eyes. 

"Where do we start with this then?" Dream asked, following his older brother through the winding halls of his golden palace. 

"Well, first it would probably help you if I explain this whole situation- but I have been able to pinpoint some type of.....beacon is the best way I can describe it. And I believe it's connected to the Death Book; the Book's been having these flares of power- and it syncs up with the beacon I've been monitoring for the past few days." XD reached a locked door and pulled a key out of his pocket, slipping it into the keyhole and twisting, opening the door to a cluttered, but albeit nice study of some sorts. Dream looked amazed; crystals and polished glass shimmered, glass bottles of colored liquids sat on the shelves, books with leather covers, yellowing parchment; all of it with a very clear magic touch to them. "Sit down, it's a bit of a long story." XD gestured to a stool by the table in the center of the room. 

"I can see you've been busy." Dream muttered as he sat down, flipping the pages of a book in front of him, seeing a text he couldn't recognize. XD put the two books on the table, taking a seat across from his younger brother. "So. This whole situation. How exactly did this happen?" XD sighed before beginning. 

"Well, I guess I have to disclose that Kristin and I have never really gotten along well-"

"Kristin?"

"Goddess of Death."

"Kristin as in Philza's wife?"

"Yes." 

"Interesting. Please continue."

"Well, Kristin has always been a bit of a control freak when it comes to Death and the happenings of the Underworld. I've always been a bit more involved in mortal affairs than she ever was, and according to her I would 'meddle in her affairs'. I've been reviving people for millennia Dream, and that put me in sort of a bad spot with Kristin, Hades, and Persephone. The idea for a book of Revival was something I'd always thought about- people would be able to revive anyone via me- if I deemed them worthy of course."

"Something tells me that you didn't have a vetting process. Not that I really care about that, but I'm assuming your godly pals didn't like that too much?"

"You would be correct in that assumption." XD scowled. "I began the process of creating the Revival Book far before you ever entered this cycle of the world. Even I was new to the god role. The formalized design you see now has been around since that war you had with Kristin's brats. But it's been around for much longer than that."

"So what does any of this have to do with the current situation now?"

"Dream, if you want to understand anything I'm about to tell you- you need to know why there is bad blood between Kristin and I. All of it started with my creation of the Revival Book- it's bound with the Strings of Life and Fate. Have you by chance heard of the Fates Dream?"

"Yes. Atropos, Lachesis, and Clotho." Dream looked even more confused. "They control what someone's life will hold, how long it lasts, and when it ends."

"Well, they're basically only loyal to the death gods. I couldn't exactly waltz into the Underworld and ask for some string, not to mention they cannot let the strings out of the Underworld. The Underworld was different then- Tartarus, Elysium, and Asphodel Meadows. But I managed to steal the strings. But there were side effects. The Asphodel began to infect Tartarus and Elysium, and long story short- I accidentally created the Purgatory and got myself on a couple people's hit lists. But none of the gods know that. Not even the Fates themselves know I was the one who accidentally created a hell. But Kristin knew. And she made me a deal- I would stop reviving people and messing with Underworld's system, and she wouldn't go to the Council about what I had done. She didn't know about the strings. If she had- I doubt she would've even let me live."

"So not only did you constantly piss off death gods, you messed up the entire Underworld and created a hellish existence for those who die?"

"And I indirectly was the cause of the things you mortals call your canon lives. Hades and Kristin put that into place after they realized how bad the Purgatory truly was. But they couldn't really do much about it."

"Well I'm intrigued about what other crimes you may have committed." XD rolled his eyes and continued on.

"But since I now had the Revival Book- the agreement didn't affect me. That, and it never was official. No binding ties. Nothing. But I still had some of the strings Dream- and that's how the idea of a Death Book came into thought- and now existence. It worked the first few times I tried it, and I waited for any chance to get back at Kristin, make her suffer and pay."

"No offence or anything- but this seems like a pretty severe overreaction-"

"I'm giving you a brief overview of our rivalry. It goes much deeper than anything I've told you. But then Kristin's children decided to start a war. A war against you. I'm pretty sure that you probably remember that in detail. I was originally planning to drop the books then and there- but then they got their freedom or whatever they wanted. So I waited."

"Were you the one who gave the Revival Book to Schlatt?"

"No. I just sort of abandoned the books in your world. Someone would find them eventually. I was expecting the Death Book to be found first, but that one stayed hidden for so much longer than I ever expected it to. Can't say I was surprised when you came into possession of the Revival Book though. But the gods weren't exactly pleased when a magical object ended up affecting their beloved families down here. And they traced it back to me, but couldn't do much. Then they found out about the Death Book- and sparks were flying to put it lightly. And since I made both books usable by mortals, I was effectively screwed."

"And then you found out that the Death Book doesn't even work and defaults to the person in control of Death. So how exactly do you plan on convincing Kristin to hand over ownership of a book you shouldn't have even made in the first place?" Dream snorted. XD's eyes were practically shining with murderous intent. 

"Well," XD hissed angrily. "My plan was to kill Kristin and get the Death Book to serve me instead of her-"

"But then you'd have to kill Persephone and Hades. Three death gods end up murdered. That sounds like an amazing way to get caught-"

"If you would let me finish my sentences instead of interrupting-" XD growled lowly, hands curling into fists. "You would know that Persephone and Hades aren't death gods in the way Kristin is. Hades is just an overlord of the Underworld, and Persephone can't be a death god because she already has a role. Kristin was actually fully interconnected with the intricacies of death and stuff like that."

"Was?"

"Yes. Was. Kristin is dead. I don't know if the other gods know, and I'm not going to try and find out." Dream's face was unreadable behind the porcelain mask, but the way he was sitting betrayed the fact that he was purely shocked. "But somehow that didn't work, and I need to start finding a solution- and fast." Dream stayed quiet. "My next move is investigating that power beacon I've stumbled upon. But I'll need your help to do that."

"If you know where it is, why can't you just deal with it?"

"Because I would be almost instantly discovered in a mortal realm. You on the other hand are technically mortal and therefore would escape detection."

"I think you forgot that I've been declared an enemy of the public and the second anyone sees me they will not even think before they kill me. I only have one canon life left XD-"

"Frankly, you being a convicted traumatizer and tyrant is a lot better than being a god murdering rogue. And I don't even know if canon lives are still a thing anymore- the Cycle of Death has been disrupted. And, good news for you, you won't actually need to leave here if you can find the location for me- and then we go down together." XD walked over to the bookshelf and pulled a small wooden box off of the shelf and sat back down at the table. He opened it to reveal scrying crystals. "But that all depends on how your scrying skills are after all this time."

"Why can't you do the scrying part if you know how to do it so well?" Dream yelped, throwing his hands out in exasperation. "It's been years since I've done any of this magicky shit!"

"I don't know if you've gotten the message by now- but excessive use of my power will be sending a godly regime here to kill both of us or worse. And scrying isn't exactly a low energy activity. You're mortal- you might just feel very tired afterwards, but at least you'll still be alive and possibly one step closer to server wide domination." XD muttered, glaring at him. "We had a deal Dream. You help me, I help you- end of the story. So are you going to try to do this or not?"

Chapter Text

"If you start getting all frustrated and impatient- nothing is going to work." XD called from the corner of the room where he was seated with several open books in stacks on the ground. Dream looked up in irritation from the map of the SMP that was spread across the table, scrying crystal gripped so tightly in his hand that his knuckles were turning white. 

"I don't see you helping out here. Just shut up." Dream scowled and went back to the map, attempting to try and find any hint of energy emanating from the server, but everything felt dead. XD just chuckled and went back to flipping through the books, looking for anything that could possibly help him find what he was looking for.  He hated scrying- to him it was useless craft- just staring at a map waving a crystal over the various locations, looking for some type of energy. It was stupid. "This is fucking stupid XD. I'm waving a crystal over a fucking map waiting for magical sparkly energy from magical fantasy land!" Dream's mood was growing fouler and fouler by the moment- and progress was effectively stilled. 

"Well, then maybe I should go back to magical sparkly fantasy land." XD chuckled, picking up another book from the stack next to him, throwing the one in his hand to the side. 

XD bit back a laugh and just looked up, his eyes betraying his amusement. Dream just looked even more irate than before and angrily turned back to the map, dragging the crystal across it, waiting for something to happen. "Literally nothing is happening XD. This is a waste of time! Why can't we just go back down to the fucking server and find this stupid beacon or whatever you call it-" one furious, fiery glare from XD later and Dream was yet again moving a crystal over the map waiting for a spark of energy from magical sparkle land. This whole process was pure bullshit. He couldn't even focus on the task that was at hand- frustration began building in his body as more and more time crawled by the the same painful fashion: nothing happening and his rage finally blossoming to a head. 

XD could tell his brother was getting frustrated, but whatever it took, he would do. But even he was beginning to fall back into the familiar pattern of anger and dissatisfaction that had become so normalized in his mind; yellowing pages of ancient texts offered no help or even reassurance that the goal he had been lusting after for years would even come to fruition. A loud slam on the table, quickly followed by a  crackling sound quickly snapped him out of the wave of doubt rushing over him. 

"Uh- XD?" Dream was leaning over the map, a splintered scrying crystal scattered across the map. XD was about to fly into a rage; he had reached a point of fury that couldn't be matched. But the map glittered in the candlelight, tiny shards of crystal illuminating the old and yellowing parchment of the map- an ethereal display of godly magic. And the way that the splinters were shimmering felt familiar. The light pulsated, picking up speed to the point where it was almost flashing, and then dying down to a flickering glow. "Look, I'm really sorry- I just got frustrated." Dream babbled, moving to sweep the shattered crystal remnants off the table and onto the floor, but XD grabbed his brother's hand, a glint in his eye. "What are you-"

"Get the Death Book." Dream cautiously stepped away, retrieving the book from a nearby shelf. He handed it to his older brother, waiting to see what XD was going to do with it. He was surprised when a low chuckle, no longer one of amusement; but one of triumph filled the room. XD smiled- theory proven correct. He turned back to Dream, a smile creeping up the side of his face, laced with a gleeful light. "You did well."

"I didn't do anything. That whole light display wasn't-"

"But you found our beacon."

"How do you even know that? How do you know that scrying crystals don't just light up when they break? There isn't anything."

"Remember how I said that I could sense when there were spikes in energy from the Death Book?"

"Vaguely."

"Well, when you had your little temper tantrum and broke the crystal, the glow from the crystal was pulsating in that same pattern. It picked up speed, and then slowed down again. It matched Dream. I'm not sure of how these mechanics work- but it's good enough. Let's go."

"Where are we even going!? A broken crystal and a pretty light display aren't going to get us to wherever this beacon is!" Dream protested, trailing after his brother as XD quickly began pulling items from the shelves. "You can't just run into a situation with no plan or even an idea of where you're going! That's suicidal!" XD rolled his eyes and turned back to Dream, a slight irritation showing in his eyes. 

"Look at the map."

"That map isn't going to tell us shit! I've been staring at it for hours!"

"The shards you imbecile. They're forming a circle. Check where the location is, and I'll find a way to get us there with as little detection as possible." 

"I don't understand why you think that this magical beacon is going to help us."

"Just tell me where the crystals are surrounding." impatience was beginning to win out. Dream rolled his eyes and stalked over to the table, fingertips grazing the parchment. "Well?"

"It's in the tundra. Somewhere by the North of the river." XD angrily kicked a stool over, rage taking over the moment of twisted joy that had entered his soul earlier. "Why are you getting so pissed off because it's in the tundra? Can't take a little bit of cold or something?"

"That's where Kristin died. It's probably just residue- FUCK!" XD slammed his fist into a nearby shelf, rattling several glass potion bottles, and knocking even more from their places; where they splintered on the stone floor. "I thought it would be gone by now, it should've been gone by now." Dream just stood by, apathetic look on his face as XD went into a fury, glass, paper, and wood flying through the air as a godly rage was expelled. 

"Where did you kill Kristin exactly?" Dream stepped over a smoldering book and piles of broken glass, map in hand. 

"Somewhere by the river-" XD hurled a nearby book into a candle, glaring at the flames that erupted as the book's cover caught fire. "In a forest glade, I don't know where exactly." Another glass bottle sailed through the air, shattering against the wall on impact, its contents splattering across the floor. Dream just stared. 

"Well, the apparent location of the beacon you're trying to find is out in the open. Not in a forest....so are we still going down or what?" Dream leaned against the wall behind XD as another glass bottle exploded in flames. "Nice fire trick. You'd probably get along with Sapnap and Bad." 

"Save your breath Dream. We're going. Now." XD opened the door and began pacing down the hallway, cloak billowing out behind him slightly. Dream jogged behind him, struggling to keep up. "Get a weapon or something. We might run into some trouble." 

"I'm just saying, anger issues are a huge problem in today's society-" Dream caught the side of a ferocious glare sent his way. "Nevermind. I'm shutting up for the rest of the way there." 

Chapter Text

Wilbur watched as his father's lantern slowly faded away into the swirling mist. He was plunged into darkness, only the ghostly light from the hidden moon shining. Bloodied and bruised fingers curled into the snowy earth below him, whether it was from rage, hurt, it didn't matter anymore. Everything was the same to him. Wilbur felt like he was trapped on  the edge of an imaginary cliff, dangling between life and death in some sort of sick and twisted way- but the rock beneath his feet (his own family and friends) was slowly crumbling away, sending him plunging to his death. But he needed to leave; he couldn't stay here- not that it would truly matter, he would die the same way- freezing, cold, and broken. He didn't want Techno or Phil to assume that this would in some way be a favor for them; sparing them the task of dragging his dead body to be chucked into some random ditch in the middle of the forest- this was for Tommy. 

Tommy had seen him die twice: the first time Tommy had lost his mentor, brother, ally, and enemy. The second time Wilbur died, Tommy lost the small piece of Wilbur's soul that was truly pure- the part of his soul that people wished still existed. Now what was he in Tommy's eyes? A murderer? A completely unrecognizable figure in his life? A psychopath? It didn't really matter to Wilbur anymore- he had lived as a disgraced martyr, and he would die one. The look of confusion and hurt on Tommy's face was practically engraved into his brain- even the look of shock on Tommy's face while L'Manburg blew to bits couldn't match it. 

Tommy didn't need to see him dead again. 

Wilbur highly doubted that Techno would be sympathetic in the event of his death, he would probably just be disappointed he didn't get Wilbur's head on a pike. 

Wilbur looked towards the woods he had just been dragged from. The only place he could truly go. The chill of the snow was gone, the adrenaline rush was gone, everything felt dead to him. Maybe he would be lucky and a wolf would tear out his throat. Then at least he would be spared the slow process of freezing to death. Wilbur managed to get up onto his feet, (probably for the last time he thought morbidly), using the spruce fencing as a rail. Then he was stumbling through dark spruce forests again, time trickling by in streams, until finally the feeling he had been fighting for days took him. The cold, morbid,  chill of Death's euphoria finally possessed his body; dragging him down without a fight. Wilbur remembered when the train had come for him in the Purgatory, he had sworn to  never return. 

But life always seemed to enjoy proving him wrong. Wilbur smiled as the light began to fade from his vision, snow beginning to fall upon his face yet again, welcoming and waiting for the cold, slimy, chill of his familiar hell. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

When a soft golden glow spiraled down from the sky that night, no one was there to see it. If anyone had seen the glittering golden light, they probably would've assumed a trick of the light, not a god. The familiar chill of tundra air hit Dream straight in the face. He remembered the last time he had been here- right after his escape from prison; and then watching as Tommy believed his little game that he had set for him; but soon there wouldn't be a need for games to control people through fear and reputation. He would have his server back. And everything would be as it was supposed to be. Tommy and all the other troublemakers would be locked up in Pandora's Vault, and everyone else would just live their normal lives under his control. Dream wasn't the only one reminiscing or thinking of the future.

To XD, the entire tundra was stained red- the small, shining, essence that a god had been murdered in cold blood. Kristin's death hadn't brought him the success and victory he had hoped for, but he knew that somewhere within this tundra there would be a key, a key to this whole ordeal- XD could already see people and gods bending beneath his control.  He would have Life, Death, and Revival at his fingertips, the perfect trio. But all he needed to do was find it. Dream still had the map, the glow from the crystals somehow still sticking. The glow had continued in its pulsating pattern for most of the journey here- but it had dipped down to a low flicker, something which worried XD, but he for the most part was able to ignore it. 

"We're about a twenty minute walk away from the river. Then we just have to search the riverbed depending on what this beacon is." Dream looked at his older brother behind chilled, emotionless porcelain and tilted his head slightly. "Do you even know what this beacon or whatever could look like?"

"Not necessarily." Dream started walking towards the river, with XD keeping a close distance behind him.

"Then how do you know what to look for?"

"We'll be able to tell what a beacon is when we get close Dream."

"Well, what does it even look like?"

"Allow me to explain something to you Dream-" XD muttered irritably. "A beacon is the result of magic binding with something or other. It most commonly happens after wars with divine interference, or anything to do with the expulsion of one's magic or powers. It is usually accepted that the object the magic binds with had a connection with the magic in question- but that's not always the case. So we could be looking for an animal bone, or even a rock Dream. There's no true way of telling. And since Death in its own way is part of everything in the mortal realms, Kristin's power could've bound with almost anything."

"Why would a chunk of magic help you control a book that only responds to gods of Death? You'd still be locked out of the Death Book."

"Because Kristin is dead. There would be no other receptacle for any of her magic's residue to return to. Except for that beacon. And beacons can be broken, and their magic redirected in a controlled environment. And beacons can regenerate magical particles."

"I understood almost absolutely nothing of anything you just said in the past three minutes."

"I don't blame you. It's a complicated thing. But if you want the basic rundown, all, and I mean all of Kristin's powers and magic will be flooding towards this beacon, and because of that I will be able to unlock the Death Book, and maybe even be able to control some aspects of Death itself. Not all of course, conflict of interests when it comes to my primary role, but at least some."

Dream just made a noise of agreement, looking down at the map in his hands. XD suddenly stopped walking, grabbing his brother's shoulder and pulling him back slightly.

"What the fuck XD? We need to go a little bit further-"

"Where are we?"

"Well, the river's frozen over right now, so be careful. But we're here I guess." XD leaned over his brother's shoulder, running a finger over the crystal glow. He could feel it. The air hung heavy with a cold, sick, feeling. Wherever or whatever this beacon was, it was right here. "Is something wrong or-"

"It's here. Check the riverbank. I'll check the general area."

"What if I find something?" 

"Take this." XD pushed a flare into Dream's hand. "If you find something, light it off. It doesn't matter if it's the beacon or not. Just light it if you find something."

"Do you really think the best way for me to maintain a low profile is to wave a golden flare around in the middle of the night?"

"Only I can see it Dream. It doesn't have a physical flame. But I'll be able to tell. Now go." Excitement flared in XD's veins, he was so close to finding what he had so desperately desired for hundreds, if not thousands of years. All of this work, all of his time, all of his effort- all of it would finally pay off in a spectacular show of power. All he needed to do was find it. 

-------------------------------------------------------

The first thing Wilbur expected to see when he woke up in the Purgatory was the slimy, dripping ceiling of the desolate train station he had gotten so accustomed to. The last thing he expected to see was a horrifically familiar porcelain mask leaning over him, stars glittering dully in the sky. He could feel a death grip in his hair, yanking his head up slightly.

"Well, well, well. Look who I found here. Wilbur fucking Soot." Dream chuckled, letting go of Wilbur's hair and dropping his face back into the snow. "What are you doing out here? I was under the impression that you lived in Las Nevadas now." Wilbur didn't say anything, eyes fluttering as he slowly began to snap into consciousness. Dream just laughed. "You look like shit. Not that that really surprises me in any way. But you have yet to answer my question." Dream nudged Wilbur's ribs with the toe of his boot, causing Wilbur to flinch. "What. Are. You. Doing. Here. Soot." Dream leaned over Wilbur, punctuating his words with light kicks to the side. Wilbur just swallowed the pain. He hoped that maybe Dream would kill him- that maybe this would just be over soon. 

Dream sighed before reaching into his pocket. Wilbur's vision blurred gold slightly as Dream leaned over him with a a glowing cylindrical object in his hand. "Did your tongue get cut out or something? I'm sure Quackity's going to be a bit grieved by that-"

"Shut the fuck up." Wilbur's voice was cracked, he sounded absolutely done with everything. 

"So you can talk." Dream laughed again. "So, I figure we only have a few minutes before the flare gets XD's attention; and you die again- so how about we answer some questions in the meantime." Wilbur didn't say anything, opting to stay silent. Dream, irritated that he wasn't getting an answer, dug the heel of his boot viciously into Wilbur's side. A strangled choked out cry of pain clawed its way from Wilbur's throat. "First question Soot. How much would it traumatize your family , friends, and little brother if I left your mutilated body on Phil's front doorstep?" Wilbur winced as Dream nudged him in the side again warningly. 

"I don't think it would matter to them."

"Oh really? Do you think Tommy would cry? Or completely break down? After all, you look like a mess. Maybe I would carve a smiley face into your skull. How would Techno and Phil react to that? Do you think that Phil would give Tommy up if I made an example out of you-"

"Phil wouldn't care if you dumped my shattered skeleton on his front doormat." Wilbur spat, venom lacing his tone. Dream looked almost pleasantly surprised. "And Techno would just be pissed he didn't get to kill me first."

"And what do you think Tommy would do? Spit on your grave once they've buried you?"

"Phil and Techno would throw me into a ditch the first chance they got." Wilbur managed to sit up, hissing in pain as Dream just dug the heel of his boot into Wilbur's side again. "Stop it-"

"No." Dream smiled, lifting his mask to the side. "So you had a bit of a falling out with your family I see. What'd you do this time Soot? Blow Phil's house to shreds like you did with L'Manburg? Make a deal with the enemy?" Wilbur just looked away. "Oh. Let me guess. You told Tommy that he was a worthless piece of shit who doesn't deserve anything-"

"I swear to god if you say another bad word in Tommy's name I will-" Wilbur screamed as Dream kicked him as hard as he could in the ribs; he was practically sure that bones were broken now. Dream had a cruel grin on his face. 

"You'll what Soot? You wouldn't be able to crawl after me-"

"You found something Dream?" XD's voice suddenly chimed in. Dream turned around, smirk on his face. XD seemed to take in the scene before him, Wilbur a bloodied and broken mess, practically sprawled out on the snowy ground. "Ah. I see." XD's eyes narrowed slightly as he caught sight of the skull engraved on Wilbur's hand. Wilbur shifted his hand out of sight, catching on quickly to XD's glaring gaze. "Dream, lift his hand into the light for me please."

"Which one?" Dream muttered as he knelt next to Wilbur, fingers digging into Wilbur's arm. Wilbur attempted to struggle away, but his attempts were weak and fruitless. 

"Whichever one had the skull on it." XD stood above the two, scrutinizing gaze fixed upon Wilbur. Dream quickly subdued Wilbur's weak attempts at fighting him off, grabbing his wrist and yanking it forward to where XD could see it. XD looked shocked when he saw the bloodied flesh on full display, a perfectly elegant skull carved into pale skin. Wilbur attempted to swing his other arm towards Dream, but Dream quickly caught him by the wrist and pinned his arms to the ground. "He has another one on this hand too XD." Dream let go, standing up and going over to XD, a malevolent smirk on his face. "If you don't have any plans for him XD, I might need to borrow him permanently." XD quickly motioned for his brother to follow him a few feet away. 

"Well you need to get your homicidal streak under wraps for the time being. Believe me, I would love nothing more than to help fuel your reign of terror- but I need to ask a question, and I need you to answer it honestly."

"So I can't kill him-"

"No."

"Fine. What's your stupid fucking question?"

"First off, do you know what his name is?"

"Wilbur Soot."

"And his parentage?"

"Phil and Kristin were his parents as far as I know."

"Adopted or blood related?"

"Blood related.....what the fuck does this have to do with anything?"

"Well, it's extremely rare, but our little mortal friend Wilbur over there, seems to be the beacon that we've been seeking." 

"I thought that you said beacons could only be objects-"

"I said that beacons are most commonly objects. But human hosts are almost unheard of, but not necessarily impossible."

"Easy. So we kill him and release the power into another object-"

"No. He stays alive for now. It makes sense why Kristin's power would gravitate towards him. He is her son, and he doesn't have any abilities to be seen. If he was near the place where Kristin was killed, which I presume he was, he would've been the closest connection that Kristin's power would've gone towards." Dream cast a look back at Wilbur, who was still clutching his side, clearly in pain. 

"So what do we do with him then?"

"This throws a lot of our planning off- but I think he needs to come with us. He is radiating with pure power Dream; we would be fools to leave him here."

"So how do you suggest we get him back? He isn't going to go willingly, and he might put a bit of a fight."

"I'll knock him out for a few hours. That should give us enough time to get him back to my realm, research a little bit, and then start asking him some questions." XD sent a sharp glare Dream's way. "I understand that your history with him is rather rocky, but torturing him isn't going to get us the answers and information that we want. He's close enough to the brink of death, and we don't need him slipping out of our grasp." XD and Dream turned back to Wilbur, faces set in a neutral expression. XD carefully set two fingers on Wilbur's forehead, smiling slightly. Wilbur didn't have enough time to open his mouth before sleep took him down, dragging him into a dark reality, allowing his mind to go blank. "Let's go Dream. Our friend is going to be quite confused when he wakes."

Chapter Text

"Tommy!" Niki heard a panicked yell from Connor, and quickly ran out, disregarding the lit stove and teapot of boiling water back in the kitchen. Connor was kneeling on the floor, arms holding Tommy up to prevent his head from hitting the floor. 

"What the fuck happened?!" Niki and Connor gently lowered Tommy to the floor. Connor had his index and middle finger pressed against Tommy's wrist, searching for a pulse. 

"I don't know! I was just talking to him about how I was sorry he had to see all of the shit that happened tonight and then he just passed out!" Niki gently set a hand on Tommy's forehead searching for any sign of a fever. "He has a pulse."

"No fever either." Niki whispered softly, withdrawing her hand and sitting back on her heels. 

"Do you actually think that all of this was so bad that-"

"Shock and stress combined maybe- help me get him onto the couch at least, I don't think either of us would be able to carry him upstairs, and I don't want to leave him on the floor. I think when Phil gets back we need to talk to him, he might be more reasonable than Techno." it took a bit of time, and some maneuvering; Tommy was a dead weight in their arms. Niki pulled a blanket over him, worry creasing her eyes. "This is getting worse and worse Connor. Maybe we should consider taking Tommy back to the main SMP. Then he could be with Tubbo and Ranboo, we need to get him away from all of this!" 

"I know. But we can't do anything. This is the only safe place we know."

"Techno's gone off into the wind to do god knows what- we don't know where Phil is, and Dream is still out on the loose. Now please enlighten me on what part of any of that sounds remotely safe Connor." Niki sat down on the arm of the couch, slumping over slightly. Connor didn't say anything, he just looked down at the ground. "I.....I don't know what to do anymore....I know it's a risk taking Tommy back to the SMP, but it might be one we need to take. Dream knows that Tommy's most likely here, and it's just us here- we may be able to fight, but there's no way we would be able to win. We're on our own for the time being Connor, and that's a risk in itself."

"No matter what decision we make, it's still going to be dangerous."

"I know. But we need to think about Tommy's well being here Connor. And I think that for the sake of his own safety and health- we need to take him back to the main SMP so he can be around his friends again. He needs space from his family-" a series of loud, fast paced knocks on the heavy wooden door startled the pair. Hands were at the hilts of swords in seconds, ready to take a defensive position. 

"Hey! Technoblade! Philza! Are you there? We kinda need to talk! It's a bit time sensitive-" Niki swung open the door, confusion threading through her face. "Oh! Hi Niki."

"Sapnap. What are you doing here?" Niki stepped to the side to let him in, shutting and locking the door behind him. 

"Uh, well I'm actually looking for Philza and Technoblade-" Sapnap pulled out a slightly dirtied piece of parchment from his pocket, carefully scanning the text and looking back up. "Well, you're on the list too Niki, so I guess you as well." Sapnap caught Connor's slight glance of suspicion, and smiled awkwardly. "Look, can you just tell me where Philza and Technoblade are so I can talk to you all at once?"

"They aren't here Sap." Niki said softly, sitting back down on the arm of the couch. "And I don't think either of them are in a hurry to get back." Sapnap looked confused, then caught sight of red rimmed eyes, tear streaked cheeks, and an unconscious Tommy on the couch. Understanding and worry almost immediately flooding through his gaze.

"Shit. Please tell me that Dream didn't-"

"No no no no. It wasn't Dream." Niki said quietly, standing up. 

"Then what happened? Because from my point of view someone either died or something horrific happened-" Sapnap stopped when he saw both Niki and Connor flinch slightly and exchange a look. "Oh god. Please tell me no one died-"

"It's complicated. But can we please take this conversation to the kitchen or another room? I don't want to wake Tommy up. He's been through enough tonight and needs to rest." Sapnap nodded, and stood off to the side as Niki walked over to Connor, lowering her voice to a hushed tone. "Stay in here with Tommy. I'll talk to Sap." Connor nodded, sitting down in a chair opposite of the couch. "Call us if he wakes up." Niki motioned for Sapnap to follow her into the kitchen, where the two sat down at the table, silence ringing in the atmosphere. "So- what did you need to talk to me, Phil, and Techno about?"

"Oh uh- right. That." Sapnap cleared his throat awkwardly before starting, a slightly graver look than before present in his gaze. "I'm not good at intros or anything, so I'm just going to be blunt, sweet and short about this. The bloodlines are being summoned and-"

"What!?" Niki hissed. "But that hasn't happened in centuries! Even more than that! Maybe even before ancient times! Why now?" 

"I know, I know. This is really out of the blue. And unfortunately I don't know why. All I know is that I have until sunrise to get you, Philza, and Technoblade to Eret's castle for a debrief from Puffy. And if we want to make it, we need to leave soon- so if you have any idea where Technoblade or Philza are, you need to tell me so we can meet up with them."

"You won't be able to find either of them. I don't know where they are, and they certainly didn't tell me before vanishing into thin air."

"Do you at least have an idea of where they could be-"

"Goddamnit! For the last time, I don't know!" Niki slammed her fist on the table, rattling a mug that had been left out and forgotten since the morning. Sapnap recoiled slightly, the venom in her words making itself clear. "Sorry." Niki muttered, looking back down at her hands. "I don't know where either of them are, and after tonight, I don't think they're coming back anytime soon." 

"Look- I understand if you don't want to have to explain any of this to me now, but if something serious happened- I need to know sooner rather than later. I understand that whatever happened is still extremely fresh for you, and everyone else here; but it might be better if I can understand a little bit better." Niki met his gaze before looked back down at the table. Her breath was shaky as the words that she could never have believed to be true clawed their way from her throat. 

"Kristin's dead." it was blunt, no softening, no sugarcoating. Niki knew that those two words barely did the night's events justice in terms of explanation, but the shock that appeared on Sapnap's face was enough to tell her that the message had sunk through. 

"How? When? That's practically impossible Niki- only a god can kill a god-"

"Techno and Phil think that it was Will." Niki stuttered out. Sapnap looked even more confused and worried than before. "That's their explanation for it."

"Techno and Phil are quite literally gods- shouldn't they know that Wilbur killing Kristin is practically impossible?"

"I don't even know anymore. All I know is that they found Will's lighter by Kristin's body, and they immediately assumed it was him. Neither of them are thinking logically, and it's already done its damage. Tommy is in complete shutdown, Connor and I have been sitting on the sidelines unable to do anything to help, Techno is on a rage filled rampage, and Phil's just.....he's just absent and gone." Sapnap had an almost pensive look on his face as he stood up, boot heels clunking against the wooden floor as he paced back and forth. 

"How long ago was this?" Sapnap's tone held a sense of urgency to it. Niki closed her eyes and took a deep breath before speaking. 

"Techno said it looked like she had been dead maybe a day or two. They found her body early this morning and brought her back here to be buried. Why?"

"Yesterday."

"What?"

"Yesterday was when Puffy got the missive to gather the bloodlines. You, Phil, and Techno weren't contacted then because you weren't on the list yet. But if the proposed timing of death is right, this might have something to do with whatever reason the bloodlines were assembled for." Niki's eyes widened slightly as it sunk in. "We need to go. Now." Sapnap headed back towards the main living area, but was quickly stopped by Niki grabbing his shoulder and spinning him back around. 

"I'll go, but Connor and Tommy need to come with us. I'm not going to leave either of them here. And if there is a real threat to the SMP, you'll need all the help you can get. I won't go if they don't come with us." Sapnap faltered for a second, but relented nodding his head. "Is there anything that we need to bring with us other than the essentials?"

"Puffy just said to tell everyone to bring anything they could carry. Armor, weapons, enchants, potions, food, personal effects; literally anything that we can travel safely with."

"I know that Techno and Phil have a lot of things stashed up in the bunker. I'll have Connor take you there to get some things to take with us. I'll pack up some stuff from the house, and wake Tommy up." Sapnap followed her back out into the living room, where Connor sat with a very awake Tommy, quietly talking trying to comfort him. When he saw the two enter the room, he quickly looked up. "I told you to tell us if Tommy woke up." Niki said quietly as Connor approached. "Is he okay?"

"It seemed like the conversation was getting kinda heated, so I just left it alone. I think that he's physically okay, but you know.....it's been difficult for him to process any of it." Niki looked back over at Tommy, who had his knees pulled up to his chest and a blanket wrapped securely around his shoulders. His gaze was fixated on a picture above the fireplace, a framed picture of his whole family- Niki looked away before she could start crying. 

"I know that this is really out of nowhere, but we're leaving."

"What?"

"It's a long story, but you, Tommy, and I are going with Sapnap to Eret's castle. We need to bring as much supplies as we can carry. Sapnap will go with you to pack some things up in the bunker, I'll get some stuff packed up in the house. And I'm going to try and explain things to Tommy." Connor looked concerned, but just accepted it. It wasn't the most unbelievable thing that had happened in the past few days. Tommy looked up as Connor and Sapnap went outside, flinching slightly as the door swung shut. 

"Are you guys leaving?" Tommy's voice sounded so small as he looked up at Niki, a blank expression on his face. Niki sat down next to him, attempting a weak smile.

"You're coming with us Tommy."

"Where are we going then?"

"We're going back to the SMP Tommy."

"Why? Does it have something to do with......what happened?" Tommy said softly, gaze fluttering over to the framed picture on the mantel again. 

"It might." Niki said softly, setting a hand on Tommy's shoulder. "But that's not the reason we're going back."

"Then why are we?" Tommy didn't sound convinced. Niki stood up from the couch, extending a hand to Tommy.

"How about I explain while the two of us pack some stuff up for the trip?"

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"So this whole bloodlines thing is made up of descendants of gods?" Connor asked, picking up a box and rummaging through it. Sapnap picked up an axe from the corner, setting it back down on the floor and going to help Connor. 

"Pretty much."

"Is it some sort of secret thing?"

"Not necessarily. It's not fully secret- but we don't exactly go around revealing its existence to everyone. But in times like these, we need allies outside of the bloodlines. That's why Puffy summoned literally anyone who either had some type of godly encounter, family, and just people who would be on our side." 

"What god are you descended from again?" Connor asked, looking up from the bag of potatoes he was sorting through. "Here, put this by the take pile." Sapnap grabbed the sack, throwing it over his shoulder into the slowly growing pile of supplies. 

"Hephaestus. He's my grandfather on Bad's side, so that explains some of the fireborn thing."

"How about Niki? Or is she considered an ally?"

"I'm not completely sure about Niki. All I know is that she's part of one of the older bloodlines, so her family's been connected to gods for a pretty long time. If I had to guess though, I would probably say Gaia or Hygieia- they have the longest mortal bloodline, and I would say pretty on point for Niki."

"Gaia is an earth and nature goddess, and Hygiea is the goddess of healing right?"

"Yup." Sapnap stood up and walked over to the wall of weapons. "Connor, which ones did you say we should take again?"

"Swords, spears, arrows, and a bow."

"Does it matter which ones I take?"

"No. Techno and Phil aren't here, so I don't think they'll particularly care." Sapnap came back with a few bundles of arrows and the rest of the weapons Connor has described. "Thanks."

"No problem. But I do have a question for you."

"Yeah?"

"So Niki told me what happened tonight." Connor looked up and stopped what he was doing.

"You might want to sit down when I answer this then."

"She told me that Kristin was killed, and that Phil and Techno thought it was Wilbur. But I feel like there's something missing, something that no one's telling me." Connor sighed, and looked towards the door to the bunker. 

"Can you shut the door? I just want to make sure Tommy doesn't hear." the clang of the bunker's doors allowed Connor to let out the breath he'd been holding. "I think the reason she didn't say anything inside the house was because Tommy was there. We've been trying to avoid talking about it, the details at least in front of him."

"It was really that bad or something?"

"It's a lot more than bad Sapnap. Techno and Phil found Kristin brutally stabbed to death in a forest, and then I don't know how they got from point A to point B, but then they said Wilbur did it because they found his lighter."

"Did Tommy see-"

"No. Phil wouldn't let him."

"So what happened after? Something happened after all of that and you aren't telling me."

"I'm getting there okay? But the basics are that we left Tommy outside by the grave Phil dug to go talk about it, and then when we looked up he was gone. We went searching for him, and Niki and I found him trying to drag Wilbur back to the house-"

"Wilbur was here? Tonight? Did Tommy-"

"Tommy didn't know that Phil and Techno thought it was Wilbur. Tommy was just trying to help him. Wilbur looked like he'd been to hell and back, I don't know how he still had blood in his body. Niki and set off a flare to let Techno and Phil know we'd found Tommy, and then Techno just snapped when he saw it all."

"What do you mean by snapped?" Connor resumed rummaging through the boxes nearby, picking up a few bottles of various potions and gently setting them down on the ground. "Connor. What do you mean by snapped?"

"He just lost it right there in front of Tommy. Started screaming about how Wilbur had murdered Kristin and all the ways he could kill Wilbur. Then he just started beating the absolute hell out of him-"

"Was Tommy there?"

"Yeah. Techno would've cut Wilbur's throat right open in front of Tommy if Niki hadn't intervened. It didn't get much better from there."

"Did Techno-"

"I don't know. Niki took Tommy back to the house after that, and I didn't want to stay any longer. Techno got sent back to the house by Phil, and I ran into him while heading back. Techno was just not letting anything go, he was just raging about all the various painful ways he was going to make Wilbur pay."

"I take it that things just kept getting worse?"

"Techno and I arrived back at the house, and Niki and Tommy were on the porch. And Techno just started screaming about how Tommy was 'idolizing a psychopath and murderer' and that the three of us would snap out of our delusions soon- all of that jazz. Then he just left, and we haven't seen him since. And Phil never came back, and we don't know what happened to Wilbur, or even if he's still alive." 

Silence took over again, nothing but the rustle of cloth wrapped food and crates filling the space. "I think we have enough stuff. We should probably start taking stuff inside and packing things up."

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"Are you going to tell everyone what happened?" Tommy asked, carefully wrapping glass potion bottles in cloth and placing it into the satchel on the table. Niki pulled a couple rolls of bandages from a bag, counting them out and placing them back in neatly before handing it to Tommy to be packed away. 

"I sort of have to Tommy. Sapnap already knows, so either way everyone else would find out."

"But what if they have the same reaction Techno did? What would happen then?"

"They won't have the same reaction as Techno did Tommy."

"But how do you know? How do you know that they won't just turn on him?" 

"I'm hoping that everyone will be more logical in their thought process than Techno was tonight. They weren't as close to your mother as Techno and you were." Tommy stayed quiet, fiddling with the drawstring on a bag of medical herbs that he had just packed away. 

"Will I get to see Tubbo and Ranboo again?"

"Of course! I'm sure they'll be there." for the first time in what seemed like years, Tommy's eyes and face had a slight shine of happiness again. "How about you go get some of your stuff from upstairs, and I'll go check on Connor and Sapnap's progress?"

"Should I bring my armor and stuff?"

"Yes." Niki smiled as his plodding footsteps faded into soft creaks of the steps. It was mere seconds later when Sapnap and Connor came in through the front door with a small box filled with potions and potion ingredients. "Were you able to find everything?"

"Yeah. We just need to pack up the potion bottles so that they don't break."

"I think that we can holster some of the more useful ones, and pack the others. You can see which ones will fit in the satchel on the table over there. Do we have a route planned out to get back to the SMP?"

"We're running short on time, so whatever way's fastest." Sapnap looked over his shoulder out the window before turning back to Connor and Niki. 

"We should probably use the Nether pathway then. Might be more dangerous, but it's quicker than walking all the way back if we need to be at Eret's castle by sunrise. Connor, can you take out the splash fire resistance potions- we're going to need them." four small glass bottles were gently set on the counter. 

"Where's Tommy?" Sapnap asked, taking one of the bottles and placing it back into the satchel. "We need to leave soon if we want to get there in time."

"He's upstairs getting some of his things together."

"Do you two need to pack any personal items up?"

"I already got mine packed." Niki gestured to her pack sitting on the floor. Sapnap's gaze flickered over to Connor, who looked at the ground sheepishly. 

"I- uh.....don't really have any personal stuff. Sam kinda confiscated all of that when I got locked up in Pandora's Vault." a quick flurry of footsteps came rushing down the stairs as Tommy wobbled in, trying to balance his pack on top of his netherite chestplate. "Here, give me the pack so you can get the armor on Tommy." Connor grabbed the strap of the pack and set it down on the floor. Tommy quickly slipped the armor over his head, tightening the shoulder straps and throwing the pack over his shoulder. 

"Are we going now?"

Chapter Text

Dust coated the tips of Hecate's fingers as strands and threads slipped through clenched hands. String puddled at her feet, the lives of mortals and immortals passing through her hands in a never-ending stream; their life stories that had been chosen for them: their decisions would always lead back to that one fate that had been chosen before they had taken their first breath. But all of it was an illusion- wasn't it? Fate had never bent before the Will of Choice, much less for the decisions of the mortals it ruled. But there was a nagging feeling in this damned place- and a powerful one at that. Hecate dropped the bundle of string she held, watching as it hit the floor, disintegrating immediately on impact. There would be no saving the future of this place if this was allowed to continue. 

"Wallowing in what could be will not help you on your search sister." Lachesis emerged from the shadowy darkness to Hecate's side. "May the gods on Olympus know that I learned that the hard way. Fate will not present itself to you, and you cannot search for it. You can only wait."

"And yet every second we wait, Fate is disappearing in favor of Will itself." Hecate looked towards the entrance of the cave, gaze trailing over the mess of thread and string that adorned the floor. Silent agreement echoed in the misty air as the Fates crowded around their work slowly fading away before them. "What do you think will happen if this continues?"

"I'm afraid you're looking at what the consequences are." Atropos said softly, eyes following another spray of thread disintegrating into the mist of the Underworld. "Something corrupted our work, stalled our loom, dulled our vision and blade- and we were far too blind to notice. Things have been unraveling for longer than you and the other gods may think."

"Fate doesn't truly exist if there is no one who believes in its existence Hecate." Clotho murmured. "We always knew that there would be a time- a time where the very concept of control and Fate would vanish. These are no longer ancient times; Choice and mortal Will have won out over our craft. Even now- we can feel our sight waning as the seconds pass by."

"What would happen in a world without Fate as its guide?" Hecate sighed as she took yet another look at the unraveling thread at her feet. 

"I could never tell you exactly. But I can guess." Lachesis said softly. "Fate is the one thing keeping the mortal realms from delving into pure chaos. That was our job, to uphold Fate and Death's designs; to set the road before each living being and wait until it was their time. But ultimately, we are servants of Death, and Life has now found a way to corrupt our process. We don't know how- but we can only assume that it has to do with what XD's done. I also fear that we will no longer be able to help you or any other gods-"

"Not all the gods will understand the ways of Death or anything that they aren't involved in. Lachesis, the gods and myself can't figure all of this out without your guidance or advice at least- and I must try and find what I'm looking for down here-" Hecate's voice, normally calm, cold, and stoic in every sense of the word- became almost slightly passionate and panicked. 

"Hecate." Atropos' voice was cold, chiming into the conversation being held. "There is nothing that we could tell you or any god that someone couldn't find on their own. As for what you seek? Look around Hecate- look at this place. The strings are being cut, but not by Death. The strings are fading, even we can no longer see their contents. None of us can help you any longer." 

"You need to go back to your home Hecate. This place is no longer safe for people like us. Servants and masters of Death can no longer thrive here- even the overlords have fled to the safety of Olympus. Our words may sound cold, but they are nothing but the simple truth that we can see before us. Use your mind to see, not your heart." Clotho hissed, standing slightly behind her sisters. Hecate lowered her gaze, emotion flooding her senses. Clotho smiled sadly. "You need to go. If you stay any longer, this place will devour you." Hecate looked up, wiping tears from her eyes, nodding slowly. 

"I bid you farewell then." Hecate murmured, bowing her head slightly towards the trio. The Fates returned the gesture with soft smiles. A soft hiss of dark purple mist enveloped the goddess as she disappeared from the chamber, on her way back to her realm on Olympus. The Fates turned to each other, and then to the piles of rotting strings behind them.

"What do we do now? Can we even leave the confines of this place?" Atropos wondered aloud, picking up her rusting shears from the ground. "Our vision is dying sisters, along with the rest of the Underworld's systems." Atropos walked over to the entrance to the cavern, looking over the edge of the cliff at the dispersing mists below. Lachesis and Clotho joined their sister and looked over the edge of the cliff that their cave sat on. Silence fell upon them all before Clotho spoke.

"There is nothing we can do for mortals or immortals. We can only watch and wait for what will come." Clotho's voice was barely a whisper. Lachesis chuckled darkly and looked up at the infinite sky of darkness above them, a starless, and quite literally dead sky. 

"The Underworld is lost. And we lost with it. We can only hope that someone is able to restore this place back to the way things used to be. Until that day, as Clotho said- we can only wait."

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Hermes paced nervously in front of the door to his father's study. Hecate had yet to return from her time in the Underworld, and it was beginning to become concerning. Taking a deep breath, getting ready to face the stern talk her would get, Hermes placed his hand on the doorknob and pushed down. The heavy mahogany door swung open, revealing a very serious Zeus and an extremely grave Hecate. The little bit of glee at his friend's safe return was diminished when he saw the looks occupying their faces. 

"Oh. I'm sorry for interrupting. I can come back another time-" Hermes babbled, going to leave the room. The door slammed shut before he could reach it. 

"Stay here. There's a lot we need to discuss." Zeus muttered darkly. "First order of business and your responsibility Hermes: have the bloodlines been mobilized as of late?"

"Yes. I got everyone vetted and cleared, the rest is up to them." 

"Good." Zeus sat back in his chair, sighing deeply. "Now, Hecate, can you please tell Hermes what you discovered and were told during your time in the Underworld?" Hecate turned to Hermes, grave and serious. 

"The Underworld is utterly lost. The strings of life are vanishing one after the other- and the Fates are beginning to lose their gifts of sight. They told me that the strings are starting to be cut by what they believe is something other than Death. To make it short and sweet- the Fates believe that whatever XD has done or is doing right now is negatively affecting the Underworld- and that it's now doomed for destruction." Hecate sat down in a nearby chair, all looks of emotion utterly gone from her eyes. Hermes sat down next to her, shifting in the uncomfortable silence. He almost hated to ask, but it needed to be said. 

"Did you manage to find what you were looking for at least?" Hermes said hopefully, smiling slightly. The look on Hecate's face dimmed even more, last bits of light and happiness fleeting from her face. Her response was in a voice below a whisper. 

"No. The strings are indecipherable. The Fates said that even they could no longer see the contents of the lives that they had cut and measured."

"Well surely they can continue to help us-"

"I asked. We're utterly alone in this Hermes. The Fates can no longer assist us, and the Underworld is now far too dangerous for a god to safely enter. Things are changing- and not for the better. We must put all of our faith and last bits of hope into a group of half mortals who have only ever been told stories of their ancestry and legacies. If a time comes where we can no longer provide support to these mortal realms, everything is lost."

Chapter Text

ALSO: IMPORTANT NOTE (even if it does spoil a small plot point, it's not super important), this chapter does have mentions of forced potion consumption/swallowing, and just generalize physical violence, so skip this chapter if any of that makes you uncomfortable

Cold stone brick beneath bloodied fingers was the only thing Wilbur's dulled senses could even determine from his surroundings. His head was ringing, indecipherable humming and taunts echoing inside. His eyes felt heavy- refusing to open completely. He didn't know how long he had been knocked out for- all he knew was that feeling was slowly seeping back into his body, bringing with it the fires of wounds, broken bones, and the after effect of lying on a rough stone brick floor. But he had no energy left to care- no energy left to even cry out or fight the overwhelming feeling of permanent sleep that was trying to keep his eyes shut. It was purely infuriating to him at this point how Life still managed to cling to him- refusing to relinquish him to Death's welcome grasp. At this point he really didn't care what Dream and XD (or whatever his name was) were planning to do to him at this point. He could only hope that he would be dead at the end of it. The painful screeching of metal on metal finally (and irritatingly) snapped him back fully. 

Wilbur collected what little strength he had left to push himself up into a sitting position, leaning heavily against the wall. His surroundings were clearer now- clearly a dungeon of some sorts, all stone and a metal door, with cold drafts spiraling through. The room seemed almost infinitely tall, small shafts of light filtering through what Wilbur could only assume were windows of some type; almost touching the ceiling, and far out of his reach. Not that escape was really a priority right now- for all he knew Dream was probably going to cut his throat the first chance he got. Wilbur leaned his head back against mossy stone, fixating on the stone brick ceiling far above him. Without warning, the metal door to his prison slammed open; Wilbur just ignored it, not even phased by the sudden noise. The door slammed shut, echoing in the hollow confines of the room. 

"Getting acquainted with your new home Soot?" Dream's voice was filled with mockery. Wilbur looked over to the door, where Dream stood leaning against it. Wilbur just looked down towards the ground, not dignifying the masked man with a response. He vaguely registered the sound of  combat boots stomping across the floor towards him; quickly followed by a rough kick to the side and Dream yanking his head up. "I believe I asked you a question Soot." Wilbur just glared up at him, mouth pressed shut in defiance. Dream let go, instead going to nudge a boot heel into Wilbur's ribs, observing intently as he tried to squirm away. "Pretty sure you might have a couple broken ribs there. It kind of hurts doesn't it?" Wilbur just kept his mouth shut, resisting the urge to make some smart remark that would probably just result in him getting kicked in the ribs again. "You're going to have to talk eventually Soot-"

"What the fuck do you even want from me?" Wilbur rasped, weakly attempting to shove Dream's boot off of him as another wave of rolling pain crashed into him. "Or are you doing this just for fucking kicks before you decide to make an example out of me, or whatever other sadistic plan you have for me?" Dream just chuckled darkly, finally letting Wilbur up again, and moving a couple of feet away. Wilbur looked up, hissing slightly as his body protested the movement, sparks practically destroying his ability to move. 

"Believe me, I would love nothing more than to traumatize your family by dumping your mutilated corpse on their doorstep- but my brother apparently wants you alive or some bullshit like that."

"I'm assuming your brother was the one who knocked me out for a good twenty four hours last night? XD or whatever his name was?" Wilbur muttered bitterly, leaning more into the wall to try and dissipate the burning feeling ripping through his side. "Seems like a great guy. Probably the only other person who's as homicidal and psychopathic as you." 

"I wouldn't say I'm either of those things. Maybe homicidal, but for the right reasons."

"Oh yeah I bet. Is that why you decided to blow up an entire country? Terrorize a nation? A server? Traumatize a child who did nothing to you? Blackmail people? But sure- obviously I'm delusional and you're a saint." Wilbur scoffed, holding his side. 

"Get a mirror Wilbur. You've done all of the above." Dream said darkly. "So am I really all that bad? Or do you just have a selective memory?"

"I'm actually aware of what I've done. And I've done what I can to try and make it right. And I've apologized." Wilbur hissed dryly. "I'm not some deluded psychopath who avoids all responsibility and acts like he was never in the wrong in the first place." Wilbur could practically feel how pissed Dream was, the pure amount of uncontrolled rage that had made it's home in Dream's head, seeping into everything Dream had ever done. Wilbur felt the vicious punch to the side of his head before Dream had even moved. His head rattled as he tried to stabilize himself on the floor, his vision slightly blurring with red. And Dream just didn't stop. It was a continuous barrage of violence, cascading down in an unchecked amount of force and anger. The haze eventually cleared; Dream's hits became less and less frequent before ceasing completely. "Did that make you feel better? You done with your fucking temper tantrum? You done acting out because you can't deal with the truth?" Wilbur choked out, wiping blood from his mouth. Dream lunged forward, grabbing Wilbur by his collar and slamming him back into the wall. The air rushed from Wilbur's lungs, causing him to choke on his own blood. 

"You need to keep your fucking mouth shut." Dream hissed angrily, dropping Wilbur back to the floor. "I don't need you of all people to try and explain my own decisions to me."

"Is that just because I'm right or because you can't deal with the truth? Or all of the above-" Wilbur stopped talking as a blade was pushed up against his neck, dangerously close to slicing through arteries. "You seriously think I'm going to care if you kill me? In fact, go ahead Dream. Go ahead and kill me. Do whatever the fuck you want." Dream almost seemed to consider it for a brief moment, pressing steel down, blade about to puncture skin before pulling back. A faint, but slightly bloody indentation was left on Wilbur's throat, mostly lost in the amount of bruising, blood, and scrapes that covered his face. Dream angrily punctuated the growing silence in the room with a biting kick to the side, ignoring when Wilbur flinched against the wall. An uncomfortable silence swelled between the two- slipping between baited breaths and soft drafts of chilled air sweeping through. 

Wilbur was just waiting for Dream to snap, waiting for Dream to just completely give into rage and his pissed off tantrums. But without a word, Dream left, slamming the door as hard as he could behind him. Wilbur let out a breath that he hadn't remembered holding. Part of him was glad that Dream had decided to not kill him- but the broken part of him was winning out. He just wanted all of this to end. Everything hurt- and the brutal beating at Dream's hand wasn't doing him any favors. He could already feel a heavy haze returning in the back of his head, seeping into the corners of his vision. It wasn't dragging him down unwillingly- it was a more comforting feeling- one that seemed to be promising some relief. Wilbur stopped trying to fight it, he could feel energy leaking from his veins the more he fought to keep his eyes open. Everything finally went dark, a deep sleep, finally allowing Wilbur to sleep properly and soundly- regardless of what would be waiting for him when his eyes finally opened again. 

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XD barely noticed when his younger brother stormed back into the partially reconstructed (but still very burnt) study until he slammed his mask down on the table, taking a seat with an angered huff. XD looked up from the book on the table in front of him, taking into account his younger brother's slightly tousled appearance, and more interesting to his eyes- Dream's bloodied knuckles. Dream caught him scrutinizing the bruising skin, and just glared at him with a warning stare- practically daring him to ask what they were from. XD jumped at the bait- already knowing the answer. 

"I'll bite. What did you do?"

"I have a better question." Dream scowled, angrily picking at one of the abrasions on his skin. "Have you made any progress on finding out whether human hosts or whatever you called them can be killed-"

"No. It might be easier if you helped out instead of just sulking and brooding around, or beating the shit out of our only connection to the Death Book."

"Like I'll be of any use here. I don't do the magicky shit. That's what you're here for. I'm here so I can get my server back."

"You forgot that technically you would still be a runaway as of this moment, plotting a rather unsuccessful revenge if I hadn't offered you this deal. So are you going to help or just keep sulking and beating the shit out of people?" Dream just stayed furiously silent as he grabbed a book from the stack in front of XD, flipping it open to the table of contents. "Not that pile. I've been through all of those already." XD muttered, pointing to a bookshelf to the left of him. "Start going through those over there." Dream rolled his eyes as he got up and grabbed a few books, dropping them down on the table with a resounding thunk. "Try not to break anything."

"That's rich coming from the person who set this entire room on fire after he thought that the beacon he was oh so desperately searching for was just actually residue from a murder- OW! WHAT THE FUCK DUDE!?" Dream stumbled back slightly as the heavy cover of the book he was holding slammed into his face. XD peered over at his brother, a cool, neutral expression on his face. 

"Dream- start reading or doing something actually productive for the next few hours or I will just glue you to the fucking chair. After you've finished with those books, you can go check on our little beacon down in the dungeon. I'm assuming you did a little bit more than punch him- so you need to give him some healing. He needs to be healthy- not getting some type of infection because of all those open wounds."

"Yeah- because obviously Wilbur Soot is going to drink, and then actually swallow a potion that I give him. Can't you just heal him with your magic or whatever?"

"No. You already know the answer. My magic is trackable for the gods, especially in that large of an amount. And I don't really care if he gets hurt while you're trying to heal him. Shove the damn bottle into his throat if he won't cooperate. He'll still get healed. Suffocate him if you have to. I don't care- just make sure he actually drinks all of it." Dream just glared up at XD, going back to the book in front of him. 

"What exactly am I looking for again?"

"Anything that has to do with human hosts-"

"And magic from fairyland. Okay. Got it." XD rolled his eyes, going back to flipping through the yellowing pages of another book. 

"The more you open your mouth, the more I want to kill you. Take something seriously for once, and just be quiet for crying out loud."

"I'm not the one starting a conversation here." Dream muttered, not even looking up from the book. "I'm just responding." XD didn't bother responding, just scoffing and going back to reading, ignoring his brother.

------------------------------------------------------------

Sleep had dulled everything. Feeling, pain, emotion- it all just felt numb to Wilbur when he finally opened his eyes. The light in the cell was slightly darker, he clearly had been asleep for a while. But time had been practically meaningless to him recently- all of it blurring into nothing more than mists of snow and sprays of blood; heaped with hurt. But all of that seemed so irrelevant. Or maybe he was just losing his mind completely. Either answer was acceptable. Wilbur knew he was far too caught up in his own mind to make any logical determinations at this point. Funny how one little wink of sleep could make him snap completely. His gaze briefly flickered towards the sharp edge of the metal door, a drying patch of blood by the handle. He briefly looked down at the deep gash on the side of his hand, wincing slightly. All of his attempts to escape had been rather futile and pointless. The loud clang of the bar on the outside of the door didn't startle him as Dream walked in, bandages wrapped loosely around his knuckles. Wilbur was about to open his mouth to make some smart remark, but Dream cut him off quickly, storming over and kneeling down, green eyes cold. 

"Shut the fuck up Soot. I don't need to hear you running your mouth right now. You just need to drink this, and I'll be out of your personal space so you can wallow in your depression and sadness or whatever." Dream took a potion bottle out of the small pouch on his belt. It was a bright pink- healing - Wilbur thought bitterly. He wasn't going to accept a potion of healing right now- much less from Dream of all people. He just wanted to slip away, wanted to have as peaceful and as simple a death as he could. His last ones had just been painful. 

"No way in hell I'm drinking that." Dream sighed irritably, dangling the bottle between his fingers. "I would rather die than live Dream."

"I'm giving you a choice here. You can either drink this of your own volition and make both of our lives easier- or you can fight me on this, in which case I will just force you to. So how about you make this easier for the two of us- and drink the damn thing."

"Fuck you."

"Fine. High road it is." Dream placed the potion back into the pouch, and practically lunged forward, quickly grabbing Wilbur's collar and pinning his arms behind his back. Wilbur clearly wasn't going to make this easy, furiously struggling- the heel of his boot landing with a heavy weight behind it into Dream's knee, causing his grip to slacken. Stone bit into Wilbur's back as Dream kicked his legs out from under him in a clean and fluid movement. Wilbur choked as he collided violently with the ground, wind knocked out of him, leaving him purely stunned. In an instant, Dream had already pulled him off of the floor, completely restricting his movement. "Open your mouth." Dream had the glass bottle lifted to Wilbur's lips; forcefully prying his mouth open. Wilbur fruitlessly attempted to squirm away which was met with a sharp slap across the face. Dream yanked his hand away as Wilbur sunk his teeth into the side of his finger, drawing blood. Wilbur clamped his mouth shut as cool glass grazed his lips. 

Dream patience (or lack thereof) ran out. "Open your fucking mouth Soot." Wilbur just struggled to escape his grip even more. Dream was surprised that someone in as bad of a state as Wilbur was would even be able to fight at this point. Dream was struggling to both hold Wilbur down, and keep the glass bottle from spilling or shattering on the stone floor. He could've just waited for Wilbur to thoroughly exhaust himself from fighting- but right now Dream didn't practically care about being practical- or logical for that matter- he just knew he needed to get this done. One brutal kick to face later, Wilbur was subdued enough for Dream to pull him up into a partially sitting position. Wilbur was practically limp, apparently having given up fighting. But his mouth was still clamped shut, and Dream couldn't do much to solve it. "Soot, cooperate with me here. Open your fucking mouth and drink the goddamn potion, and this will literally be over so much faster." 

Wilbur just glared at him, almost daring Dream to try and make him. "I don't care if I have to fucking suffocate you until you lose consciousness if it means you drink the damn thing. So how about you make this a lot easier for the two of us and drink the fucking healing potion of your own accord yeah?" Wilbur didn't make any move to take it or resist. Instead, Wilbur kicked Dream's arm, attempting to knock the bottle from his hand. Dream finally, and completely snapped. "Fine." Dream spat. Wilbur didn't have any time to react before Dream had a crushing grip around his throat, his other hand clamped viciously over Wilbur's nose; completely cutting off not only his airflow- but any possible breathing function. Seconds ticked by in a slow and cruel fashion, Wilbur's vision blurred, his lungs burned; part of him was screaming for air- the rest of him wasn't putting up a fight. But inevitably all of his thoughts ended up back at the same place: hoping for Death. 

A minute clawed its way by, in painful fashion. The walls seemed to be caving in around him, vision blurring to nothing more than just colors (which was mostly just various shades of gray), and then refocusing back to reality. But while most of him screamed for Death- the last bit of his human nature fought for life. And you only need a spark to start a fire. Wilbur's jaw slackened for a split second, and it only took that amount of time for Dream to pry his lips open, tilting the glass bottle towards Wilbur's lips and emptying the contents into his mouth. Wilbur could only feel Dream's hand clamp over his mouth, forcing him to swallow the potion. The effects were pretty much immediate. Dream let go the second he made sure Wilbur had completely swallowed everything. Wilbur just stayed on the ground, fury and spite coursing through his blood. 

"Fuck you." Wilbur's voice was raspy as he pushed himself up off of the floor. "I swear to god I'm going to kill you the second-"

"All this because I saved your life." Dream chuckled, reaching above Wilbur's head. "Well, you decided not to cooperate. Frankly, I would prefer it if you died, but I'm not the one in charge here. Give me your right wrist please."

"I'm not going to-"

"I'm not asking again." threat underlying, Wilbur angrily complied. Cold metal closed around his wrist, heavy and unyielding in the slightest. "Left one now." Wilbur just glared, offering up his wrist. "Great. I'll be back in a few hours with XD. You're going to need some time for the healing to work completely." and with that, Dream was gone, metal door clanging shut behind him- a series of bolts and locks snapping into place as he left. Wilbur watched as the light in the cell faded to a brilliant orange, then to a darker navy blue, before finally plunging into a silvery glow. Dull aches of pain faded, bloodied wounds closed, scratches vanished, and bruising faded with the passage of time. Wilbur couldn't even tell when he faded in and out of sleep- but eventually he was awakened by a bright flare of light in front of him. 

"Well, firstly, you must be wondering what you're doing here." 

Chapter Text

The night was unsettling for Hecate now. Peace of mind had been few and far between as of late. She had stayed up- browsing the expansive libraries of her fellow gods, as well as her own. And as much as she wished for the image of decaying dust to be pushed from her mind; it always came flickering back. A pile of disintegrated fate, with two strings wrapped tightly around it. One red, the other one pale gold. Exactly the same as the strings Atropos had shown her. Two immortal strings; the rest a pile of white dust in the corner of a desolate cave. But always- the red one faded to a white, before joining the rest on the floor. The pale gold one was left: and as sleepless nights and days passed by, it seemed to grow darker, but didn't grow stronger. Rather it stayed fraying- and Hecate could only wonder if it would ever go back to full capacity. But it seemed so fragile, so different. But she tried aimlessly to push those thoughts from her mind. 

"You're thinking too much Kate. I could practically feel it all the way from the old man's office." Hermes' annoyingly lilting voice echoed from behind her- but it was a welcome distraction for the time being. 

"Hello." Hecate murmured, turning to the next page of the old text in front of her, scribbling something down on the piece of parchment that lay on the desk. "What brings you here?"

"I could ask you the exact same thing. You and Apollo aren't exactly best friends, yet here you are, rummaging through the very same books you swore you were allergic to when I needed you to return them. So did you get allergy medications or was that just a convenient lie so you wouldn't have to interact with him?"

"Do you have anything pertinent to tell me, or are you just here to be annoying?" there was a sharper edge to Hecate's voice, something usually absent; unless she was angry or frustrated (which more often than not, went hand in hand for Hecate.) Hermes sighed, pulling up a chair and sitting down next to his friend. "Sorry. I didn't mean for it to sound that rude."

"How could I ever forgive you for hurting my poor little heart Kate." a scathing glare was sent his way. "Okay. But I'm serious. Everyone's getting worried about you. You've been absent from everything, hiding away in libraries for god knows how long."

"It hasn't been that long-"

"Bullshit. Hestia says that you spent nearly the entire day in the Archives- and then Artemis says you practically don't sleep anymore! So I don't know what you're doing, but it's not healthy and you need to stop before you kill yourself-"

"I'm a god Hermes. We can't die from overworking ourselves. And I think you're underestimating my ability to function without sleep-"

"Kate- you haven't seen natural light, eaten a proper meal, or slept in days. What part of that sounds like being a functioning person to you? How do you even know that whatever you're looking for is even attainable or possible? You need to step down, take a break for crying out loud-"

"I need answers-"

"Answers to what?! We've done all we can for the people! We can't do anymore- believe me, I understand how hard it might be to let go, but we can't do anything-"

"WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING?!" Hecate stood up rapidly, slamming her fist on the table furiously, upsetting a ceramic- but thankfully empty inkwell. Hermes looked shocked, Hecate being angry over anything was an extremely rare event. "We're fucking gods Hermes. We control more than mortals think we do. We could easily end all of this, solve all of these problems, bring Kristen home- but the truth is that we won't."

"Just because you can do something doesn't mean that-"

"How many official members of the bloodlines are there?"

"On the official council- maybe about five-"

"And how closely are they blood related to our fellow gods?"

"Children and grandchildren at most-"

"Closely emotionally related or not?"

"Closely-"

"Exactly."

"What are you trying to say here Kate?"

"That this is what we've become. We've become nothing less than selfish immortal beings who see themselves above the so-called mortal conflict."Hecate sat down, tears welling in her eyes. "We have become people who will leave their own children and families to die- all to solve our problems, our conflicts. We just stand by- let our mortal families live with the hell our own discord and strife has caused- what part of that is redeemable or honorable to you Hermes. What part of that?" Silence fell, but could not sugarcoat anything. Hermes' throat was dry, words thinning and becoming few and far between. 

"But what can we do? Hecate- we can only do so much, even if we intend to help, what if we end up hurting more than doing good?"

"And do you believe that mortal forces, even half mortal forces will be able to quell what XD is starting? This is only the beginning Hermes- only the beginning. XD's reach may not be far now, but the only thing stopping him- the only hope that the immortals here have- are our own families who are, and will be suffering at the hands of our mistakes and blindness."

"I'm not against you here Hecate- but truly- what can be done? The mortal realms are closed to our visitation-"

"Then we use non-physical communication. Scrying, visions, letters, I don't care what we have to sacrifice up here if it means helping those we've abandoned and left to fend for themselves." Hecate muttered, quickly scanning over another page of the book she had open on the table. 

"Then you better do it now. Any communication you want to send- we need to do it now." Hermes leaned over the table, an urgency in his tone. "There's a Council meeting later. I overheard Zeus talking to Poseidon and Hades about it when I was leaving the office to try and find you. All I heard him talking about was 'making contact with mortals and the mortal world' and what needs to be done about it or whatever."

"And you only bring this up to me now?"

"I got distracted by your rather concerning mental state- and I guess it became rather relevant." Hecate quickly rose, a light fiercer in her eyes than any flame. "What's the plan then? We can't just go charging off without any type of fall back."

"Since when are we afraid of the consequences?"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The buzzing of low conversation felt hushed, hurried in a way. Niki could only catch snippets- mostly from the people whose eyes were wide with shock and fear; she felt sorry for them. Either they were new generations or possibly even people who had been completely unaware of godly connections in their family tree. Connor sat next to her, quiet, but extremely alert. Glances were exchanged every now and then between Niki, Connor, and Sapnap (who was standing in the corner of the room talking to Punz), a quiet wondering hanging in the air. Niki recognized some of the people here, there was Bad, Skeppy, Karl, Sam, Hannah, Foolish, Ponk, Purpled, Fundy, Eret; even Quackity had made the trek from Las Nevadas.

The tension in the room was horrific to be around. There were the older generations: those who had been raised their entire lives with the stories of their family tree, and raised to become future leaders of the bloodlines. The middle generation: those who had grown up with the stories and knowledge of godly parentage, and also the last generation to have any type of contact with godly family members. Then the youngest generations: the ones who had just been thrown into a world they believed was myth. 

The buzzing conversation died down almost immediately when Puffy finally walked through the doors to the hall, neatly stacked notepads in her hands, face set into a commanding, but albeit neutral look. People quickly took their seats, some sitting on nearby windowsills and leaning against stone brick walls. The mood was no longer macabre anxiety and false saccharine smiles, it was exceedingly more grave. Puffy took her seat at the head of the table, uncapping a fountain pen and flipping open a notebook to a blank page. Niki could feel the amount of built up anxiety in everyone's eyes, even Bad, normally the calm one in situations like these- awkwardly fiddled with one of the buttons on his coat, avoiding eye contact completely. Puffy scanned the room, eyes fixating on Niki briefly, looking confused. Puffy quickly scribbled something down in the notepad before taking a deep breath. 

"Hello everyone, and welcome to....the bloodlines. Some of you may know what that is, others may have heard it through legend, and there are even some who have only just learned of its existence." Puffy stopped, looking around one last time before continuing. "If you want to know, why the fuck any of you are here in the first place; I'm going to make this short and sweet. Either you're related to a god or you've had some sort of connection or encounter with a specific god, who I will speak about in a short matter of time. We are the descendants of gods, and we essentially keep things in order here- if for example the entire Underworld caves in and puts the world in danger. But that was centuries ago. Even longer. We have a different task at this time."

Puffy flipped to a page in her notebook that was filled with neat script, running her finger down the page before she found what she was looking for. "I'm going to try and make this as simple, blunt, and short as I possibly can. So I ask that you don't interrupt me while I'm speaking, unless you have time sensitive information that pertains to the task we need to fulfill. If you need to speak- please just rise and then we'll address it." Puffy looked around the room, waiting for any challenges to the rules she had just put down. "Alright then. Time for introductions then. For those of you who don't know me, I'm Puffy, head of the inner council for the bloodlines. That's all you need to know for the time being."

"Now as for why you're all here. As a general question for the room, how many of you have ever heard of a god going by the name of Dream XD or simply just XD?" hands raised, mostly older and middle generational members, the younger ones just looked confused. "For those of you who don't know- he is the God of Life and Revival. Another question for the room: how many of you have either seen, or had a direct encounter with him? Just in case anyone asks, I am included in that grouping as well." fewer hands went up this time. "Good to know." Puffy quickly scribbled something down in her notebook. "We'll address that later."

"As for the reason we are gathered here- I'm going to automatically assume that all of you here have heard of the Goddess of Death, Kristin. Now, our instructions from the gods are as follows." Puffy carefully looked around the room, making sure everyone was attentive. "We are to try and locate where Kristin is, and to get her back to Olympus as quickly as possible. Our other instructions are to keep an eye out for XD, but not to engage unless absolutely necessary-" the soft scrape of wood against stone echoed in the chamber as Niki quickly rose from her seat, urgency and shock hidden behind her eyes. Puffy looked slightly startled by the interruption, eyes squinting together in confusion. "Uh- well, Niki, please share your information if you find it compelling or time sensitive." 

Niki's throat was completely dry, words stopping up. But she needed to say it. This was far too interconnected to be mere coincidence. "Niki?" 

"Kristin's dead." it was purely paralyzing how quickly two words could divide a room into pure chaos. Puffy's neutral face immediately fell into one of shock as frenzied chatter broke out, people turning to the others next to them, with hushed whispers, panic already spilling into the room. Puffy and Bad's yells for order were quickly lost in the cacophony of panic and confusion. People were standing up, yelling carried into the same blur of noise, while many just sat, looking confused, dazed, and fearful. Suddenly, an arrow sailed across the room; going unnoticed by those around the table. Sharp flint sliced through rope, and in mere seconds, crystal shattered on the table with a melodious crash and silence. The chandelier lay smashed on the table, arrow embedded in a nearby tapestry. Punz slung his bow back over his shoulder before leaning back against the wall, nodding to a grateful Puffy. People remained standing, shock horribly hidden in their eyes. 

"Everyone sit down, and shut the fuck up." Puffy's tone was cold. Slowly the room went deathly silent, only the softened scrape of wood against stone as people sat back down. "I ask now that no matter what this information may be- you will keep your calm, or I will simply remove you from this room." a silent agreement was made. "Thank you. Niki- please continue, I might interrupt to ask a question or two. But how?" Puffy's neutral tone wavered slightly as she asked, emotion creeping into the words spoken. Niki sat back down, swallowing a breath before continuing. 

"Murdered. She was stabbed to death, about a day or two ago-"

"Is that why Phil and Techno aren't here?" Bad chimed in, an almost fatherly concern glittering in his eyes. 

"I.....it's...more...complicated than that..." 

"Niki, I really need you to elaborate here." Puffy said softly. 

"Phil and Techno think that....Wilbur was the one who did it." the silence that followed was purely strangling. 

"Uh- pardon my interruption here, but isn't Wilbur like mortal? Only gods can kill gods." Punz called out, leaning forward. "And Wilbur isn't a god. Right?"

"He's not." Niki said firmly. "But Techno and found his lighter nearby, and now they're convinced it was him. Techno more so than Phil- but still."

"Then why would they even go that direction? Maybe Wilbur just happened to be there and see it- or maybe it's just pure coincidence-"

"Neither of them are thinking logically. Techno has quite literally lost his logic and mind to grief and anger- and Phil is just completely shut down-"

"Allow me to interrupt here:" Puffy leaned forward, concern threading into her tone. "But do we know where Wilbur is? If we can find him then we might be able to keep him safe from Techno and possibly clear his name-"

"It's too late for that." Niki's voiced quieted, as she looked at the floor for a while before looking back up at Puffy. "Wilbur showed up last night." Puffy shook her head, almost hoping for Niki's response to be the opposite of what she was thinking. "Things.....went south to say the least."

"Is he-"

"I don't know. But I wouldn't count on him being alive for much longer, if he even still is. He was in horrible shape when Tommy found him-"

"Tommy was there?" Puffy's voice was laced with concern, worry creasing her face. "Did Techno do anything stupid?"

"Techno threatened Wilbur with Tommy right there, and then just snapped and started beating the absolute shit out of him, if I didn't step in then- I don't even want to know what Techno would've done. Even when Phil sent him back to the house to cool off, he just didn't stop. Tommy was right there the whole time Puffy- he saw and heard every single word that Techno said. So if you consider any of that stupid, then yes." Puffy's pen stopped, words on the page running dry. 

"I'm going to call this meeting over. I, and the rest of the inner council will be re-evaluating the situation at hand. I ask that the following please remain in the room: Karl, Sam, Hannah, Foolish, Ponk, Purpled, Fundy, Quackity, Punz, Connor, and Niki. The rest of you are dismissed until further notice- thank you for your time." conversation swelled as people drained out into the hallway, the door shutting behind them securely. Puffy sighed, leaning forward, pinching the bridge of her nose, clearly stressed and tired. "So......I know that there has to be more to this story, much more than we can possibly get into- but I'm going to need to inform Hermes and the rest of the gods of what's happened." silent agreement resounded in the now extremely quiet room. "I almost hate to ask- but do you happen to know where.....her...." Puffy trailed off, gesturing with her hands. 

"Buried. Phil and Techno buried her the first chance that they got." Niki whispered. 

"And they believe that Wilbur was the one who killed her?"

"Yes." Puffy looked displeased, and almost disappointed. 

"I thought that two of our own would know better than that. Even in the midst of grief and anger- no one just up and forgets how this world runs, how this world works." 

"This world stopped running ages ago." Niki looked up, fiddling with the cuff of her sleeve. "What are we even going to be able to do about this? This isn't casting protections and spells to keep darkness and voids at bay- these are gods. Things are changing, and what are we supposed to do in the face of someone like XD? What can we do?"

"We inform the gods of what we've learned, and then just see where it goes from there." Puffy looked like she wanted to swallow her own words. "But truthfully? I don't know what will happen, or what might possibly be demanded of us. Ultimately it's our choice whether we want to stay and fight- and I do hate to say it: but we're the last resort. Last defense. However you want to say it."

"We've been raised in a world where it was seen as an obligation." Punz muttered bitterly from his seat. "Sure, we can hold our own against monsters, demons, darkness itself- but we can't just waltz up and kill a god. We wouldn't even be able to imprison a god. And as Niki has clearly seen- XD is willing to kill. All of this is teetering on the edge of chaos and stability. Frankly, I'm inclined to agree with Niki here. The odds are not going to be in our favor- nor will they ever be."

"Well, unfortunately I don't think we have much choice or say in this matter now." Puffy's voice had dropped into a muted tone, laced with gravity. "A god is dead. This is something I need to report- not just because I have to, but so that we can get an immortal viewpoint on this."

"If we really wanted an immortal viewpoint we would get Techno and Phil's opinion." Sam spoke up, raising his hand slightly. "They technically count don't they?"

"No. Not immortal in the Olympic sense." Puffy sighed. "And you know what I meant. We need help with this situation- as Niki said, there's no possible way to defeat or track down a god who not only is willing to kill, but willing to kill another god." silence roared yet again. "So are we in agreement with this? I inform Olympus of what's happened, and we just take it from there. Any suggestions or grievances that you would like to make apparent?"

"Leave Wilbur out of it." Niki sighed quietly. "There's no concrete proof, he's mortal; and therefore would be unable to kill Kristin in the first place, XD's here and he and Kristin have a pretty fraught relationship. We don't need to set more targets on his back." 

"Any objections to that?" Puffy waited, pen poised over paper. 

"Not an objection, but a question over here-" Quackity spoke for the first time, raising his hand slightly and leaning forward. "What do we do if we find Wilbur then? Would having him join us be a risk in organization functions? Since Philza and Technoblade think he murdered Kristin? And what do we do if he turns up dead? Hypothetically at least." 

"Well, you're here for starters. Considering your........history...with some of the others in this room, and the fact that you all seem to be.....I'm not sure agreeable is the right term- but you're civil at the very least." Puffy called out as she resumed her scribbling on paper. 

"Yeah- well I've attempted to make my peace-" Quackity scowled. 

"Didn't Techno like...... kill you?" Punz yawned as he looked at Quackity.

"We don't need to talk about that-"

"Gave you a hell of a scar too, took a canon life-"

"That has absolutely nothing to do with whatever is going on here!"

"I'm just saying, murder might cause more tension than accusation of murder, and definitely more than a nasty divor-"

"Both of you shut the fuck up." Puffy snapped. She had stopped writing, sending a warning glare towards both of them. "As far as any of us are concerned, we will have absolutely no infighting or internal discourse. That's just going to destabilize us. We can't risk that- especially not now. Alright, any other things that you have a burning desire to say at this moment?" Puffy sent a deathly glare as Punz opened his mouth. 

"Nevermind. I won't be saying anything more." 

"Good." Puffy capped her fountain pen, rolling up the piece of parchment she had been neatly writing a message on. Handing it to Bad, Puffy quickly rose from her chair. "This meeting is over, I suggest you all get some rest, or start sorting out the gathered supplies that have been brought. Niki, Connor, Sapnap, can I talk to you outside for a quick second please?" the group quickly filed out of the room, vanishing into the expansive hallways. Connor, Niki, and Sapnap remained, standing around the end of the table. Puffy opened the door, gesturing them out. "Look, whatever we discuss during this will stay completely secret, unless there is an absolute need to communicate what we've talked about with another."

"I'm assuming this is about what the three of us might've seen?" Niki asked as the trio followed Puffy down winding corridors. 

"Partially yes. But there are things that I can only entrust to people who will wholly understand- and that's why the three of you are here. Things are changing, and drastically at that. There has always been destined a time where a bloodline would no longer be able to be of use- where we would fall."

"And you think that this time could be now." Sapnap muttered under his breath as he ducked under a low hanging vine as they traveled deeper into the depths of the castle. "Where are you taking us Puffy?"

"You'll see soon enough. But yes. Time is catching up, and Fate is falling. And I'm starting to fear there is nothing we can do about it."

Chapter Text

XD's glowing, cracked grin made Wilbur almost instantly distrustful. Dream was completely stoic and threateningly silent, leaning against the wall, gaze cutting through Wilbur. XD quietly studied Wilbur, there was something strangely......not mortal about him. More than he had previously sensed. It wasn't just contained within him either. But even so, XD swore that he could feel the surface beginning to meld with the inside. He could already tell that Wilbur's fight or flight response had kicked into high gear, making him highly distrustful of anything. Probably didn't help that one of his worst enemies was standing in the room next to him. This might be a bit more of a challenge than he had previously thought. But he could practically feel the tipping point of sanity, the tipping point of emotion within Wilbur's mind. All he had to do was reach it. Shove it over the edge; watching as it plummeted into the swirling voids below. But first he had to lay a foundation of trust. Be the so-called "good guy" in this scenario. And if he played the card right? Death would just fall right into his hands. 

"Take the cuffs off Dream. I don't see them as necessary." Dream opened his mouth to argue, but XD fixated a glare so malicious and furious upon him- that Dream quickly shut his mouth. Wilbur's gaze was purely fixated on the floor, ignoring everything around him. Metal fell to the floor, ignored by all three men in the room. "So. Wilbur correct?" silence met the god's ears. Wilbur hadn't even looked up at him yet, gaze and eyes still locked on the stony floor. "I'm trying to help you here, I would like to explain to you why you're here after all." Wilbur could taste the false syrup coating XD's words, sugared with lies and deceit- bitter aftertaste flooding his mouth. He remained quiet. A brief flicker of curiosity bloomed in the back of his mind, but distrust, suspicion, and a spiteful plea for death stamped it out. XD could sense the turbulent emotion, it made him evilly gleeful. Perhaps he would be able to win out over Wilbur's distrust. Dream on the other hand however, had thrown his cards to the side and his impatience won out.

"For crying out loud Soot- just fucking answer him instead of sulking-"

"Dream." XD hissed, in a disapproving manner, but his eyes gave away encouragement. Dream looked confused, but confusion finally gave away to understanding and scarcely hidden cruelty. "I apologize on his behalf Wilbur." XD waited for any type of response from Wilbur, any type of movement even. But Wilbur was an un-moving statue, sitting on the floor with his knees drawn up to his chest. "Wilbur, I'm trying to be patient and understanding with you here. But you need to talk with me here. I can't read your mind." it took all of XD's restraint to not crack at the blatant lies he was letting drip from his mouth. But Wilbur wouldn't ever know that. XD was still waiting for the wall of distrust to fall, and to melt into partial caution. But frustratingly, that had yet to happen. But he needed to let this play out- and then bring it all crashing down, snapping a fragile mental state into something malleable, something perfect for the execution of his plan. But he could already tell, this would be a long wait. 

A classic game of manipulation set into place, bloody hands concealed behind a mask of sympathy. How long would it take? No one could ever be certain, but XD was willing to wait. And even when impatience boiled beneath the surface, so close to tipping over into anger; XD remained neutral, even kind- waiting for the first cracks to show.

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Hecate and Hermes felt on edge. In fact, everyone within the council hall felt on edge. Word was that Zeus had finally received word from the bloodlines that morning. If it was good or bad? No one could be certain. The normally loud and even abrasive chatter that normally occupied the hollowed room was muted today, soft whispers; laden with worry and hope fluttered around, rumors running rampant in between. Even Artemis and Athena, the most neutral and calm of the gods during times such as these- looked increasingly nervous. Hecate just wanted everything to be over- to get back to flipping through yellowing pages; but this might be infinitely more important. But even so, she would've skipped this meeting- if not for Hermes' insistence on attending. Across the table, Athena and Ares were engaged in a rather intense (but thankfully for once quiet) debate. Harpocrates and Hygeia seemed to be exchanging rumors, sparing each other worried glances. Even more concerning, Hades and Persephone: usually the most emotionally neutral, if not cold of the gods- sat, almost trying to reassure each other. Hecate felt her throat tighten as she saw Persephone's hand quake slightly. 

Hecate's mind went back to the Fates- who had still decided to stay within what Hecate could only assume was becoming even more hellish than before. Even the overlords have fled. Clotho's words came back to the surface. Hecate could never have assumed that this was how leaving the Underworld was affecting them like this- or even the possibility of what they had witnessed there. Now anxiety was beginning to flood Hecate's mind, a soft prayer and hope uttered for Kristin leaving her tongue. Hermes kicked her leg, eyes alight with an urgency she hadn't seen. Hermes tilted his hand to the slowly opening doors. A strong silence had fallen over everyone, their attention turned towards the two gods in the doorway. Zeus and Hera took their seats, everyone picking up on the almost instant change in mood. 

Gravity lined the depth of Hera and Zeus' eyes, a dim and hopeless feeling leeching onto any type of hope those in the room had previously felt. A weak smile graced Zeus' lips, quickly falling as he unrolled the scroll of parchment in his hand, lying it flat on the table. 

"Hello my fellow Olympians, and gods from other places alike. It is with a heavy heart and much regret that I gather you all here today." a shaky inhale punctuated the sentence, the rest of the assembled audience waiting with baited breath. "I have received word from the bloodlines." a soft but rushed chatter broke out, people turning to those seated next to them, theories and rumors resurfacing in a riptide. Hecate waited- hands clenched on the arm rests of her chair, knuckles turning white. Zeus held up his hand, waiting for the chatter to dissolve. Silence fell back into the room again- panicked silence filling every crevice and corner. "And unfortunately- it is not good news. And I sincerely apologize if this is sudden, or even blunt- but the truth is I have no idea how to break this news gently." Zeus turned back to the parchment and began to read, voice wavering slightly."I regret to inform you that Kristin Rosales was indeed confirmed to be deceased as of this morning, the exact date of her passing is still in question and unclear. I apologize for the blunt nature of this news, but I figured it was best to inform you as quickly as possible and without hindrance............. As of the writing of this, the culprit is believed to be Dream XD. The bloodlines will be awaiting any further correspondence from you, and will be laying down basic defense plans. Sincerely, Captain Puffy." 

A collective noise- which could only be best described as an impassioned wail of pain- tore through the room at the news. Hurried shouts and cries of shock echoed within the hollowed chamber. Hecate's head spun, her vision blurring through salt tinted tears pooling in her eyes. A choked out sob stuck in her throat, oxygen barely passing through as more silent sobs began to wrack her body, shaking her like a leaf in the wind. She could barely register Hermes' hand on her shoulder, trying in vain to comfort her. She had been too late. Guilt twisted its way out, practically tearing at her heart. Any hope that Hecate had for her mentor's safe return was utterly quelled in a completely brutal manner. She just needed to get out, the atmosphere was practically strangling her. Tear stained faces were everywhere- salt tinged eyes red with tears as Hecate made her way to the door, completely trapped within her own head. She didn't even hear the yell of her name until she felt Hermes pull her into a hug. It felt so foreign, so out of her head space. 

"I'm so sorry Kate." Hermes whispered, pulling away, hands still resting on his friend's shoulders. "I'll walk you back to your place if you want me to-"

"No." Hecate's voice was raspy, tear filled eyes angled down at the floor. "I.....I can stay for the rest of it." anyone with even the littlest sense of emotion could hear the lie in her voice. 

"No you can't." Hermes sounded even more concerned than before. "You're going home and getting some rest before you destroy yourself Kate."

"No. I can stay, I promise that I'm fine-"

"But you aren't!" Hermes' voice shifted into an exasperated pitch. It was rare for him to sound so...worried. "You haven't slept in fucking days, you've been stressed out and practically consumed with guilt for even longer- and now this! This isn't healthy Kate, you need to get some rest, and you need some time to cope. Rushing right back into the council won't help you. You need time. You're just going to hurt yourself more by not letting yourself take a break." Hermes' gentle grip on Hecate's shoulder didn't waver, point slowly sinking in. He could barely hear the broken whisper that Hecate spoke. "Kate?"

"Can.....you take me back please...I-"she couldn't even get a full sentence out, a choked sob clawing its way up, tears flooding her face. All of it was rushing to the surface, the devastation, shock, hurt, guilt, depression- all of it. A soft pale yellow mist enveloped the pair, quickly hurrying them to Kristin's palace. Feeling familiar ground beneath her feet, and the painfully empty halls, Hecate finally allowed emotional walls to crash down, swallowing her whole. It was purely suffocating, tears continued to fall; guilt that had been held at bay for so long began cruelly carving out its place in her heart, serving as her own chilling reminder of what she could've done- could she have possibly saved her oldest and dearest friend from a murderous fate at the revengeful hands of a rogue god? Or was that something that couldn't have possibly been prevented. Hecate had been walking a thin line: where one wrong step could send her plummeting down into a whirlpool of repressed and compartmentalized emotion that would most likely find a way to drown her. She was too deep in her own head to be brought out of it by the outside world. Unhealthy coping mechanisms for stress and worry had finally caught up to her, swallowing her whole and dragging her down to the deepest recesses of her mind. 

She could feel her legs grow weak before she crashed onto the floor, shock and buried emotion finally breaking through the floodgates; things that had stayed below the surface for so long, things that had just been drowned, all of it was purely overwhelming. Hecate didn't know how long it took for her to snap out of it- how long it took for her to even be able to feel something outside of the hurricane of her own emotions- but she could faintly hear a soft call of her name, gentle hands set on her shoulder. It took a moment (or far longer, she couldn't truly tell) for her surroundings to finally become clear. There was no longer completely solid ground beneath her, wooden floors replaced by the soft fabric of a simplistic chair beneath her drawn up feet. 

"Are you back with me yet, or do you need some time?" Hermes sounded like he was trying so hard to panic, and frankly- Hecate couldn't blame him. "Kate. C'mon. Can you answer me yet? You're freaking me out here-"

"I'm fine. I think....I.....I don't know anymore Hermes, everything feels so...so-" Hecate murmured quietly, pressing the tips of her fingers together in a vain attempt to recall the word from her extremely scattered psyche. But was there truly a word that could even describe how deep of an emotional pit she had fallen into? "I just don't know anymore. Everything's so blurry and clear at the same time." Hermes was sitting next to her, hand resting over her own. Hecate had never felt so hopeless before. "I...I was just hoping that Kristin-" the words stopped in her throat, bringing the final wave of tears with them. "I was hoping that she would still come back." 

"I think we all were Kate." Hermes murmured, head lowering slightly. "Zeus had to adjourn the meeting after you left. It got pretty bad. But I think he's going to consider cutting off all means of contact with the mortal world." Hecate sat up quickly, standing up in shock. 

"But what would that mean for the bloodlines? What would that mean for the families who are still down there-" Hermes rose, setting his hands on her shoulders, guiding Hecate back down to sofa, in an attempt to calm her down. "You don't actually think he would-"

"That was just a hypothetical Kate. I know how my father reacts to things like this, he does as much as he can to keep stuff from happening again, whether it be rather unethical punishments or something simple. He's probably going to do something, and that something might be really stupid and driven by emotion as opposed to logic or reason. Especially since Kristin was so loved and respected among the gods. There's going to be people who want revenge even more than before."

"He doesn't consider implications does he?"

"Considering that Athena, Artemis, Apollo, and I are very much real, I would say that my father has never considered implications or consequences of actions ever in his life."

"I think it's too late, Hermes." Hecate looked up into the eyes of her shocked friend, who sat back down, this time across from her. "We haven't done enough. This isn't a winnable battle for those who have it in their hands."

"There's always going to be hope in this world Hecate-"

"Hope is our greatest curse. We put it into a jar, and we gave mortals that jar to break. There isn't a what if we were too late to save one of our own anymore. That what if became reality. And the only thing driving the mortals right now- is the mere hope that we will always be there to help."

"I know that losing Kristin- losing your mentor- is extremely painful, and I don't, nor will I ever deny that. But you can't let that poison the hope that XD can and will be brought to justice. I know what the bloodlines are capable of Kate- they can do it-"

"XD killed her. XD killed a god. He killed my mentor- no, he killed my friend. What is going to stop him from annihilating a half mortal- or even an earth immortal? If we even possibly entertain the idea of cutting off all contact with the mortal world, we have not only doomed those who live there to a fate worse than Death itself, but effectively ourselves as well. If Zeus does decide to do that, which I'm pretty sure he will do- then everything is going to crumble as we watch helplessly." 

"I only said that hypothetically Kate! I don't think he's actually going to do it- and if he does it's probably not going to last long! Quite literally all of us up here on Olympus have some sort of family down there-"

"And every single time there is a hypothetical situation it always becomes some type of reality!" Hecate stood up angrily, pacing around the room, footsteps echoing with anger. "And you yourself told me that you heard your father say something about mortal communications and moderation and the like." Hermes sighed angrily, covering his face with his hands. "Every single time your father has a suggestion or idea it automatically happens! So what makes you think that this time will be different Hermes?"

"Because we all have family there! My father; even you! We all have some sort of connection to that fucking place Kate! No one in their right mind is going to just up and forget that they have people they love down there-"

"Bold of you to assume that they care about the families they've created in the mortal realm."

"Kate you're being absolutely ridiculous right now- I think you need some rest, it's been a long day, you haven't been taken care of yourself-"

"Don't even try that shit with me right now. I'm perfectly fine for the time being. You just weren't listening the entire time in Apollo's library were you-"

"I was listening! But they really do care Kate! Maybe if you weren't spending so much time lurking off in adventures of toil and terror- then you would see how often everyone interacts with their family down in the mortal plains! I'm the fucking messenger god- I'm the one who has to deliver those messages, so if anyone knows anything then it would be me-"

"But you don't!" Hecate's voice was pitching higher and higher, to the point of yelling. "Sure anyone can send a stupid scroll of parchment everyday saying 'I love you' and whatnot- and sure, they can mean it! How many fucking times have we seen gods, our fellow immortals be completely impassive to the danger they put those they claim to love in? The bloodlines is a perfect example of that!"

"Oh come on. The bloodlines are a collaboration between gods and mortals. They don't have to participate if they don't want to- it's purely a choice! Stop acting like they just force their children into it. They join of their own volition and can leave at any time." Hecate looked more upset than Hermes had ever seen her. 

"I don't think you've ever seen how the bloodlines work. You've only seen how they're supposed to work, what's been written on decaying paper. You weren't there when the Underworld collapsed and our fellow gods left their own children to die-"

"Not one member of the bloodlines was injured during that incident and they all decided to stay after that. They dealt with that mostly on their own. I'm sure that they can do it again. Everything can be overcome eventually- XD is no different, even if he is a god."

"The creation of the Purgatory was merely finding a way to bind and cast protections. The problem wasn't one hundred percent solved, it was just left alone to simmer until it finally boiled over. The bloodlines have never been able to solve or completely quell a problem- they can only make it better. We cannot keep taking a backseat- my friend was just killed in a completely preventable incident, if we had just gotten off of our high horses for one minute and gone to her aid-"

"Kate, believe me, guilt is a horrible thing- but no one we know could've done something. You need to let yourself take some time, you couldn't have possibly saved Kristin. It was a choice she made to go down there- a choice that was frankly fucking stupid-"

"Don't you fucking dare try and turn this on her! You know she would've done anything to try and make sure that XD had no control over Death-"

"And she of all people should've known that XD never makes fucking deals without a knife hidden in his sleeve! It wasn't any person's fault other than her own. She went down there knowing what could happen. She is dead as a result of her own actions. You need to see that. You need to accept that." a silence grew between the two gods, words dripping with sharpness- drenched in anger and bitter unmeaning words. Frustration, anger, and every other possible emotion that had been hidden beneath the layer of falseness and pure devastation was slowly leaking out into the open. Hecate's hands curled and uncurled, fingernails digging into her palm, blood blossoming beneath the pale skin, just ready to break free. Hermes looked away, voice caught in his throat- the true weight of what he had said; finally beginning to sink in with a brutal comprehension. "Look, I'm sorry- I didn't mean it like that....I was just...." there was no apology in the world that he would've been able to muster that would soothe any of the tension between them.

"Of course you didn't." Hecate's voice was empty, a hollowness echoing in the raging silence. Sarcasm laced the depths of her voice, anger and hurt slowly emerging from the darkness. "You meant it." Hermes opened his mouth, but the glare in his direction was purely fierce, angry, and silencing. "Don't even try to deny it right now."

"Kate- I swear to the fucking gods I didn't mean it like that-"

"Don't call me Kate."

"Hecate. Look, I think we both have just said stupid things- maybe we just need-"

"I think you need to leave. Don't even try to apologize to me right now. I don't care what you say about me or the other gods- but I will never, and I mean never- allow you to slander Kristin's name in front of me, much less in her own home. Say what you will about my so called impaired judgement in the midst of grief and hurt, I will always forgive you as a friend. But I will not let you speak ill of the Dead- much less one of our own dead." Shame wasn't enough to describe how Hermes felt, it was a purely all consuming feeling. He could barely hear his own breath as he slowly moved towards the door to the hall behind him, the pounding in his head just getting stronger. "Hermes."

"Yes?" Hecate slowly stalked across the room, footfalls heavy and echoing with a message that clearly conveyed anger. 

"I want to tell you this: I'm going to do what I think is right, and I don't care what you try to do to try and talk me out of what I'm going to do."

"How do you know that I won't go to my father or anyone else about whatever plans you have?" the words came out sharper than he intended, hidden purpose interlaced with distrust. A biting, angry smile forced its way onto Hecate's face. 

"Do I look like I care what you do with this information? You're either with me, or against me Hermes, there is no longer a neutral ground."

"And if I choose to oppose you on this stellar plan you're formulating?"

"I'm going to do it. With or without allies at my side. I may not know what I'm going to do yet- but you better be sure it's going to be something. Go ahead- try and stop me. Friend and foe are no longer distinguishable terms. Loyalty means nothing in a world like this. So I dare you to try and stop me. I'm willing to risk it all and lose it all if it means I get closer to my goal. Farewell God of Messengers, and take my words to heart and mind. It may bring you no solace, but that is no matter of mine."

Chapter Text

Hi- I know this isn't a chapter update, but I need to announce a few things about the future of Gasoline as a fic. Firstly, I will be taking a hiatus of unknown length (even though I will be writing as an outlet). I completely understand how my characterization of Technoblade in this fic is not exactly a "good guy", and I will be keeping to my characterization of him, as it is important to the storyline that I have planned out (I would also like to clarify that this characterization of Techno is based completely off of his DSMP canon character and my own ideas etc, and not the actual person), and I completely understand if that could be an issue for some. I hope that I will one day complete Gasoline, as this has been almost a year in both planning and drafting, and one of the things keeping me sane. 

I extend my deepest sympathies to Technoblade's family, I, and many others in the community found comfort in his streams and content, and he will be greatly missed. Out of respect for both his family and others close to him, I will be ceasing updates on Gasoline for a little while; so that people can have time to mourn. Please feel free to leave your own opinions if you wish, but I request you keep them respectful. I hope you are all well, please take care of yourselves. 

Rest in Peace Technoblade, you will be missed and remembered fondly. 

Chapter Text

Despite his centuries worth of knowledge, adventures, and creatures encountered- XD had never seen nor found another thing that was more amusing than human minds and emotion. It was a powerful point of intrigue for him- sometimes just mere entertainment to occupy his seemingly infinite time on a Tuesday afternoon. Perhaps it was because of their sensitivity (XD would never go as far as to say that humans were perhaps complex, but rather more simplistic with riveting mind), or their range of feelings that could produce a completely different result in each individual: he didn't actually know, nor did XD truly care why he cared about humans. It was not caring in the mortal sense of the word; displaying kindness or concern for others- but rather a neutral, almost scientific interested type of care; only there to watch and possibly exert influence. Another thing about humans that XD found quite comical. How easy humans were to manipulate and control- especially with power or increased influence and possessions on the table. But unfortunately, the one human- out of all of the humans XD had ever needed to control- was absolutely refusing to budge. Not like he was really in a state to converse. He had barely been coherent when XD had first entered the room with Dream. Nothing much had changed. Wilbur was still just as out of it as he had been thirty minutes ago. 

But XD was still intrigued at how the effects of Death had seeped into Wilbur's mind, clouding any rational thought that he would've previously had, and replacing all feeling with pain and Death began its final takeover. Because even though Death's designs and intricacies had made their home and presence known in Wilbur- he still retained much of his mortal and human tendencies and mannerisms. XD's takeover of Death had turned into an experiment that he had not intended nor planned to take place. But a slight sense of failure was beginning to creep into XD's mind- especially as yellowed pages of ancient texts held no answers or solutions. He angrily simmered over a book about specified solutions, before scowling and throwing it to the side, picking up another book and beginning yet another waste of precious time. 

If there was no possible solution to get the power that Wilbur had absorbed, then what would happen then? There was no way that Wilbur would willingly work with Dream, simply because of distrust and bad history. And there was no way that he would work with XD either, simply by association with a person he had deemed an enemy. As well as the fact the chances of Wilbur being broken down were next to none. He had survived this long. And going off of what Dream had told him, he was not one to bend under authority. Even with Death ravaging his mind, he had kept a majority of his stability. XD tried to keep himself aloof. There had to be a way to extract that power from a host. It worked with other types of energies and powers- but when it came to hosts of Death- the information seemed to be non- existent. To say it was frustrating didn't even begin to do it justice. But the one thing that XD had managed to learn among piles of useless information? Death was a finicky thing when not properly controlled or managed. Anything about hosts of Death was just that they were considered virtually impossible or simply legends- or they did exist- but died within hours or days after absorbing power. 

But Wilbur was very much alive, days after his mother's death. And he clearly was on the path to healing or some state of livable recovery, (even though the healing potion had merely stopped the bleeding from continuing- not truly administering any type of healing other than temporary). Whatever had to be done to ensure that XD could finally have control over Death- it needed to be done while Wilbur was still in a somewhat mortal state. Before immortality stuck to him, and made XD's job even harder than before. But here he was- without a possible solution, and time slowly running out. As the flame of the candle slowly dwindled, XD felt the taste of despair stain his tongue with bitterness. 

"So I take it your books haven't done shit, and we are still basically at square zero." Dream muttered- leaning against the desk, a slightly satisfied grin on his face. 

"And you'd unfortunately be correct in that guess." XD scowled, standing up with a huff and slamming the cover of the book shut. "And wipe that smile off of your damn face. Without a way to ensure control over Wilbur- we have absolutely nothing to work with- and we will be sitting ducks until the other gods arrive to end us, and I can assure you- that you don't want to be facing Olympian justice as a mortal." Dream just rolled his eyes, picking at a scorch mark on the desk with boredom. 

"You know- if none of your fancy magic books are coming up with a solution- we could just go with old faithful murder-"

"FOR THE LAST GODDAMN TIME- KILLING A HOST WILL NOT DO ANYTHING FOR US!" XD turned towards his younger brother in a rage, nearly shattering a shelf full of glass bottles as he slammed his fist down on a table. Dream recoiled in shock, eyes widening as XD slumped into a chair, head in his hands. "Everything is lost if we don't find a way to use the power inside of Wilbur. Killing a host will merely destroy the vessel- and there will be no possible way to redirect the power into something of our choosing. It's like knocking a glass bottle of water onto the floor Dream. You can soak up the water- but you can no longer drink it." XD's gaze turned the window of the study, and the glittering stars. 

"Everything that I have done- everything that I have sacrificed to show my true power and worth to the rest of my idiotic and soft counterparts- all of it could end here- just because of a mortal. The mortal child of my worst enemy." Dream stayed quiet, any remains of a smart remark dead on his tongue. "The truth of the matter is- our time has run out. I believe immortality has made its mark on Wilbur- his injuries were far too great, and the mental destruction of his mind far too overwhelming for him to have lived this long on mortal blood and thread. I worry that this may soon be over."

"There has to be another way-"

"I have poured over books that are older than our bloodline Dream, books that are in languages lost to men and gods alike, books that have existed since the dawns of the world and rise of the stars. If there is a solution- then it is an undiscovered one."

"So we try to find it. We can run through ideas, experiment-"

"Death hosts are not going to be found meandering through the woods. They are rare- many believe them to impossibilities of nature. I can certainly not create them from thin air- and I highly doubt any god of death will come waltzing down here to be killed. Wilbur is our only proof that the powers of death can indeed infest ones soul and leave them alive."

"Maybe it's a blood related thing. Like family or something- maybe Tommy or Technoblade would have some of this host stuff- I mean they're both Kristin's sons-"

"Even if they did- they would have little I could be able to use. Technoblade having any of his mother's power would be impossible- he's already a god of his own element with a full capacity of power. And Tommy would be far too young to absorb that much energy into a fragile mortal body. It would've killed him instantly."

"Then why did Kristin's power attach to Wilbur or whatever it did? That can't be a coincidence can it?"

"It very much could be. Proximity to a location is how most hosts are made."

"And what are the other ways then? Maybe familial relation is a cause and we can experiment with it or something."

"Hosts are unpredictable in creation Dream, and even if blood relationships are a factor- there is no experiment that we can do- the gods' families are well hidden and protected, most of them have probably joined the bloodlines by now-"

"We could kill Philza. Use that to our advantage. Make a host out of Techno or Tommy or whatever to prove our theory and then figure out what to do."

"Firstly, even if your theory was correct- we would still be no closer to solving our problem. And secondly, Philza is not a god in the way Kristin was. Philza is considered to be an earthly god."

"I thought he was a type of death god- not a nature one."

"He's called the Angel of Death for a reason Dream. An earthly god is a full blooded god who was born on the mortal plain- and lived a life with mortals etc. An Olympian god such as Kristin, would be either a half or full blooded god who was born on Olympus. Philza's death would not lead to the same results as Kristin's. His power would merely fade into the abyss that waits for us beyond our known worlds." Silence finally fell. Dream seemed absolutely lost in thought- staring out the window at the declining glow of the outside light. "Do you know of any way to force Wilbur into compliance? That is the only solution I see possible, but that I do not see to be likely or successful."

"His family I suppose."

"I'm not quite willing to risk that yet. Expulsions of power in freshly made gods, no matter how minor are triggered by emotion. Uncontrolled and unchecked, that could be disastrous." XD seemed to grimace, sitting down in his chair yet again, head in his hands."

"Well....maybe we don't force compliance through manipulation..." Dream trailed off, lost in thought. XD slowly looked up, an unreadable look in his eyes.

"And what do you intend with those words?" Dream's smile curved into an absolutely malevolent smirk, dark green turning into a sickening bile. 

"We can break him. You said his mind was fragile enough. What if we shatter it?"

"Shatter his mind beyond repair and build it back up again hm?" dark hope flickered in XD's face, not willing to show more excitement lest things fail. 

"Yes. Exactly that. Do you think that's even possible?"

"It's certainly not unheard of. But that would take a considerable amount of effort. I might exhaust myself, which would leave us at risk of attack. The only complication I could see would be how unpredictable things like this could be. I may not even be able to reconstruct a working system within."

"I think we've reached a point where no matter what we do- we're risking complications XD. And besides, if you knew that something like this was possible, why didn't you even consider it in the first place?"

"It's not just the possibility of not being able to reconstruct that makes me hesitant. While Wilbur may not be in control of his power yet, his mind will no doubt be protected. There might be too great of a risk to even chance it." XD sighed, reaching for the book he had long discarded on the floor. Dream stayed silent, gaze burning through his brother's back. 

"If you think the risks outweigh the benefits, then fine. But if you don't make a choice soon, I'm going to- and I will not let you and your whiny tangents stop me from getting my server back."

"If you wish to meet a gruesome and painful end, then go ahead brother. But you will be heading into a world that you are neither a part of, nor do you completely understand. Your impulsiveness is not a trait that I admire, but it is a trait that I understand." XD turned, a malevolent smile on his face. "And also, before I forget. You wouldn't mind going to check on Wilbur in the meantime will you? Move him into the Eastern Wing. He's no use to me half alive, even if he is immortal. Might as well make his last days of stability comfortable."

Chapter Text

Connor flinched slightly as another drop of water dripped onto his forehead. Considering how damp the stones of these passages were, he could only guess that they were somewhere by the river. The soft tones of barely running water were somewhat audible, overshadowed by the plinking noises of water hitting mossy stone. Niki seemed uncharacteristically quiet and pensive, eyes wandering across the high vaulted arches that disappeared into the wandering darkness above them- softly muttering things in a language that Connor could not understand. Puffy had stopped talking a brief while ago, her boot heels clicking hollowly on the gray brick floor, humming a haunting tune. Things were deceptively calm considering the circumstances that had led them all back here. Even Sapnap seemed uneasy in the hallowing depths of the castle's vast underground tunnel network. Or whatever it was. 

"What the fuck is this place even? And why are we down here? I'm just going to be the first to say it- but this place is giving me the fucking creeps. I feel like I'm in a catacomb." Sapnap grumbled. A drop of water landed on his head with a slight sizzling noise as a small wisp of steam appeared and then promptly vanished. "And I'm pretty sure that I'm going to evaporate in here." 

"We're almost there. Just about five or so minutes now." Puffy said, completely unbothered as she pushed a low hanging vine out of the way. "These are old passageways. Eret said that they were probably built as escape or shelter routes in war time. But I believe that these were used by seers to hide their objects of power, and by rulers to discreetly visit their seers to receive advice." Puffy turned around, a smile tinting her eyes. "Here we are now." the group stopped as Puffy ran her hand over the stone walls, searching for something. Niki's gaze scanned the surface, before she reached out and swept her hand over it. Intricate swirls, possibly old runes revealed themselves in gritty, carved stone. 

"There's carvings in the wall." Niki murmured, sweeping aside moss and vines. Puffy hummed something in agreement before speaking. "But they're too uniform to be decorative." 

"These halls are covered in them. Bad and I have been trying to figure out what purpose they serve, or even what they mean. From the ones we've been able to decipher and date- they mostly seem like decoration, family names, gods names- and then we started finding these." Puffy pushed a brick, and stood back. Slowly, a grating, rumbling groan echoed in the dark passage, as bricks began to rearrange to make an arched opening. "Follow me please." as the group passed through, the wall closed behind them. "Sapnap, could you light this please?" Puffy muttered, shoving a candle into Sapnap's hands. 

"Um, sure." a sharp snap echoed in the dark room, before a soft glow filled the area. Taking the candle from his hands, Puffy walked over to a small holder in the wall, placing the candle securely in the metal claw. The room seemingly exploded with the welcoming light of gentle flame, illuminating even the darkest corner of the room. It was a small room, with wooden shelves lining the stone walls, and a table with five chairs around it. There were cabinets all around, with colorful glass panes in their doors. 

"Please sit." Puffy gestured towards the table in the center of the room, before pulling a book from one of the wooden shelves. Niki's gaze settled on the cabinets, seemingly filled with jars, crystals, and other items. Puffy opened the book, setting it on the table and flipping through slightly yellowed pages of text. "So, we have quite a bit to talk about, but firstly, I want to know if any of you have questions. Niki and Sapnap, you've both been away from the council and bloodlines for a while, and Connor, this is all extremely new to you."

"I don't really have many questions, except I would love to know where we are at the moment." Sapnap muttered, suspicion filling his eyes as he looked towards the shelves and shuddered. "Because all of the stuff in here is kinda freaking me the fuck out." Puffy chuckled, flipping through the pages of the book on the table, before stopping and looking back up. 

"Well, as I said; these tunnels are ancient. But one thing I do know is that all of these structures have always been underground by the river. What I don't quite know is why. There are hundreds of these rooms, each one of them filled with objects of different make, design, and purpose. They all have distinctive themes depending on where they're built- the ones closer to the underground river stream have more water elements, some have seeing stones built into the walls, others are destroyed beyond safe repair and entry."

"Then why bring us down here if you don't know anything about these places? Would it not have been simpler to just meet with us in your office in the castle?" 

"Because what I need to show the three of you is down here. And I dare not try and remove it from what I assume is its original dwelling." Puffy looked at the shelves of crystals, the papers scattered on a table in the back of the room. "What we have found down here could merely be a sort of junk prophecy- that is Bad's belief at least- or it could very much be the truth to a bigger picture than we can imagine." Puffy found a loose sheet in the book, quickly pulling it out and setting it on the table. Niki tilted her head to get a better look- it appeared to be some type of star chart, but the symbols were in an unfamiliar tongue- unreadable to her eyes. Puffy finally sat, the book open to faded words and yellowing paper. 

"I can assume that the three of you can already guess the severity of this situation. But I personally believe that there is a deeper problem than just XD meddling in the affairs of Death and the like. I believe that there is a possibility that the Underworld and possibly even the Purgatory are both becoming destabilized."

"The Underworld is destabilized?" Niki looked startled, leaning forward on her forearms. "How can you be so sure of that?"

"Prophecies. Old ones. Most of the ones that I've found or that my scouts have found are from the times before the bloodlines involvement with the Reconstruction of the Underworld- with a few after. They're all pretty much long forgotten. But each and every result is shockingly parallel with things I've gotten reports of. But even then, I cannot be completely sure."

"Does anyone else know about your theory?" Niki asked. 

"Yes. The Council is very much aware of my theory, but I have yet to tell them why. Some of them believe it to be mere coincidence, others are doubtful; but nonetheless are erring on the side of caution rather than that of dismissal."

"What do you believe the cause to be?" Puffy sighed softly. 

"It is merely a theory, and I do not want you to dismiss it at paranoia. But I believe XD has become deeply interconnected with the world in some way, and therefore he cannot fully be removed from our world without serious repercussions. But that's besides the point right now. If my predictions are right and the Underworld is unstable- then we might have an even bigger problem on our hands."

"Shouldn't you bring this theory to the Council? Like if you really think it's this serious? No offence or anything, it's just that wouldn't it be more beneficial to get the word out so that the bloodlines can prepare for any consequences?" Connor asked. Puffy smiled, but it was ever so dimmed by the grave glint in her eyes. 

"Under any other normal circumstance I would take this to the Council. But the last thing we need, especially as of now is fracturing and panicking in our ranks."

"But they would not abandon the bloodlines in face of whatever fate lies before us would they?" Niki exclaimed, looking almost startled at the idea of members leaving the bloodlines. "While not bound by oath- surely they must be bound by some semblance of loyalty to family." 

"I wish that were so." Puffy remarked sadly. "But generations pass us by as the years themselves do. These newer blood relations are not the same as us. While some do show great prowess in the crafts that they have inherited through the ambrosia that flows within their veins- they are disconnected from the history and person it hails from. They are greatly distrustful of the authority of Olympus- and in recent years I cannot truly say that I blame them for making that decision."

"Please tell me that I'm not the only one who's confused as all fucking hell over here." Sapnap muttered. Connor sheepishly raised his hand, mouthing a quiet apology. "I'm sorry- but I had to say it."

"What I'm trying to tell you three is this: while you, Niki, others among the Council, Bad, Punz, myself included- were all taught that in great times of need we would join together to form an alliance against whatever evils or dangers threatened our world. But this younger, newer, generation of the bloodlines has had little to no contact with old tales- they were not taught that their main purpose was to bleed and die for our world. Unlike us." Puffy fell silent yet again. The soft burbling of water was the only thing audible in the darkness of silence. 

"Because we were raised with those. We were raised by parents who had fought in or had seen the dismal days of the Purgatory's emergence, and the light of Elysium and Tartarus fade. For them and for us- loyalty to Olympus and the bloodlines was not a choice. It was a demand." Niki whispered, falling back in her seat slightly. "Do you truly believe they will abandon us within time? That they will go back on the oaths taken so long ago?"

"Oaths are meaningless if the second party does not renew them" Puffy muttered grimly. "I cannot say I blame the lack of trust and loyalty on our younger generation- I blame it directly on the gods. To say there has been much animosity and hatred towards them for their roles in what happened with the Underworld is an understatement. Loyalty is becoming a looser and looser term around here- and considering how dire our circumstances are- I do not want to risk the possibilities of abandonment and fracturing within. That will ultimately leave us more defenseless than we already have made ourselves out to be." 

The weight of words had always seemed a fickle and useless thing- often overused and hammered into heads that had long stopped their care for them. But now they seemed to be an anchor for the room- even through the heavy stone bricks that snapped perfectly in place, drowning out the small fragments of the world outside- and leaving the room a small floating space- invisible to the eyes of all who weren't present within. The mere idea that the once powerful alliances of the bloodlines: the so called second hope of the gods was so near utter collapse at the wrong strung together ideas of words- that was a thought that once in the far past never would've shadowed any person's rational thought- or even a jesting thought at that. 

"The signs are showing. The Underworld is basically held together by nothing other than spells at this point. The reason I believe XD has somehow poisoned or inflicted some sort of damage on the Underworld is because the cycle is off. And it's been off for a long while. Even before Kristin died. And now it seems to have taken a turn for the worst- wraiths have been believed to be spotted prowling in the North." Sapnap and Niki both lurched forward in their seats. 

"Death wraiths? How can that even be remotely possible?! I thought they were all destroyed after the Fall of Elysium!" Niki sounded completely shell shocked. Puffy simply nodded, her gaze firmly on the table. 

"Unfortunately most of the claims I've been sent are unsubstantiated. Many of these reports are from distant border towns and are from people who aren't even aware of what a wraith looks like. There's a large likelihood that these wraiths might be spirits, sprites, or even nymphs. But even so I'm proceeding with the belief that they are most likely wraiths. Simply- it's safer than ignoring the problem all together."

"And death wraiths are what exactly?" Connor echoed, confusion lacing his tone. 

"To keep it short and simple- death wraiths are leftovers from the collapse of Elysium and Tartarus. They're attracted to death to put it simply, and when given the promise of either souls, or even life to absorb- they can be easily willed. What they do with the life they absorb is virtually unknown, but most believe that they use it to try and reclaim the souls and persona they once had in the afterlife." Puffy flipped through the book on the table, stopping at yet another page and shoving it across the table to Connor, tapping her finger lightly on a simple drawing. 

"As the passage on the left page details, they're meant to be confined to the Purgatory. But as some of my reports may suggest- they have broken free of our past enchantments, which is nothing less than concerning. But until those claims are fully proven, I'm not quite sure what I can do." 

"Maybe we need to tell the gods about this." Niki said. "If old enchantments that have stayed strong for centuries are beginning to fracture and allow things to escape- this is no longer something that the bloodlines can solve."

"I have informed the gods about any tidbit of information that crosses my desk. But it so far seems that their council processes take far longer than any of ours. It's that or....they...." heavier words went unsaid. "You all can guess of what I speak. I still hold hope that is not the case. However fickle and unseemly hope is in these scenarios."

"If these wraiths are attracted to Death or whatever, could they maybe be sensing something that has Death attached to it? Possibly the Death Book or some other....object?" Connor asked, not looking up from the pages of the book. "Because that's what they do right?"

"That thought did indeed cross my mind. I originally believed it to be residue of the use of Death magic, but now that I know Kristin was killed in the tundra- I no longer believe residue of magic to be a likely answer. While it very well could be the Death Book, the Northlands hold a long history of creating and hiding away objects of Life, which means that those things that others have seen might not even be wraiths at all. Or they could be changed sprites, maybe even spirits- I'm not even willing to assume anymore." frustration was apparent in Puffy's tone. "I don't even know what I'm meant to do."

"Maybe it's time for us to take a step back then. Maybe the bloodlines as a whole need to reevaluate everything." Connor offered, shrugging his shoulders. 

"If we could pull back and reevaluate- I would order it so. But unfortunately it's far too late for that- and all of us are in too deep. I will be the first person to confess openly that I do not see a high chance of victory. Our world is hanging in a precarious balance between Life and Death- and one wrong step will send us plunging into destruction."

"But do you believe there to be Hope?" Niki asked. Puffy turned away as she stood, candlelight flickering in the depths of her eyes. 

"Even I do not have it in myself to answer that. I can only look to the bloodstained horizon and the new dawn. Until things are clearer to me, Hope remains asleep within my heart and mind. Hope has been our greatest weapon, and our greatest curse." Puffy's voice faded into melting wax and dwindling flames. "The only thing any of us can do now is wait for a message from the gods. Until then- I don't dare to pray or hope for success."

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Zeus, in times of decision always relied on his council. In fact- it was rare that he even needed to make a hard cut decision: he preferred to give his subjects the answer. But even so- he still had the power of the King of the gods to overrule any decision he saw as either disastrous or dangerous. But he rarely ever did so. And even on the one or two occasions he had intervened in the matters of the council, it had been relatively minor, or a stalemate. But this situation now- could not be left to the council. 

Zeus had debated not calling the council to action. But to keep up the impression of democracy just in case things did go in the direction he wanted them to- he had decided the council should proceed. Things had been delayed for almost a week after Puffy's letter had arrived. Many members of the council had been so afflicted by grief- some even going into seclusion- that there simply were not enough gods present to conduct a council without protest. Zeus had made it clear: if the council did not meet to reach a decision before dawn in ten days time: he would bypass the council and make his own decision without any other input. Now- with only a day left until the deadline, the council of the gods was finally, and fully assembled. 

Zeus stayed out of the council's chamber. While normally he would be present for smaller matters- it had been a unanimous vote to keep him away, so that intimidation and interference could not be argued to change the decision. It was clear from the get go that there were three options: withdraw godly support completely, withdraw physically from the bloodlines- but still assist in the removal of XD, or go down to the mortal realms and see justice done. Hecate was a vocal supporter of a full scale intervention, with many others behind her. But there were a few who were staunch believers in the opposite. The debate had dragged on for hours- nearly up until the hour that Eos drew back Dawn's rose shaded curtains. 

"We cannot leave the bloodlines to suffer the consequences of our actions- it is not only the morally right thing to do, but the most logical solution! Half mortals and non-Olympian gods have no chance in winning against XD." Hecate said pointedly, eyes narrowing.

"We would be risking ourselves to a level that is dangerous!" Poseidon called out angrily, immediately rising. "Then what would the world be? Who would uphold order as we all die miserably in a mortal plain!? The mortal realm has long been a declining race- why not let XD be lord over them- then we can turn our creative and magical insights elsewhere, and create something unspoiled." 

"On the contrary brother, what convinces you so that XD will remain satisfied with just the mortal world? He will be no overlord like our other brother- but a tyrant. Even here, as a lesser god he sought to rise above his position. XD cannot be confined to merely a mortal plain, and he needs to be put in check before more innocent souls are sent to their doom." Hades hissed, not rising from his seat. "While I don't agree with sending all of us down to this SMP to solve the problem, I do believe that we cannot allow this problem to fester. Already the effects of XD's treachery have affected us. The protections that were the thread of the Purgatory have come undone. Fate has been twisted to his domain, and the strings of Fate lie disintegrating as wraiths of old infest the mortal world. If you support that- you are no better than XD himself." 

"My fellow gods- our time to make a decision is running thin." Hera called, standing up and motioning for silence. "Those of you who believe that it is in the best interests of ourselves to stay completely removed from this conflict for the rest of its duration, please cast your stones." Hecate quietly looked down at the vast table, waiting for the sharp clatter of stone to break what little remained of her Hope. The rolling of stone into iron was a knife to her ears. Harsh, blue flame illuminated Poseidon's seat. His eyes were gentle, but firm. 

"I truly am sorry Hecate. But I believe this to be the only correct answer."

"You disgust me. You willingly leave your own blood down there to suffer and die. How you will even be able to live with yourself when that happens, I do not know- but don't think my pity will befall you when you realize what you've truly done." Poseidon averted his gaze from the coldness of Hecate's eyes. "And that goes to each and every one of you who will abandon those whom you claim to love. But come now, cast your vote- either in favor or in support, and live with the consequences of your actions." slowly, but painfully- three more stones rolled into view. Flame illuminated their casters chairs, and the harsh, unfeeling marble of their eyes. Hera looked about. 

"Are there anymore among you who wish to cast a vote?" Silence met her words. "I shall ask once more. But do remember that if you do not cast your stone- neutrality will be counted as a separate party- and if it is the ruling one, the decision will be given to our King. So now I ask, for the third and final time: are there any among you who wish to cast your stone in favor of staying completely removed from this conflict for the rest of its duration?" Silence fell yet again among the assembled gods, but no more stones rolled forward. Hecate took a deep breath, Hope daring to linger in her heart once more. Hera nodded slowly, looking at the four pillars of flame above those who had cast their vote. Slowly, they faded to a white, signifying that their decision had thus been made. 

"Now, those of you who believe that the best option for us in this situation is to remove ourselves physically from this conflict but continue to assist the bloodlines and mortals for the rest of its duration- please cast your stones." slowly, but surely, a small cascade of stones tumbled across the table, and into the great iron bowl embedded within it. Colored flame illuminated the chairs of those who had voted- immersing those gathered there in a multicolored light. Hecate bit her tongue as she looked up- out of the nearly one-hundred or so gods gathered who had yet to cast their stones- only twelve had voted in favor of the compromise option. But Hecate felt no relief- neutrality had long been the straw that broke the camel's back in these councils. And despite the fact that this compromise- this median was not something that she wanted, Hecate would take it over Zeus making the final decision. 

"I ask for a second time: those of you who wish to cast your stone for this compromise solution." One more stone tumbled out of the darkness. A bright red flame flared above the god who had cast it, before Hera looked out at the rest of the gods, a grave expression on her face. "I am now asking for the third and final time. Cast your stones in favor of the compromise solution- as you all know, failure or choice to cast your stone will be counted as neutrality. If neutrality is the prevailing party- then the choice shall be made by our King." no more stones came forth from the multicolored darkness. The newly lit flames burned white, as thirteen out of over a hundred gods made their choice. 

Hecate's stone felt like a weight in her hand, binding her to a fate that could never be certain. Hera looked about- an unsure expression in her eyes. Would neutrality prevail? No one could be certain- not until the stones were cast. Hera took a deep breath. "It is time for the final option, and the final vote. Those of you in favor of directly involving ourselves in this conflict for the rest of its duration- as in physical interference, with risk of Death taking us- please cast your stone at this time." Hecate unclasped her hand, and let it fall. A brilliant flame of shimmering purple crowned her seat. Hecate felt a great weight in her chest as the room remained still. Hope fizzled within her heart. Despair's cold grip took hold as Hera looked around, almost shell shocked. However, just as Hera opened her mouth to speak, a two stones slid into metal with a resounding echo. 

Hades and Persephone smiled cordially from their seats, watching calmly as red flame illuminated them. And that was all it took. With a cascading effect, stones streamed forth from the depths of the room, clattering into the bowl with increasingly loud clangs. Flames glowed, and Hecate watched in shocked awe as the rest of the assembled council cast their stones. Finally, only Hera was left. A regal smile graced her eyes as she turned to those assembled there. "I do not see a reason for me to ask thrice what the vote of this council shall be. I will stand by our mortal brethren, alongside all of you, and the rest of Olympus." and with that, a column of golden flame issued forth, quickly fading into white, signifying that the council was over. 

As the pink light of Dawn flooded into his palace, Zeus looked towards the Council's meeting place, lit alight with white flames. A decision had been reached. Inside the building, celebration was already happening as Hera quickly wrote out the official decision of the council- before placing it within the fire, so that Zeus would be able to see it. As his hands lingered in the flames of the small sparks of the council's fire that he possessed- a dark, stormy look clouded his face. The council had decided upon war. Zeus looked out of the arch to his left- as the sparkling waters of Olympus flowed over cloud, wind, and flower. The light of Dawn had arrived, bathing the world in the fresh morning light- but Zeus had made his decision long ago. 

This complication with XD was not the job of Olympus- or was it? After all, XD was not Olympus born, he was earth born. Zeus decided upon that- that would be his argument when pushback inevitably rose from what he was about to do. As Hecate as the others embraced, and as Hope finally showed herself in the life and happiness that flowed into their veins, Zeus sent forth a storm of clouds. Hera looked up in shock as the light of the pure, white flame began to darken, before rotting away into gray. A dismayed cry issued from the crowd below. The golden jewels upon Hera's fingers glittered dully as a hand rose to cover her mouth in surprise. 

Victory, Hope- all of it stilled. For the king of the gods had invoked his power. And there would be no celebration now. But even still, some hoped that Zeus had not overruled the call to war for a call to inaction. Possibly he saw the compromise as safer, some dared to hope yet again. But for those who had so fiercely argued their case- hope was as gone as the light of Dawn. As Zeus finally entered the chamber to announce his choice, the mood was grim. Hatred shone from many eyes, anger from all who had just celebrated what they believed was success. Only to have it taken from them. Hera looked absolutely enraged, her voice trembling from rage alone as she addressed the king of the gods. 

"I see you have struck down our decision that was made under our fair processes of democracy and betterment of not just our lives but that of our subjects. But you cannot do this without rhyme or reason. So answer this to me now: what have you chosen from the options laid forth at your feet, and why have you decided this?" a fierce glare cut through the storm god's resolve as he looked about him, finding no friend among the eyes watching him. 

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Meanwhile, below the graying clouds of the sky, Puffy stood on a parapet with Niki by her side, quietly staring at the sky. The two exchanged a dark look as rain began to fall, only a light mist, but even still- a storm brewed above. 

"What do you think Niki?" Puffy muttered, holding her hand out as mist began to shift into droplets. In the distance, crows slowly began to rise from abandoned villages far away, seeking shelter before the storm. "Possibly an omen from the gods?"

"No good news flies on the wings of a crow, Puffy." Niki said, turning back to the landscape before her. "I do not see a favorable or good omen in any of this. If Athena herself cursed them, then I would not like to think what crows coupled with the storms of Zeus mean."

"Neither do I. But even yet, as the clouds churn above us- our fate is being decided. And I dare not hope for either Favor or Kindness from those immortal souls above."

Chapter Text

The council awaited for Zeus to even dare speak. For anyone, even their king, to interfere with the decision of the council was a deeply frowned upon action. Even the staunch opposers of the council were highly displeased, to say the least. Hecate was fuming; Zeus dared not to even look in her direction- the flames that spilled from her eye were enough to tell him her opinion. 

"I believe I asked you a direct question." Hera snapped, no joy within her face. "Even you, the so-called mightiest and greatest of us all, are required by oath, blood, and law to speak when commanded within these halls of marble of which you have utterly disgraced with your presence here. Speak now, and speak freely." many words went unsaid as Zeus slowly walked up the steps to the platform where the flames of the council rotted into gray, but Hades angrily held his hand up, preventing him from going any further. 

"You have no right to stand yourself on a pedestal after what you have just done. Your choice to do this undermines every democratic and preventative oath we have taken, everything that this building stands for. No- you will not stand above us now, but address us as your equals. These are not the golden halls of your pantheon, nor will they ever be. Do as our head of the council has commanded, and speak before I get the urge to do something I shall not regret for a long while." The silent agreement of all assembled echoed cruelly in Zeus' ears as he turned back to the Olympians, taking a deep breath before speaking. 

"I have made a choice to overrule this council for the first time. While I have previously intervened upon matters of neutrality winning the vote- never before have I directly discarded your sage and welcome advice. But none of you see the danger that I do. There will be no helping the mortals of the SMP. Neither from the heavens, and most certainly not from our direct physical presence in their world-" the response was immediate. Anger surged its way through the gods assembled, even in the hearts, minds, and souls of the calmest and gentlest of gods. Athena's gray eyes darkened as she angrily stepped forward, furiously shoving her father backward. A soft yet shocked murmur rocked through the chamber. 

"No. This is not the decision of a savior. It is the decision of a coward, who is unwilling to admit nor see the truth at his own feet. Even when it's been decided by those who have more knowledge than you on the situation at hand. There is no honor nor benevolence in your eyes that I can see. You call yourself a creator and a King, but you have failed us, your subjects, your creations, your children- at every turn thus far. Do not think that we have all remained in the darkness of a veil you attempted to cast across our eyes." Artemis lunged forward as Athena's hand raised, pulling her back by the shoulder and hissing something in her ear. Athena's rage-filled look did not disappear as she regretfully allowed herself to be led back into the swath of angered gods. 

Zeus straightened his robes, a look of confusion in his eyes. He found, yet again- no sympathy from those around him. 

"I can sympathize with your anger in this situation. You feel as if your voices and choices have gone ignored-"

"Because they have," Hera remarked coldly. "You do not sympathize with this council. You merely pretend to. What is our so-called sage and welcome advice if you wish to undo it for no other reason- than your own unwilling attitude and stubbornness. As decreed in our laws- you may be our King, and you may have the power to overrule this council; but surely you must remember the clause that forbids you to overrule the council without proper support. You must submit this before the dawn of the next day- otherwise, this council shall proceed with its original intention and decision." Zeus looked bemused, scoffing at the words. 

"That was an ancient order, made in times of peace. There is no longer a need for it. The world has become far more dangerous than it was in those times-"

"Whether it was made by Gaia, Kronos, or ourselves- it is still a legal code. And it states quite clearly that if you choose to overrule a council, you must first present a reason, and you also must summon the Overlords to look over your submitted evidence." Hera remained regal and stoic as she glared down upon him. "You must convince Poseidon and Hades, the rulers of the sea and Underworld that your evidence supports your decision well enough."

"We have not the time for that-"

"Considering that you had time to spout a flowery speech of utter bullshit- overrule a democratic council, and attempt to win back our favor; I would say that you have quite the amount of time." Hecate snapped. Zeus took a slight start backward, almost shocked at the crudeness of her words.

"And I think that anyone who dares to use such foul and unbecoming language of a goddess should not be part of a council-" Zeus sputtered in indignation as he was interrupted yet again. 

"And I believe no god who gives into his own cowardice and leaves his own children to die at the hands of a murderous psychopathic god should be our King- but perhaps I'm alone in that proposition." Hades called coolly from the side of the room. "And the cheating. Commitment issues don't exactly scream 'I'm an amazing ruler' do they now?" Zeus looked utterly lost for words, and even more angered. "But I'm sure that you must have some stellar evidence to support your overruling of this decision. And I mean that in the most disrespectful way possible. I'll see you and our other brother within the hour I hope- if not, I will personally make the announcement that our decision shall proceed." Zeus glowered slightly, but was forced to agree. 

Slowly gods filtered out of the chamber, staying on the marble steps outside to discuss frantically in small groups. Hecate found herself beside Artemis, Athena, and Persephone, who all held the same thoughts as she did. 

"What evidence do you think Cloud Boy is going to pull out of his ass this time?" Athena scowled dourly, picking at the scratches on her spear. Artemis stifled a snicker, disguising it as a cough. "What? Just because he happens to be my father, doesn't mean I always agree with him. He's your father too."

"Rather unfortunately I would love to add." Artemis chuckled. "But what do you think is going to happen? Let's say this evidence is compelling- which I highly doubt it would be, what do you propose the Overlords shall vote?"

"I believe it's clear that Hades will most certainly back the council's decision no matter what. We've seen that clearly, and Zeus knows that as well. Poseidon, I cannot be completely sure of." Athena admitted, gray eyes clouding with thought. "He is no doubt a lover of the council's democracy, but whether he will allow it to be overruled by some piece of evidence- I cannot be certain. I think, either way, we need to prepare for the possibility that our council's decision will not be held steady."

"I agree." Hecate muttered. "If this council is overturned, then I know what I will do."

"And what would that be?" Persephone looked around carefully before asking. 

"I don't believe that it needs to  be clearly stated for my intentions to become clear." A spark ignited in Artemis' eyes at the words. 

"You mean to go directly against him." Hecate smiled bitterly as she gazed towards the descending light of Dawn. 

"If there is no other way or choice, then so be it. I will not allow a world that my mentor and friend died for to fall into XD's hands. He is a god. It should be on our shoulders to fight him- not our descendants who we have forced into fighting for us." 

"While I do agree with you," Athena's eyes were grave. "we mustn't make any rash decisions. Not yet anyhow. But just know, that no matter the outcome, I will stand with you and your cause Hecate. However, we still must wait." a strong silence fell among the groups of gods gathered on the marble steps. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades had all entered the chamber. Discussions were now in place. A darkness seemed to cover all of them, a Hopelessness. The fate of the mortal world that they were so closely intertwined with- all depended on the decision of three men. 

--------------------------------------------------------

Zeus could feel his brothers' eyes burning into him. For nearly five minutes they had sat in complete and utter silence, a refusal to speak echoing in Hades and Poseidon's eyes. Finally, he broke the discomforting silence. 

"I do not take this decision lightly, and I would like for you both to understand that-"

"Save the speech for a different day." Poseidon muttered. "Do you, or do you not have evidence that proves that your decision to overturn the council is correct?" Zeus could only nod under Hades' furious ire. "Then tell us. Our time is running out."

"My choice to overrule the council lies within XD. Or more specifically, who he is. He is a mortal, lifted to godhood because we saw potential in his magical skill, and to that- we were right. But he is not of Olympus-"

"You've got to be fucking kidding me?!" Hades looked utterly done with life in that moment. "THAT is your evidence? Oooo look- the person we elevated to godhood as a child, and we who taught him most of his magical skills- he's not our responsibility anymore because....he was born mortal? What type of bullshit do you think you can even spout off as evidence-" the sarcasm in Hades' voice was cut off as Poseidon raised his hand. 

"Don't interrupt him Hades. Let him finish." Hades scoffed, but angrily settled back into his chair. "Continue Zeus." 

"As I have said, XD is not an Olympian. While he may have Olympian blood and relations, he is not from here. He is from a mortal plain, and therefore, is not our responsibility. That is my reason as to why we should not get involved. Not only does this adventure as a whole present an even greater threat to us and our numbers, why involve ourselves in a mortal conflict?"

"You know, these are the times where I bet Mom and Grandma wished that Dad ate you instead of that rock. Because I know that I certainly think that at the moment."

"Hades-" Poseidon began.

"No, don't even try to support that shoddy case of 'evidence' that our brother is presenting right now. It's pure and complete bullshit, and you know it as well as I-"

"Either way, we still must make an educated decision- that is not based within emotion." Poseidon set his arms on the table, leaning forward. "Zeus, while I do find this evidence slightly shoddy- there is a part that is compelling. However, I believe that Hades has already made his decision, and therefore, I'm letting him speak his mind first." Hades looked completely beside himself with anger and fury. 

"I cannot believe either of you find these mere statements as anything less than corrupted foolishness and cowardice! There is no merit or moral behind them! While XD may have been mortal born- he is considered to be a mortal born of Olympian blood! Especially since we as a council agreed to uplift him to godhood- we were the ones to teach him the techniques he has used to break our rules and shatter the mortal realm-"

"It's not about relationships, Hades. It's not about our involvement. It is simply about nothing less than the purity of his immortal blood-" Zeus flinched as Hades stood up so quickly that his chair fell over. His eyes gleamed dangerously as he set his palms flat on the tabletop, leaning closer to Zeus' face. 

"You want to talk about purity? Many of our own gods assembled here on Olympus hold the same purity as XD does, some with even less immortal blood in their veins. I cannot believe you would turn to something so primal and obnoxious to justify your corrupt actions. Your own son- Dionysus- he was brought here. Same as XD. Aphrodite? She was brought here as well. They are both considered fully-blooded gods. If they had done the same as XD is doing right now, you would not have bothered with assembling a council to make the decision."

"Harpocrates' daughter is only half immortal. She has lived a mortal life-" Poseidon began. Hades slammed his fist onto the table, a crack splintering through the smooth surface. 

"DIONYSUS IS ALSO, BY TECHNICAL TERMS, HALF IMMORTAL!" Zeus and Poseidon both recoiled. "His mother was a human princess- we all know that. There is no difference between his parentage and Puffy's. Don't make this conversation and justification about blood composition and your own old views. It is all about your cowardice and unwillingness to accept the futility of  overruling the power you have so long guarded."

"If you were in charge of Olympus, we would be nothing more than a pile of smoldering ash." Zeus shot back. "Smoke would rise from the very pillars of our marbled halls, and we would all be residents of your underworld-"

"At least my underworld upholds a democracy and working system!" 

"How dare you-"

"WILL THE TWO OF YOU SILENCE YOURSELVES BEFORE I AM FORCED TO CALL FORTH A SECONDARY COUNCIL AND A MEDIATOR!?" Poseidon nearly shrieked. A tense silence fell yet again. "We must vote, and we must vote now-" he hissed, pointing towards the rising pink light of Dawn. "Our time runs short. So- can we all agree to behave like leaders, and not bicker like school boys?" Hades muttered a curse beneath his breath, but said nothing more. "So, Zeus how do you wish to vote, and then proceed?"

"I vote against aiding the bloodlines. It is an unnecessary action. What goes on in the mortal world that is not our doing, is therefore not our responsibility. XD is not of Olympus, and therefore we have no need to intervene in his affairs." Zeus sat back in his chair, watching as Hades struggled to even contain himself. Poseidon merely nodded. 

"Very well. Hades-" Poseidon turned towards his other brother, stopping mid sentence at the look of pure rage on Hades' face. "Even though we know your opinion, I will allow you to present your case-" Hades opened his mouth, but Poseidon held up a hand. "IF- you remain respectful, and quiet. With all that said, how do you vote, and how do you wish to proceed with the situation at hand?" 

"I vote that we must support the bloodlines- I will even settle for a compromise; assisting from the safety of Olympus- just as long as we help them. They cannot manage to defeat a foe as great as XD, a god who holds the powers of both Life and Death in his very hands. XD is one of us, always will be one of us. If the bloodlines have the full backing of Olympus, what will he do then? He wouldn't dare to resist if we intervened. We need to involve ourselves before our families and the mortal world as a whole is destroyed." Poseidon nodded grimly, looking at the table. 

"While I do agree that XD is by technicality one of us, he is far from our responsibility. I apologize Hades. Intervening in this situation is not optimal or beneficial for either party." a look of defeat took over Hades' expression. "I truly am sorry. But I see no other option." Hades rose from his seat, walking towards the exit of the chamber. "Hades-" the god of Death stopped just before leaving through the door, turning back around, his face obscured in shadow from the light of the rising sun. "Tell the rest of the council, they must know."

"No."

"No?"

"I will not become an accomplice to your cowardice. Both of you are nothing more than people standing by and watching something take place- thinking it will never affect you. But me? I have had my home, my kingdom, and most importantly my friend ripped away from me by XD. But that doesn't affect you. It never will. But when your land falls into ruin, when your precious seas are ruined by war and spilt blood- when those whom you love and care for die; don't think I- or any other god will shed a single tear on your behalf."

"Hades, we are both doing what we believe to be best-"

"If that is what you think, then so be it. But anything; anything- that happens from this moment on, will be attributed to your inaction and cowardly behavior."

"Hades- the decision is final, and no amount of your flowery speeches and words will sway I or Poseidon." Zeus said haughtily. "If you wish to sulk about this decision, then by all means- be my guest. But I do not care in the slightest if you are angered. Not everything can be the way that one desires." Hades smiled sadly, turning back towards the door and taking a step forward. 

"And to think we were once worshipped as the mightiest and wisest creatures on Gaia's earth. We are not the creatures of legend. We are nothing." and with those words, Hades vanished, exiting the chamber, heart heavy with dread. Poseidon stayed silent as Zeus rose to leave as well. 

"What if he's right?" Poseidon echoed aloud. 

"Right about what?" Zeus snorted, waving his hand in dismissal. 

"What if we truly are nothing?"

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"That damned fool!" Hecate hissed, slamming her fist so hard on the tabletop that a ceramic jar clattered to the floor. "How could he do something so-"

"Vile? Idiotic? Grotesque?" Athena offered, hand clenched tight on her cup of tea. "I should've known Poseidon would agree with him. That barnacle bastard never had a caring bone in his body."

"So- are we actually going to do it?" Artemis murmured, twirling a silver tipped arrow around in her hand. "Because I know we will have quite the crowd of supporters if we decide to. Apollo and Ares could easily be recruited. And maybe even Hermes-"

"What do you think I'm going to be doing?" Hermes remarked, standing sheepishly in the doorway. "I just thought I would drop by, but if this is a bad time-"

"Actually you're right on time." Hecate muttered. "We're formulating a plan to try and do something-"

"Look, Kate, I love you, but if this is something that is dangerous or risky-"

"Depends on how you would classify defying Sparkie's order and helping out the bloodlines." Hades shrugged, throwing the book in his hands to the side. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about realm hopping or sneaking?" Hermes' jaw dropped as he looked around the room. "Just asking. We might need to."

"You....you...you all can't be serious?!" 

"Oh we're very serious." Hecate muttered, sitting back down. "I'm not willing to have let my mentor and friend die for nothing. Especially at the order of a fool and coward."

"But the consequences- if Zeus finds out what you are even planning on doing, do you know how much trouble you will all get into?" Hermes sputtered. 

"Don't tell me you actually aren't going to do something about this absolute disgrace to our council and monarchy?" Artemis looked almost surprised. "If no one is doing something, more people will die, and the world itself will collapse. I don't know how long it's going to take our father to wake up to reality- and frankly I'm not willing to wait until he comes to senses, if he ever does."

"Our first loyalty is to-"

"We don't have first loyalty to anything Hermes." Persephone spoke up. "Not anymore now. It is your choice whether you wish to join us or not- and we don't expect an answer immediately. But the offer will still stand no matter what."

"But if you reveal anything- and I mean anything to someone outside of this group- I will not hesitate to start pulling some strings." Athena smiled serenely from her seat, tilting her head slightly. Hermes just stayed silent, words caught in his throat. "If you're this apprehensive, think about it. But- if you join us or not, we're still dead set on doing something." Hermes just looked at the floor. 

"I think I'm just going to go. You uh- have a lot to talk about I guess. Just....don't do...something stupid. Please." Hermes quickly turned on his heel and left, footsteps fading quickly. 

"Too late for that." Artemis mumbled. "What if he goes to Zeus? What are we going to do then?"

"He won't." Hecate stood up. "I'll talk to him. For now, just try and come up with a list of people who'll join us, and people who might help us under the table." the sharp clacks of Hecate's boots faded as she practically ran out of the room, following her friend. She could barely even hear Persephone's quiet response. Hermes was just ahead, slowly walking down the street, seemingly lost in thought. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Look, I don't want you to feel pressured. You're one of my best friends, and you always have been. But at the same time, I really do need your help. Zeus knows that I'm going to be the most opposed to his decree."

"I know that."

"If you really don't want to- you don't have to-"

"I never said no."

"You don't seem particularly enthralled with any of this."

"Because I have a job Kate. I'm one of my father's right hand men when it comes to running the realms, and if I abuse that power and trust- do you even know what type of trouble I could get in? Not just me either- Artemis, Hades, Persephone, Athena- you....I could quite literally get you in more trouble than your lives are worth."

"I think you know I've already made my choice. I don't fear Zeus. I don't fear Death. I only fear the future, and what it could bring us all."

"I have a duty, Kate. I want to help you, but I don't know if I truly can."

"As much as I want you to be by my side- I want it to be your choice."

"It's just...don't you think you're jumping to rebellion a little too quickly? Surely we can arrange for some type of compromise eventually."

"Even if we could, Zeus would do everything in his power to waylay our attempts. This is something that affects, and will affect us all if we allow it to grow into something more. I won't allow myself to be a bystander any longer, and especially not at Zeus' order."

"Look- I'll think about it. I don't know if I can get fully involved like some of the others-"

"Anything helps Hermes." 

"I also just...I want an outside opinion." Hecate's smile dimmed slightly, and the look in her eyes hardened. "Don't worry, it's going to be someone the both of us trust implicitly, but I just wanted to let you know, just in case they stab us in the back or whatever, you can punch me or something." Hecate laughed, shoving Hermes in the arm slightly. 

"I would never!"

"You are the absolute worst liar I have ever met- what about that time in Athens? You gave me a black eye!" 

"You deserved that one- don't even try to get out of it!" Hermes' face took on an expression of exaggerated shock. It almost made Hecate's heart ache. It had felt like such a long while since the two of them had interacted as friends- and not as compromising forces. Hermes almost seemed to pick up on it, but remained quiet as ever. 

"I...I should probably get going." Hecate had never felt so unsure before as she watched her friend slowly walk away, vanishing around a corner. 

"So? What do you think?" Artemis slipped from the shadows, smiling gently. 

"I don't know."

"I'm sure he's going to help us."

"That I don't doubt. Even duty cannot overrule Hermes' yearning for justice and equity. It's just that....I don't want to lose another one of my friends."

"That might be inevitable for us all, Kate." 

---------------------------------------------------------------------

A scroll. That was it. Puffy sat at her desk, head hidden in her hands. Tears had gathered- were they for her friends? The bloodlines? The souls that were sure to be lost? Or was it all of them. It was irrelevant. Now the question was how to even break the news to the bloodlines. It had been a short message. No apology- barely even two sentences: After much discussion, it has been decided by both the Council of Gods and a secondary council, that godly intervention will not help your case. Olympus cannot and will not assist you. 

Puffy was enraged, there was no possible way for there to have been a tie in the council- especially on something so urgent. But she didn't even want to consider the second option. The mere idea that the leader of the gods had overturned the council's decision was sickening. The letter had first arrived a mere two hours ago, carried by a fine gray eagle with a glint of lighting in its eye. And now Puffy's worst fear had come to fruition; but even in hopelessness Puffy knew there would be a singular possibility that they could in fact win in face of XD's power. But logical thinking and reasoning knew that it would be folly. But then again, it wasn't exactly for Puffy to decide how the council of the bloodlines would vote on what to do. 

"Puffy." Punz pushed the door open, paper in hand. "I have some news from the West, just some basic observations, nothing too major- but we're finding more and more destroyed villages each day."

"Thank you."

"No problem. Anything else you need, or-"

"Actually yes. I need you to assemble the council. Have them meet in the gathering hall in an hour."

"Uh sure. Everyone, or just the Center?"

"The Center will do for now. Thank you." the door shut firmly, footsteps padding down the hall. Puffy walked over to her window, tracing an absent minded pattern into crystalline glass. The vast, green hills and blue tinted lakes of the SMP. The possibility that these lands, so perfect, so pristine despite the bloodshed they had seen in the past- could be undone with the mere flick on one's hand was absolutely horrific. But there was little time to waste. Even without the gods, Puffy did not intend to allow XD an easy victory over them, nor would she ever go down without a sword in her hand. Their council would now be assembled. Puffy readied herself, before stuffing the scroll into her pocket and leaving the office, shutting and locking the door after her. 

------------------------------------------------------

The council fell silent as Puffy entered the room, expression grave. Puffy looked around, catching a few nervous eyes, and a few hidden glances. Some looked hopeful, others completely impassive. 

"Some of you may notice that this is an extremely reduced council compared to usual. But I deemed it necessary, as I do not wish to panic those who are new to this cause. A response has come from Olympus." murmurs ran through the room like a surge of electricity- powerful, yet deadly. "Unfortunately, the gods have deemed that their intervention will not help us-" Puffy paused, waiting for the chorus of anger to begin. But everyone remained strangely silent. "And, for the first time in a long while- I admit that I do not know how to proceed. But one thing I will not be is deceitful. XD is a powerful force, being a god of Life. He is not only ruthless, but cold and inhuman. He is joined with Dream, who shares his personality traits, and while he does not have power in the Olympian sense of the words- Dream is still a force to be reckoned with in battle. I understand, and support you if any of you wish to leave at this point. I, nor any other member of this organization, will attempt to stop you." 

"Puffy- with all due respect, we've been at this war for far too long to abandon it now." Niki spoke up. "This all started with Dream. It continues through XD, and it will end with us. We all made an oath, a promise- not just to ourselves, but the gods and those who cannot fight against divine power. While our oath to the gods of Olympus has now been broken- will we not fight for ourselves and others?" Puffy held her breath, looking around the room yet again. 

"Even so, even if we ourselves decide to make a stand- there's no guarantee that the younger generations will stick with it, which is completely understandable. The risks that we are going to be taking if we continue to organize with the eventual goal of taking both XD and Dream down; will be unknown and unpredictable. We cannot just charge into this with absolutely no preparation."

"I think we should wait to formulate a plan." Quackity said, leaning forward. 

"Why wait? So XD and Dream can murder us all in our sleep?" Sapnap scowled, sarcasm burying its ugly head in his words. "We need, a plan, and we need it now if we even want a chance for survival." 

"If we make a plan now, we are making plans with numbers of our forces that will no longer hold a relevancy once Puffy reveals that the Olympians have withdrawn support." Quackity smiled smugly. "Never count your eggs before they hatch."

"Cut it out with the moral bullshit-"

"Do we need to take a break?" Puffy intervened, glaring furiously from her seat. Sapnap and Quackity both remained quiet, still glaring at each other. "I agree with Quackity. Over eighty percent of our members and forces are unaware that we no longer have the Olympians as allies or as a fallback. I plan to announce this news in a few hours, and I want everyone to be prepared for our numbers to drastically fall. Does everyone understand?" Puffy waited, and when no protest or comment came, she continued. "Good. This council is hereby dismissed, and will reconvene before nightfall to announce the withdrawal of Olympian support. Thank you for coming on such short notice." 

As people began to stream out of the room, a small group remained. Niki sat next to her friend, an unreadable expression on her face. "Is something wrong Niki?" 

"Not extremely. But...I was thinking- Techno and Phil, they don't know about any of this do they?" Puffy sighed. 

"Scouts haven't seen them, and there have been no reported sightings. But we will need their help eventually, if they will even help us."

"I'm certain they'll help if we ask. But it got me thinking- the compound."

"What about the compound?"

"Well, there's a lot of supplies still left there- and considering that this is probably going to become a long term battle, we're going to need as much as we can possibly get right?" Puffy nodded slowly, tilting her head slightly. "Techno and Phil had at least a year's worth of supplies in armor, food, weapons, potions, and enchantments stocked up. If this is going to turn into a full scale war- we're going to need some of that as backup."

"I don't know why I didn't think about that. While we have this idea on the table and in mind, I think we should also work on revamping some of the SMP's farming systems."

"We also need to consider how the Nether portals will affect us. Borders need to be set, watchtowers need to be built, things like that."

"I agree with that completely. Things around here are going to start mobilizing a lot faster than any of us could've anticipated." Puffy paused, pulling her pocket notebook from her coat and quickly opening it to a blank page. "So we have...supplies at the compound for retrieval, reconstruction of farming infrastructure, watchtowers....maybe even walls if necessary-" Niki watched the list take form, as Puffy began scribbling things down urgently. 

"We should also consider getting a medical system in place before any battles happen- if we try and construct that while people are getting killed; it's going to be nothing short of a crisis."

"So- medical supplies and system. Got that." Puffy stopped suddenly, looking up from her notes. "Niki- can you go over to that chest and get the document that's tied with gold thread please?" Niki looked slightly confused, but opened the chest, filled to the brim with pieces of parchment, scrolls, and random pieces of paper. A few minutes of rummaging later, Niki handed the scroll over to Puffy. "Thank you."

"What's that?"

"A list of family members and loved ones who were not summoned to the council of the bloodlines. It just occurred to me that we should probably get them within a five mile radius of us in case XD or Dream tries to get someone to give up information or turn to their side through manipulation."

"Manipulation?"

"Kidnapping, threats of violence, torture, false promises of whatever- those would not be new avenues for either of them. Considering our numbers are bound to go down after we break the news, and we will eventually have people severely injured in the line of duty- we can't risk having liabilities. Human emotion is a powerful thing, and most of the people we have here have never even seen a battlefield: it wouldn't take much to get them to turn, and that I will not risk."

"How would we be able to do that?"

"Slowly I suppose. I'll probably send Foolish out later, once we have a firm headcount. Then I'll know who to get and who to leave."

"Just Foolish?"

"If I sent a whole squadron to go get my daughter- not only would it alert XD and Dream to what we are planning to do, but it would also be entirely impractical and a waste of precious resources we don't have." Puffy muttered, finishing her writing. Tearing the page out of her notebook, she sighed miserably. "Gods- I don't know what's happening anymore." Niki set her hand on her friend's shoulder, smiling bitterly. "Look, this may be extremely out of line, and feel free to say no- but if something happens to me, or I start straying from my duty: I want you to make sure that either Eret or Phil takes my place. The two of them are the only people I still trust to take a position of authority." Niki seemed taken aback, merely nodding. "I hate to be so negative, so hopeless. But it is very much a future possibility. I don't want the fall of the bloodlines to be caused by internal discord and strife." 

"Well, we can only hope that that day will never come to fruition. There's always a brighter side to something than can be seen at first glance." Puffy just started out of the window, at the sun- reaching its crest in the sky. The two women both watched, as the people of the bloodlines began to stream from surrounding buildings, gathering in the center courtyard. "We should probably make that announcement now." Puffy just simply nodded, turning towards the door."

"I cannot even wish upon Olympus for luck or hope. Perhaps both of those things that are central to our survival have diminished. I never thought I would see the day that so many people would give up on Hope. But I can already see it ahead of us, on a path no longer of our own choosing." Niki just smiled, opening the door and holding it open. 

"Then, if this is our last day with Hope, let us make the most of what remains."