Chapter Text
Being the only prince of Manburg, Dream walked down the hallway in the castle. He was wearing a black turtleneck with a green cloak and was strapped with multiple weapons. Usually he wouldn’t wear as many weapons as such but their country was at war upon another country. Of course, Dream hated war but his father, on the other hand, wanted more land. His father, JSchaltt, believes that more land equals more power.
The people they’re at war with is a small country called Pogtopia. Pogtopia was a peaceful country and choses to aid their allies rather than fight so when Manburg announced war upon them, the whole country was in chaos but the King, Philza Minecraft, calmed them down and went into action. He defended the borders and made sure that Manburg’s armies couldn’t go any further into their land. However, Marburg is a large country compared to Pogtopia and King Schaltt drafted more and more men to keep fighting.
Dream shifted his mask upon his face to make sure it wouldn’t budge. He hated wearing it but now he was used to wearing such a thing. JSchaltt hated Dream’s face more than anything, his glowing green eyes being evidence of being related to his mother. He made a secret royal decree that Dream must wear a mask at all times, especially in his presence, so no one can see what a monster he gave birth to. If the country of Manburg found out that his son was a hybrid, Dream wouldn’t know what they would do. JSclatt hated hybrids and even outlawed them or made them become slaves. Many of the hybrids have escaped to Pogtopia, King Philza welcoming them with open arms, which is probably why King Schlatt declared war upon them in the first place.
He finally reached a pair of large doors and knocked upon it. He heard a rough voice saying to “come in” and Dream opened and shut the door behind him. There was a large table with the world map on it and a few figures on the map, probably meaning which forces are going where. There were six people in the room, one including King Schlatt, who looked at Dream in disgust. The others were the generals for each military unit, some who eyed Dream with annoyance and the others who looked at Dream as if he was nothing. Dream gave a curt nod to the generals and bowed to Schlatt and waved a hand for him to continue on with the conversation. JSchaltt rolled his eyes before he continued on with the debriefing.
“As I was saying, I want you two generals to take your units to the South and go through the trees. As for you, Quackity, you will take your unit straight to this village.” King Schaltt moved one of the pieces forward onto a flag mark. “I want you to kill anyone who resists but capture any hybrids there as well.”
Quackity nodded with excitement and Dream knew why since he had heard of General Quackity, second in command to King JSchaltt. Quackity was ruthless with sending hybrids to slavery and killing any who resist. He was known for being merciless which was why he got promoted so fast to being JSchaltt’s second in command. As soon as he gets an order to go ahead and raid a village of innocent people, which Dream already knows is a war crime, Quackity is more than excited.
“However,” JSchlatt starts and Quackity’s face full of glee turned to one of confusion. “I want you to bring my son with you.”
Shocked was an understatement. It wasn’t just Quackity who was shocked, all four generals and even Dream were shocked. It wasn’t unusual for Dream to be sent into war, he usually fights in the frontlines unlike many generals, but Dream was too merciful and Schaltt knew that. So why send him on a mission to capture hybrids and raid a village?
“King Schlatt, I-”
“Quackity .” It came out as a warning and Quackity shut his mouth immediately. “I know how you feel but this gives you an opportunity to teach prince Dream how to act in a war.”
For a few seconds, Quackity was lost in thought then he nodded.
“As you wish, my King.”
JSchaltt nodded. He continued on with the plan then told everyone to hurry and ready their units. However, Dream was told to stay and he did. Dream hated being alone with his father but he couldn’t say anything against a ‘King’. He bowed slightly.
“Yes, Father?”
“Do you know why I am deciding that you go with Quackity?”
“No, I-” Dream clears his throat because he knew how JSchlatt hated any uneasiness in his voice. “No I don’t, Father. Please enlighten me.”
“You are too tolerant.” Jschaltt states, arms crossed as he glared upon Dream’s mask. “Too lenient, too softhearted, too benevolent, too forgiving, too merciful .”
He spat out the last words and Dream flinched because he knew what his father was talking about. Unlike the other generals, when the other side surrenders, Dream tells them to drop their weapons then he sends them back to their own country. However, the other generals pretend not to hear them and continue on with the merciless killing and act like they never heard them ‘surrender’. There were also many other incidents where Dream showed too much ‘mercy’ to his enemies.
“I will do better.”
“Better? ”
Dream knew what was coming next. He shut his eyes, gritted his teeth, then he felt a kick to his stomach and he fell back upon the floor. He clutched his abdomen and stayed down on the ground.
“I want more than ‘better’, Dream. ”
“Y-Yes, Father.”
“Show no mercy.”
“Yes, Father.”
There was a few seconds of silence before JSchlatt sighed in frustration.
“Get up and go to Quackity. You will follow his orders. This is what I get for giving birth to such a fucking monster like you.”
JSchlatt left the room and Dream could finally let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. He tried to get up but he fell down again. Dream put his hands into fists and forced himself off the floor, biting his lip through the pain. It took a few moments before he recovered himself and stood up straight. Once he was up, he took his hand and there formed a soft green light. Dream looked around to make sure no one was watching and he took the green light in his hand and held it above his stomach. After a minute, his stomach had recovered and it was as if he wasn’t kicked in the first place and Dream made the green light in his hand disappear.
He had kept such a power a secret from everyone, especially his father. When he first found out he had such a power, it was after his father had beat him relentlessly when Dream accidentally forgot his mask in his room. Dream was 15 at the time. He was bleeding out and his father had left him in the room alone, no doctor to come for him. His father, before the man left, said that if Dream can not survive this, then he would never become a King. Dream panicked and desperately wished for something, anything, to help. He prayed into his hand for Prime to come help him, save him. Nothing came and Dream was still bleeding out until he felt something like a tingle in his hands. He focused more on that feeling rather than the pain everywhere on his body. When Dream opened his eyes, he saw the green glow in his hands. As if on instinct, Dream moved his hand to hover above his wound and he watched it repair and heal itself. It took awhile since this was Dream’s first time using his power but it closed up and Dream was able to stop bleeding. Dream knew that the power he got was because he was a hybrid and he knew he could never let anyone find out.
Taking a deep breath, Dream left the room and went to where Quackity was. Quackity was already instructing his men on what to do once they reached the village which was a week away. He saw Dream arrive and gave a nasty glare to him as he continued on.
“I will send a member of our group to spy upon the village and give us knowledge on the surroundings as well as conditions so we may proceed. Prince Dream, ” Quackity had a cunning voice paired with an unusual smirk as he said his name which made Dream shiver a bit. “I would like to nominate you if that’s alright, you can head out now then report back to us.”
Dream knew that Quackity was up to something but he couldn’t tell what it was. However, the last order that his father gave him rang in his head. ‘Get up and go to Quackity. You will follow his orders.’ Dream slowly gave a curt nod to Quackity and agreed to leave to spy on the village.
He packed light yet enough to last him for a while. None of the soldiers batted an eye as he passed, only some giving him a slight bow. He left the training ground for the soldiers and pulled out his compass and headed towards the village.
It was mostly grasslands with a few flowers then Dream reached the borders of Pogtopia and crossed it. After a mile or two, he finally reached a forest. The leaves on the trees were a dull green and the bark was a dark, rusted brown. Some leaves have fallen, Dream stomping upon it making a crunching sound as he trekked deeper into the forest. At this point, since he is far from Manburg, Dream has already taken off his signature mask and hidden it away. He had also dressed as an ordinary merchant to blend in. If the village sees him with his mask on, they will immediately recognize him as the prince of Manburg but if they see his glowing green eyes, they will see him as an escaped hybrid or that was what Dream was counting on.
After three days and two nights, sleeping in trees and traveling through rivers and forests, he reached the village. A trip that was supposed to take a week, took less than that and Dream made a mental note to tell Quackity later. There was a pathway and Dream walked alongside it as he now saw the village in view from the top of the hill. It was a small village and a cobblestone tower looking over the village with a guard standing there. When Dream reached the village, he probably knew that he looked like he was a runaway as he was covered in dirt and two villagers went to greet him immediately.
“Woah there! You don’t look so good!”
“You okay there kid?”
Two hybrids, Dream noted in his head. One, a boy who had fluffy black hair and was most likely a diamond ore-type hybrid based on some of his skin being a pure blue which was pretty rare. The other was a demon-looking hybrid, with two horns sticking out from his hood and he had white eyes with no pupils. Dream, on the travel here, already knew the questions and how he was going to lie to them.
“Yes- well- kinda… I’m from Manbur-”
“SHIT- YOU’RE FROM THAT HELL HOLE-”
“Language!”
The demon gently pushed the diamond hybrid back and gave Dream a look of… sympathy? Dream couldn’t really tell since he wasn’t familiar with it. The demon let out a long, tired sigh before continuing.
“Sorry about that, my name is BadboyHalo but everyone calls me Bad! This guy-” He gestures to the diamond ore hybrid with his tail. “Is Skeppy. He’s- uh- a little bit of a handful but means well.”
“Oh-” Dream nods. “Name’s Crow. I… I was escaping from- from the-” Dream tried to sound scared as if he was a kid who was running away for his life. “The knights who were trying to get me because my eyes were glowing- I- I tried to hide it like I usually do but they found out a- and they started ch- chasing me and-”
“Woah, slow down there, it’s okay.” Bad shifted to rub circles on Dream’s back. Dream flinched at the touch and didn’t know how to feel about it. He slowly nodded to Bad and he was taken inside one of the larger buildings which Dream thought could be a community house. He sat upon one of the beds in which Dream saw that the community house also worked as a clinic of some sorts. They gave Dream some mushroom stew and asked if he had any injuries. Dream replied he was fine, just shaken up. Bad nodded his head while Skeppy, who was standing a little to the side of Bad kept asking questions to Dream.
“So, Crow, right? Where in Manburg are you from? How did you hide your eyes until now? What kind of hybrid are you? I’ve never seen a hybrid with eyes like yours! I don’t know how to say this but you look more like a fighter than a merchant. Maybe it’s the physique?”
Wow. This guy named Skeppy is a bit of a handful like Bad said he was. Before Dream could even answer a single one of his questions, Bad had shooed him away.
“Enough Skeppy! He’s already tired enough!”
“But Baaaaaaaadddd-”
Bad rolled his eyes and continued to talk.
“You don’t have to answer any questions you don’t want to, Crow. Skeppy is just curious is all.”
“No, it’s fine. I would have also asked questions if someone new came to my cast-” He coughed. “ V-Village. It’s good to be cautious.”
Bad nodded. “Well, would you like to meet the rest of the village and look around? Everyone here probably heard of your arrival thanks to someone.”
As he said those words, Bad turned to a corner in the dark and squinted his eyes. Dream couldn’t see anyone but now that Bad was looking in the corner, he did feel some sort of presence. After a few seconds, he could hear someone scoff and they reappeared after drinking something. Out stepped someone who looked Dream’s age, maybe a bit taller too, who had black hair with a white bandana wrapped around his head. Dream would have mistaken him to be fully human if his glowing red-orange eyes didn’t tell a different story. This man, unlike Skeppy and Bad, seemed distrusting of Dream as he looked at Dream with an all too familiar expression. Disgust.
“Of course I told everyone! A stranger from Manburg appears from nowhere! Not to mention that Pogtopia is in the middle of war with Manburg! How are you not cautious, dad?!”
Looking at his son, Bad didn’t say anything and Dream knew why. It was because his son was right in a way. Bad should be more cautious, especially since there is a war going on between two countries and their village is right near the border.
“Enough, Sapnap.”
Instead of the carefree voice that he usually had shown, Skeppy was dead serious. Sapnap was shaken a bit but his expression turned back into anger as he stormed out of the community house. Skeppy gave an unamused look as he walked out then turned back to Dream with an awkward smile.
“Sorry about our son- he- uh- doesn’t take kindly to new people.”
“He has every right to be worried, do not apologize.”
After talking for a little while more, Bad decided to take Dream outside to meet the town folk who were already waiting outside the community house and he found out a few things. The village people were really, really, nice and treated Dream like one of their own. They gave him new clothes to change into rather than the dusty clothes he was in and multiple people offered many other things like medicines, potions, or even weapons which Bad told them to stop overwhelming the new guy. They were smiling and laughing, cracking jokes here and there and not one of them treated Dream as an outsider.
Dream now knew why Quackity wanted him to spy on the village. Quackity must have known this would happen. He wanted Dream to grow attached to these nice people, so when Quackity is killing them off and throwing the ‘special’ hybrids into cages, Dream would feel even more remorseful.
That fucking asshole .
Now, Dream was at a standstill. After meeting these people, he couldn’t bare the thought of them being torn to shreds or, even worse, sold in slave markets. Then again, Pogtopia was bound to lose the war and Dream could not stop it. Pogtopia with only an army of 10,000 could not stop Manburg who has more than 60,000 and, not to mention, more land which means more resources. He couldn’t stop it but he wanted to. Dream really wanted to help the village.
It was already becoming nightfall and Bad told Dream that he could stay in the community house. They said their farewells as Skeppy and Bad started to head toward their own house. Dream sat upon the side of the bed in thought. He was still thinking about what he could do. He can’t just reveal to the townspeople that General Quackity was coming to raid and murder them all. They’ll either not believe him or ask how Dream knew about this in which he can’t say that he is the prince of Manburg because that would probably get him killed.
I’ll leave a note. It will be up to them if they choose to stay or go. Dream ripped a paper out of a book and wrote down what was going to happen.
‘ Dear Bad and Skeppy,
Sorry I lied about mostly everything. My real name is not Crow and I can not tell you my real name. Please heed my words and gather everyone so you may abandon the village.
General Quackity is on their way with knights and cages to capture and kill any hybrids or people in this village.
Please leave immediately . I know you care for this village but people are more precious than a place that can be rebuilt. I’m sure Pogtopia has more troops if you travel further near the palace.
When you have read this message, burn this paper.
Sincerely, the wanderer with green eyes’
Dream hoped that would get through to them. He placed the note on the nightstand with the lantern next to it then gathered his supplies. Leaving the community house, Dream made sure that he didn’t leave anything behind as he silently made his way back towards the forest. He gave one last look back at the village and silently prayed to Prime that they would listen and leave.
It took two days this time to reach Quackity’s forces. Apparently they had already started heading out towards the village. Dream had his mask on as well as his green cloak and usual attire. Quackity gave him a scornful look before asking what news Dream had brought him. Dream tried to not let it show that he knew what Quackity planned. He wanted Dream to get attached , wanted to see Dream beg for Quackity to not kill the village people who were so kind to him. Dream reported the surroundings and how he could maneuver his way through trees and across rivers without being hassled every which way. When Quackity questioned anything about the village, Dream just shrugged his shoulders.
“I didn’t talk to them much but they seemed to be preparing for something.”
Dream hoped that lie was enough to tell Quackity that he didn’t know anything. Of course, Quackity had to keep asking.
“Something?”
“They wouldn’t tell me sir.”
Quackity side eyed Dream, as if he knew he was lying but brushed it off. It took two days and they finally reached the outskirts of the village. From afar, Dream couldn’t see any people and he silently hoped they listened to him and weren't just hiding in their homes.
Quackity told the troops to check every room, every closest, every nook and cranny to find anyone who may be hiding. On the contrary, it looked like every single house was ransacked and not a single item of value could be found. Beds were messy, drawers in the houses were left open, and there were empty stables where Dream could have sworn there were horses last time he remembered.
Dream entered the community house, as the soldiers didn’t do so yet, and checked inside. He went to the bed that Bad had let him stay on and looked to the lantern which was now turned off. Right by the lantern was a small pile of ashes and there laid two words carved into the wood, most likely done by a knife. It didn’t have the most beautiful handwriting but it did get the message across and Dream visibly smiled underneath his mask.
‘ Thank you ’
Next was yelling outside and Dream darted out of the community home to be met face to face with a very displeased General. He looked at Dream in fury and was blaming him for this messed up mission.
“General Quackity, I did no-”
“Oh shut it you stupid fucking Prince .”
Dream gulped as he took a step back and Quackity took two steps forward.
“I’m not sure what you did but now there are no prisoners and no village people to kill. You best believe I will tell your father about this.”
Dream’s eyes widened and he felt a slight tremble at the mention of his own father. Dream could heal himself, yes, but that does not mean he is fine with getting hurt. In fact, it’s the opposite. He hates getting bruised up or beaten up until he can’t breathe.
“G-General, they must have heard we were on our way! That must be why they were preparing for something! They were preparing to leave!”
Dream was rather thankful that he told that lie in the beginning because Quackity now looked like he was slightly convinced that the village had gotten the message some other way. He huffed and pushed Dream, making Dream fall onto the ground, then went back on his horse.
“Fine then. We’ll start heading further South until we meet the other troops who are heading towards the castle of Pogtopia. The other generals are expecting us at the Raven’s checkpoint. We will head straight there. New orders came in from King Schaltt, your father. We are going to behead the King, kill off the princes, and conquer Pogtopia. Remember that.”
He dusted himself off the ground, bit his lip slightly, and nodded to Quackity. He got onto his own horse, Spirit , and followed Quackity silently.