Chapter Text
A lone figure walked along an empty hall, stiff silence permeating the air. As if reaching for salvation, he reached out a hand, fingers brushing against a warm lamp. The light gave under a gentle push and tumbled to the ground. Oil and fire spilled forth, spreading across the curtains, and crawling up to the ceiling as indifferent eyes only watched.
Behind him lay a wreckage of destruction. Broken vases, sliced paintings, scratched floors. And now, a slowly but surely growing fire.
Now for the hard part.
The figure turned and stepped into a familiar room that smelled of home and promise and grief and rage. Eyes wandered quietly, carefully inspecting every nook and cranny. A silent goodbye was whispered into the night.
He drew a sword, small and light but effective. Something gifted for the purpose of defense. A reminder to be kind, but also to survive.
It would be used for neither.
He sliced his palm open, letting blood splash across the room. It drenched the walls, the bed, and anything sentimental.
Finally, shaking hands grasped vibrant feathers, hesitating only a second before pulling, ripping them like a band aid from his skin. Soft feathers scattered across the floor as pained cries filled the air.
A shaky sob followed the completion of his task. Buried regrets and mumbled apologies joined soft keens of distress.
Yet, the figure stood tall. He curled his hands into fists, steeling himself. There was no going back. He had already made up his mind.
He had been raised with that kind of determination, after all.
--
“Hello there, miss! Would a beautiful and gorgeous lady such as yourself mind helping a poor and helpless but not actually poor and definitely not helpless and actually very poggers man such as myself?”
Tommy received only a slightly annoyed, slightly unamused look in response.
“Sir, if you’d like to file a help request to the adventurer’s guild, there will be a submission fee along with the reward fee,” the clerk -or receptionist or whatever- answered, looking Tommy up and down with a raised brow (probably checking out his mad, dashing looks).
“That is not a problem because I am very rich, believe it or not! But, that’s not why I’m here. You see, the thing is”—Tommy lowered his voice to a more normal, slightly abashed tone—“I, umm, actually… need directions?”
The clerk sighed. “Yes, where do you need directions to? Somewhere within the city? Or a nearby town?”
“Well,” Tommy awkwardly scratched the back of his head. “I kind of need to go to the Summit of Omen?”
At this, the clerk perked up with surprise, suddenly a lot more animated.
“The Summit of Omen? I would think people try to avoid that place… But I guess historians or curious travelers and the like might be attracted to the story…”
“Yup!” Tommy agreed instantly, nodding a little too furiously. “That’s me, just a curious adventurer wanting to see the epic sights of history. I’m a brave man! And I like to um, explore and shit!”
The clerk hummed. “Well, if you incur the wrath of the Dark Lords, that’s on you. You’ve got a rough road ahead of you before you even get there, anyway. The Summit is a pretty long way from here.”
The clerk then pulled out a map and began pointing out routes and marking important locations across the map, drawing a big red circle around the Summit of Omen. Tommy made wisecrack jokes all the while which the clerk simply scoffed at or brushed off (must be playing hard to get. After all, ladies love Tommy!). She even let Tommy keep the map afterwards, stating that the guild kept many spares, which Tommy was genuinely grateful for.
Stepping out of the guild hall, Tommy stopped to adjust the black, racoon-like mask around his eyes before letting out a sigh. Only one more thing to do before he headed off. He slowly brought a hand up to clutch the necklace hanging from his neck. The soft, orange-tipped feather hanging from it tickled his fingers.
He took a deep breath and straightened up before marching off to the town stables.
The stables were full of all kinds of horses, and Tommy had no idea where to begin. How was he supposed to know which was good for him? Surely the best way to choose a suitable mare was by basing it off of appearances, right?
With that thought, Tommy strode right up to a white horse with black spots and promptly declared, “Henry! You will be my new partner in crime! My buddy! My amigo! We’re going to go so far, you and I!”
At his outburst, a stableman hurried towards him.
“Sir, is there something I can help you with?”
“Yes, I would like to purchase Henry here. We have much to do and just so much road to cover, as I am an adventurer-slash-traveler-slash-historian, you know?”
“Well, umm, you can buy this horse for a few gold coins, but it actually already has a name-“
“Tut-tut, my good fellow! Henry likes his new name perfectly well! All you need to name is the price and we shall be off!”
The stableman simply sighed and accepted a small bag of coins after throwing in a saddle and a few other horse-related necessities which Tommy gratefully accepted.
With his new horse now ready to go, Tommy was finally ready to head off. He took a deep breath, bringing a hand up to touch the feather necklace at his neck again before nodding to himself.
“Alright, Henry! Onward!”
Henry neighed in acknowledgement (probably), and began to trot down the road, away from the small-but-lively town and towards the great unknown.
-
Hours later, Tommy found himself following a road through the middle of a forest, his map in one hand and a pouch of water in the other.
“Now, Henry, listen. I know I said we would be near the next town by now, but sometimes things just happen, okay? Obviously, I am not lost, because Tommy Danger Careful Kraken Innit -that is a name I just made up for myself and it is AWESOME- does not ‘get lost’, you understand?”
Henry neighed.
Gasp. “How DARE you? I know for a fact that I did not raise you to speak like this to me, Henry! I expect a written apology at my desk by five in the morning. No, I don’t want to hear any ‘but Tommy, you don’t have a desk!’ I only want to hear ‘yes, Tommy, you are so very correct all the time and I love and appreciate you so much and-’ hey! We’re out of water!”
Tommy pulled Henry to a stop and clambered off the saddle, stuffing the map in his back pocket as he turned the water pouch upside down, trying to see if there was really no water left.
Sure enough, even after shaking it, nothing more came out of the pouch. Tommy sighed. Why did bad things happen to the most pog of people?
“Henry, I’m going to need you to stay here and not move one inch, okay? I’m going to go out and brave the dangers of this forest in search of some water. I am being very brave right now so you should be very grateful, okay?”
Henry simply huffed in response.
Tommy turned and began his trek into the woods, making his way through the thicket of trees in search of a water source. Finally, after tripping over about a dozen roots along the way, he emerged before a current of rushing water. He gazed in awe as he took in the sight of the river. Water ran over glistening, wet rocks while moss grew on the banks. It was the very epitome of mother nature herself.
Tommy quickly snapped out of his revere, and knelt down next to the water, trying catch as much as he could in his pouch. He would have to boil this later to make sure it was safe to drink. Who knew what kind of awful and evil bacteria were lurking in these waters?
He let the pouch fill until it was nearly overflowing before screwing the cap back on. Some water regretfully spilled back to the ground as he did so, but Tommy would consider this an overall job well done. Prime, he was so smart! Maybe the ladies would even call him ‘resourceful’ (whatever that meant).
Suddenly there came various yells from the direction of the path, startling Tommy out of his thoughts. His eyes widened as the racket was joined by the sounds of distressed neighing. Was Henry in trouble?!
“Oh no! Henry, my son! He is in danger! Don’t worry, Henry, I’m coming to save you!”
Tommy stumbled frantically back through the woods, following the sounds of struggle. He burst through the brush and came face to face with a group of strangers surrounding Henry. One of them had a tight hold on Henry’s reigns and seemed to be trying to pull him away. The others were carrying all the provisions and necessities that had been in his saddlebag.
These guys were trying to rob him! In the middle of the forest!!
“Hey! You let go of Henry right now!” Tommy yelled, running towards them with a shaking fist.
He bent down and grabbed a rock, chucking it at the thieves.
The thieves in question took one look at him and bolted back into the surrounding forest. Thankfully, they left Henry behind as he was just too poggers for them to handle. But Tommy couldn’t relax yet, they’d taken all his stuff with them! He needed that stuff!! That was, like, his food and shit!
And so, Tommy looked Henry in the eyes and said, “Henry. I know it’s been rough. But I’m going to need you to stay put for a little while longer. Alright?”
Henry snorted, disgruntled after the hectic event. Great, Henry would probably need a phycologist now. Where the hell was Tommy supposed to find him horse therapy?
Pushing those thoughts to the side, Tommy raced after the bandits, trying to follow the sound of rustling leaves and footsteps.
“Get back here!” he hollered, unable to get any sight of them.
As he barreled through the foliage, Tommy suddenly came face to face with the opening of some sort of cave. In front of it stood a lone bandit, brandishing a sword. Tommy was just able to catch a glimpse of the others from their group disappearing into the darkness within the cave, their footsteps quickly fading.
“Oi, you listen here, alright? My name is Jack Manifold, and I’m not gonna let you get passed me!”
“Uh, only one of you? Why are the rest of your mates just leaving?”
Jack Manifold puffed up his chest. “Clearly because they trust that I’m enough to handle one little brat like you! I’m lookin’ to get me-self a raise, I am! I don’t get paid nearly enough, and I’m not letting some twat get in the way of the first score we’ve had in months!”
Tommy grimaced. “Your first score in months? Yikes, business a bit slow for you fellas these days?”
Jack sighed, “well, yeah. Nobody seems to come by this path anymore. Ever since those Dark Lords or whatever started terrorizing the cities around this area, there’s been a lot less travel here. But you know what I say? To hell with those ‘Evil Lords’ or whatever! Man’s got to make a living somehow, right?”
“I mean, it doesn’t really seem like you’re making much a living, now does it? Hmm?” Tommy pressed. “You get put on guard duty alone while your source of in-come is disappearing. Are you even getting paid overtime for this?”
“Uh… no…”
Tommy sighed forlornly, “I’m going to be honest, buddy, if I were you, I’d pack my things and take my chances elsewhere. The economy could use dedicated workers like you, but you’re just wasting time sitting here with these buffoons. Jack Manifold, I think you can do a lot better than this, if you ask me.”
Jack slowly lowered his weapon, a look of enlightenment growing on his face.
“Yeah… Yeah! You’re right! I, Jack Manifold, am meant for bigger, better things! Thanks man, you really opened my eyes today! I think I’m gonna go off and try to make something of myself somewhere else. If I ever see you again, I’ll make sure to remember you!”
With that, Jack sheathed his sword and walked off with a smile. As soon as he was out of earshot, Tommy uttered a “prick” under his breath and stalked into the mouth of the cave.
The cave opened into a wide, open area with rocks and stalagmites scattered about. Inside, Tommy could see all kinds of gear and other loot piled up along the walls along with a few chests. At the back of the cave, a fire seemed to be burning with a small group of figures surrounding it.
As Tommy crept closer, using the natural rock formations for cover, he saw that the people seemed to be rummaging with something that looked vaguely like- His stuff! They were going through his stuff like racoons in a basement!
Seething with rage, Tommy stood up and stepped out from behind his cover.
“Hey!” He called, quickly gathering the attention of everyone else present as their heads all snapped towards him.
He swallowed down the sudden doubt that formed in his throat and puffed up his chest. “Hey, that’s my stuff you’re messing with! If you don’t want to get decked out of your minds, I suggest you hand it over.”
The bandits all stood at once, grabbing any weapon nearby. One of the bandits spoke up, “How did you get past Manifold? A measly little kid like you?”
Tommy gasped. “I am not a kid. Plus, I’ll have you know that ‘Manifold’ was rather easy to get past. Even if I’d fought him, I probably would have won because I am oh so poggers at fighting.”
The bandits charged at him, weapons in hand.
“You messed with the wrong gang, kid!”
“Prepare to die!”
“‘Prepare to die’? Sheesh, could you guys be any more unoriginal?” Tommy mocked, right before the closest thief swung a sword down on him.
Tommy deftly side-stepped the swing, letting the momentum carry the stumbling thief past him before kicking out at the back of their knees.
The next two thugs came at him at the same time, one swinging at his neck and the other circling him for a backstab. Yeesh, these guys were vicious. Tommy threw himself to the ground, tucking and rolling out of the way as the two idiots ended up colliding and knocking themselves over.
Surely, they didn’t think he’d be that easy?
Just as he had that thought, the blare of a horn echoed throughout the cave. Tommy whirled around, looking for the source of the noise, until he spotted a bandit hiding behind a rock pillar, blowing into a horn.
All of a sudden, a whole new wave of sword-wielding bandits started rushing out from tunnels and side-entrances that Tommy hadn’t even noticed before.
Shit, there were more of them?
As the reinforcements swarmed him, Tommy started to feel overwhelmed. Swords and spears were stabbing at him from every direction, and trying not to too-heavily injure anyone wasn’t really helping his case either.
Just as a blade neared his face that Tommy feared he couldn’t dodge in time, a flash of purple suddenly lit up the room and a hard ‘thunk’ was heard.
When Tommy blinked the light out of his eyes, he saw a short boy -seemingly his age- standing before him. The boy’s back was towards him and he held a shield raised to block the blow that had been meant for him.
The mysterious boy turned his face to him and asked, “are you okay?”
“Uh, yeah…” Tommy mumbled, still shocked by the boy’s sudden appearance.
But the glint of another sword coming towards him snapped him back to focus as he hurried to block it with his own. He couldn’t find a moment to rest as the room spurred back into action, and Tommy found himself fighting back-to-back with this stranger who had helped him.
They fought side by side with surprisingly good chemistry, the boy blocking and Tommy taking advantage of the resulting opening to counter.
Yet, it was still just two against many and the boys both felt the pressure building. Just when Tommy thought they’d have to give up and make a run for it, an arrow whizzed past him and embed itself in the bandit he’d been facing.
He looked across to where the arrow had come from and spotted another boy, this time tall with dual-toned hair, sniping thugs off from across the room with a crossbow. As the bandits took notice of him and turned their attacks on him, he switched the bow out for a sword and fought them off.
Now there were three of them and the odds suddenly looked a lot more favorable.
Of course, these bandits were many, but Tommy was well-trained in combat and it seemed like the other two were no push overs either.
Fighting through the crowd, the three boys managed to regroup and quickly dealt with each enemy, backing each other up as needed. As if they’d been fighting together for years.
In no time, all the remaining bandits were on the floor groaning or unconscious. Tommy, as well as the other two, stood in the middle of the wreckage, heaving after the fight.
Tommy quickly caught his breath and looked around for the items that had been stolen from him. Upon spotting his satchel, he rushed over to pick it up. Then, he finally turned to address his new ‘allies’.
“So… Thanks for the help, I guess? Who are you two anyway?”
The short boy smiled at him. “I’m Tubbo, and this is Ranboo, my partner! We came here to take care of this gang of bandits, but we’ve honestly just been hiding and waiting for an opportunity.”
“You really helped us by showing up when you did, so thanks!” Ranboo added. “Do you want to come with us to the town nearby? We’re going to turn this quest in to the adventurer’s guild there. And since you technically helped us, I think you should get some of the money, right Tubbo?”
Tubbo whined, but obliged, “I guess he did help...”
Tommy huffed, “I’ll say! In fact, I think I did most of the work, actually, but since I am a very fair and generous man, I will accept one third of the payment. You’re welcome.”
Tommy’s expression humbled, and he continued, “But seriously, thanks for the offer. I’d love to join you both! Oh and, by the way, my name is-” Tommy paused. Should he really tell them his real name?
“Theseus. My name is Theseus,” He decided, the old nickname surfacing from distant memories.
“Great!” Tubbo clapped his hands. “We know the way back, so we can lead you there. Just follow us, Theseus!”
“Before we go, I left my horse on the road so can we go get him first?”
After coming to an agreement, they left the cave and found Henry before beginning the walk back to town. Tommy quickly found that he quite enjoyed the company from Tubbo and Ranboo, asking about the town and talking about whatever came up. They passed time by telling jokes and exchanging travel stories the whole way, until their destination came into sight just as the sun was starting to set.