Chapter Text
Tommy wakes up before the sun. The metal bars surrounding him rattle as a sword's hilt runs over them. The ringing seems to echo in Tommy's sensitive ears causing him to shake his head trying to rid himself of the noise. By the time the ringing stops Dream already looks annoyed, staring down at him.
“Get up, I don’t have time to wait for you to get your beauty sleep” Dream yells. Tommy is quick to shift, watching as his four legs turn into two. Dream presses against the tent wall as he opens the cell door letting Tommy out as he does. The tent is small, barely fitting both of them in it. It mainly is used as a way to keep Tommy dry. Even if it's small Tommy is grateful for a dry place to sleep.
Tommy trails after Dream out of the tent, one step behind as he was taught. Starring forward as they walk into the main camp. The camp is quite unlike most days. Only a few people are awake, playing cards or speaking in hushed tones around the camp as they wake up. Tommy's ears perk up as he hears the scraping of shovels, looking to the side he sees trenches being dug farther out on the field. Slowly the camp is preparing for battle.
Tommy’s steps stutter as he realizes where they are going. He quickly fixes his mistake, side eyeing Dream to make sure he didn’t see. Tommy's ears can already pick up the horrible scraping of a sharpening sword. He can feel the heat of the forge at the entrances. It pricks his skin, making him feel as if bugs are crawling on him. But he takes the uncomfortable feeling without complaint as he follows Dream through the tent flaps.
Tommy looks at the floor as soon as he enters, not wanting to see the disgusted look on Punz’s face as he looks at him. Punz seems to press the sword against the grindstone harder, making the noise even worse. Tommy knows Punz doesn’t like him, just as most of the camp doesn’t. They doubt Dream's ability to make him tame. They believe that he will go against them in the time of battle, that he will side with the monsters.
They don’t know that Tommy knows better. They don’t know that he already knows how good he has it here. They don’t know he knows what the rebels will do if they find out he is working with the kingdom.
“Tommy grab Punz that bucket” Dream asks, snapping Tommy back to the conversation at hand. Tommy gives a small nod as he grabs the large bucket in the corner, bringing it towards Punz. He pretends he doesn’t notice Punz bringing the hot red blade far too close to his face as he dips it in the bucket.
“How many more weapons do we need to be ready for the fight?” Dream asks. Tommy steps back behind the man respectful as the two continue to talk.
“We will need around fifteen more. The rebels stole the fallens’ weapons before we got to the last battlefield” Punz explains. Tommy feels his rage towards the rebels grow. How they would have the audacity to steal from the dead. The ones that they killed. The rebels were demons who didn’t understand their place in the world. Nothing like Tommy. Tommy knew what he was placed on this earth for. He understood that he too was a monster, but he was trainable. He understood that he was not human, that he was less than them. But that's something the others don’t understand. They believe they are equal to the humans. But Tommys has been taught to know better.
“God damnit, how long will that put us back?” Dream asks.
“Not too long. Probably just an extra week or—” Punz begins, not being able to finish as the flap is thrown open. In the entrance stands the general, Sapnap. He is breathing heavily as if he ran miles to get here.
“Sapnap, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be with the lookout squad!” Dream yells at him, a small smile sits on his face. Tommy knows that Sapnap’s not in serious trouble, Dreams probably just messing with him.
“Dream, the lookout squad is dead. The rebellion is on its way” Sapnap tells them, still trying to get his breathing under control. Tommy watches as Dream's face drops, a serious look replacing the small smirk.
“How close are they?” Dream asks, already stepping out of the tent.
“Only about an hour on foot, they're headed from the north,” Sapnap tells them. Tommy knows this battle will not end in their favor. They never predicted that the rebels would attack first. Dream said they didn’t have the balls for it, apparently, he was wrong.
“Prepare the troops” Dream voice is set, showing no emotion.
“Dream we can’t win this. It's better if we just retreat and save the lives of our soldiers” Sapnap argues. He looks desperate Tommy notices, the small rock of his feet and the waver in his voice are obvious signs of it.
“I said ready the troops!” Dream yells before marching off, Tommy goes with him, one step behind. Tommy stares at the back of Dream's head. He’s not sure where they're going, usually, Dream would be the one to rally the troops, not Sapnap. His confusion only grows when they arrive at his tent.
Dream opens the door gesturing for Tommy to get in the cell. Tommy can only stand cemented to the ground. He doesn’t understand why Dream wants him in there. He was supposed to be on the front lines by now, waiting for the battle to begin. Not trapped in his cell
“Get in,” Dream tells him, his voice growing heavy, telling Tommy he's not joking.
“What are you talking about?” Tommy asks despite himself.
“You won’t be fighting in this battle, the rebels aren’t allowed to see you until we have assured victory” Dream tells him. Tommy feels as if his soul is being crushed.
“I can fight. I know I can. Please let me, please I need to prove myself. I need to show them I’m tame” Tommy argues. He knows this will end badly for him. He never argues for a reason, but he can’t stop the rush of words from pouring out of his mouth.
“Shut up and listen to me!” Dream screams. Tommy looks down, taking a small step back. Dream simply grabs him, shoving him in the cell. Tommy listens as the door locks. He knew better and yet he still went against Dream, he still failed him.
Tommy can only listen as the troops collect their weapons. He’s supposed to be there, he is supposed to be fighting alongside them. Instead, he is trapped in a cell all because he isn’t worth the effort. Tommy can only listen as the battle cries turn into screams. He can only listen to the clashes of metal and the yells of the fallen.
Tommy only grows more worried as the battle rages on. Are the monsters winning? Is Dream ok? Tommy is clueless about the matter. His nerves worsen as time goes on and none of his questions are answered. At least they weren't until Dream barged through the tent flap.
“Tommy you are to hold off the rebels as we retreat, we’ll meet you at the western camp” Dream explains as he fumbles to unlock the door. Tommy shifts quickly waiting for the door to open. As soon as it does he’s already out of the tent.
Blood seems to cover the field. The once calm camp has now turned to chaos as the battle rages on. Tommy ignores it all as he rushes to battle. Tommy turns to Sapnap, watching as a man corners him, forcing him back. Tommys off like a bullet, biting at the man's legs, forcing him away from Sapnap. The man jumps away, kicking him to the ground.
“What the fuck is wrong with you!” The man yells limping on his now bloody limbs. Tommy ignores the man, rushing off to help the next person.
George sits on his knees, preparing for the raised sword to hit him. Tommy rushes towards him. He knows it's going to be close. Tommy can hear the horn sound, telling his kingdom to retreat, Tommy doesn’t slow.
Tommy is less than a few feet away when the sword comes down. Tommy jumps, praying he’s not too late.
Fire lights up his side as he is thrown across the field from the strike. Tommy lays on his side, too shocked to get up. He watches as George runs across the battleground, retreating without him.
“What the fuck is a kid doing here?” A yell comes from right next to him. The man’s going to finish the job. He needs to get up, he can’t die now. The blood loss makes him dizzy as he stands. He knows he won’t be able to make it to camp with a wound like this. So he runs. He runs to the only place he might have a chance. The woods only sit a few feet away from him. If he hides there he can wait out the rebels and head to the campsite when they're gone.
Tommy keeps running as the blood filled fields turn into dark canopies. He runs until his body can’t take it anymore, forcing him down. Panting as he tries to fill his lungs. He can only pray his plan worked as he rests in the trees.
A branch snaps to his left, as a large figure steps out of the shadows.