wipe the blood off your face (it may stain)

A Shame, You Seemed An Honest Man

Tommy was pretty sure he was going to die under all the stress he was feeling.

There had been dozens of times where he had entered the Hero Tower feeling nervous or stressed. Those times were nothing compared to what he was going through currently.

Techno outright told Tommy he apparently knew his identity, which he doubted was true, but there was still that fear there, that what if his brother friend really did.

What could Tommy even say about it? He was Crimson. He was the enemy Wil feared more than anything. He was the Villain that threatened Phil. He was the monster that made three Heroes powerless.

It was like every time he made some sort of progress as a Villain, he was automatically making less with the SBI. It was three steps forward and two steps back. He was determined to get revenge, not just for his family, but for Fundy, for himself, and for his new family. He needed to show that if you hurt anyone he cared about, you would regret it.

He hoped that on the off chance that Techno did find out about who Tommy truly was, he would understand to at least some extent. Techno understood about Fundy, maybe he would understand enough let Tommy off scot-free.

It was unlikely.

He cared about the SBI. He wasn't ready to give any of this up. But his fate always seemed to be the same thing; being left alone.

"—Tommy?" Phil asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Were you even listening?" The avian looked like he was annoyed, but the fondness in his eyes betrayed how he was really feeling.

"Of course I was, Philza Minecraft. The only man ever." Tommy replied. "But repeat it for..." he looked around the room for anyone else, but it was empty. "You?" He finished with a squeaky tone. "You're, you know, old. So I wouldn't be surprised if you'd need to repeat it for yourself as a reminder."

Phil rolled his eyes. "Right," he scoffed, lacking any real anger. His face suddenly grew more serious, making Tommy straighten up in his seat. "There was an attack yesterday in the Hero Tower." He told Tommy. "It was bad. They stole all but four Alyptid dosages and they used it on the Dream Team."

Tommy feigned worry. "Who was the Villains that attacked?" He questioned, already knowing the answer.

"Jinx, Thorn, Crimson, and Lemon." Phil answered and gave a frown. "We've been trying to piece together the full story, but we have no idea how they got in or anything to do with the camera men. We assume the Villains threatened them into secrecy but..." he groaned. "It's been a bit much."

"I'm sure." Tommy hummed. "Is the Dream Team okay?"

"That was the other thing I wanted to talk to you about," Phil started with a sour face, as if he had just bitten a lemon. "There's going to be a huge meeting about it, I requested you to come in to take notes, to not only help me out, but also because I think it'll interest you. You were against Alyptid in the first place, I'm sure you'd love to hear what they're doing about it moving forward. I assume they will be talking about what they will be doing moving forward. They were the biggest Hero team."

"It's a shame," Tommy lied. "But I'm glad you're safe."

Phil smiled softly. "Thanks, Tommy."

He ignored his heart warming at a simple thank you. "So when will this meeting be?" Tommy asked.

"10:30. For now, we'll have you help do paperwork—" Tommy tensed. "—with Wilbur." He immediately relaxed again.

"Sounds good, big man." Tommy grinned shakily. Maybe he could just avoid Techno for the rest of his life. That shouldn't be so hard.