Quackity led them out into the rain and they cut through L'Manberg while he explained.

"I've been planning this for a while, and everyone ignored me, but... I think it might come into use." Quackity said, looking a little uncertain. He led them under an alcove, cut out by where L'Manberg had been exploded, and broke two blocks that led to a long, dark hallway.

At the end of the hallway, a little light seeped in underneath a door. Quackity paused, waiting for Fundy and Tubbo to catch up, and regarded them briefly. Then, he pushed it open.

The walls were adorned with ugly, heavy paintings all depicting Technoblade in some state of torture.

"I hate traitors. I fucking despise them. And I hate anyone who hates our country, who tries to fuck us up." Quackity spat on the ground. "That's why I was so insistent that we couldn't let Dream... you know, let him fuck us over again."

Tubbo stared around at the paintings and let out a breath through his mouth. "Wow. That's... wow."

"I say we go for the person who's done the most physical damage to our country: Technoblade."

Fundy murmured his assent as Tubbo turned back to Quackity. There was nothing that Tubbo could do that would really erase the image of Tommy's shocked and betrayed expression, outlined by the stormy clouds building up that were now unleashing their despair on the land above their heads. But this... making a plan to slaughter Technoblade, it was something that Tubbo could control, something he could handle, and he jumped on the prospect immediately.

"I agree." Tubbo said, exhaling. "We're... fine with Dream right now. If we lie low and take out Technoblade first... anyways, that's the best course of action."

"Okay." Quackity took a deep breath. "So... let's just go after Technoblade."

Fundy nodded. "There's three of us against one of him. We can do it. I bet we could get a couple more people onboard with this plan, too."

"The butcher army," Quackity said, the words seeming to seal a deal as he finally voiced and named their plan.

"The butcher army." Tubbo repeated. He looked around again. "Big Q, I had no idea how much you had planned."

Quackity smiled wryly, and said nothing. "One rule, though. When we get there... no swords. Just axes."

"Okay." Fundy said with a shaky laugh. "We're doing this."

***

Tommy was startled when he heard footsteps but calmed down when he realized it was merely Ghostbur.

"Hey." Ghostbur said brightly.

"Hi." Tommy grumbled. After a pause, he began to complain. Perhaps it was a sign that he was feeling better, that he was complaining.

"It's been four months on this server, and here I am, in a dark cave, mining iron with stone tools." He groused.

"Yeah." Ghostbur agreed enthusiastically. "So am I?"

"Four months!" Tommy exclaimed, hitting the pickaxe into the rock a little harder than necessary. The pickaxe ricocheted and almost took out Tommy's eye. It passed straight through Ghostbur's body and clattered to the floor.

"Hm. Ouch. Was that supposed to hurt? It didn't." Ghostbur eyed the pickaxe sitting on the cave floor.

"I dunno." Tommy muttered.

"Well, I mean..." Ghostbur trailed off. "It's how the game is played."

Tommy didn't stop mining and didn't show it outwardly, but those words hit him harder than expected. In that dark cave, deep underground, his breath coming out in puffs as he repeatedly drove the pick into the unforgiving rock, he felt smaller than ever. He was just a player in the game, a pawn on the board. He gritted his teeth and stopped, pressing his forehead against the rock. Then, while the blows from Ghostbur's pickaxe muffled the sound, Tommy let silent sobs seize his body, and let everything out.

After a while, Ghostbur stopped mining and came over to awkwardly pat his hand through Tommy's hair. "It'll be alright." He said encouragingly.

Tommy wished.

***

Tommy didn't know whether or not to feel startled when Awesamdude showed up behind him as he exited the mines. Sam had an uncanny ability of showing up at random places.

"Sam." Tommy said stoically.

"I was looking for you."

The sun had already set. It had been almost twelve hours in exile, and this was when Sam had chosen to show up.

"Hi, Sam!" Ghostbur said brightly.

"I came to deliver you a message. This is an important message for you, Tommy."

"What?"

"I know you were sent away, and I'm sorry, but when you need someone, you know where to find me. My house is far from all of them, and you can come hide with me if you need a place to stay." Sam said quietly. "Be safe. It's... really sad to see the server tearing itself apart." He sighed.

Sam began to walk backwards. "I'll see you."

"Thank you." Tommy said seriously.

"Bye, Sam!" Ghostbur smiled. Sam nodded at Ghostbur, then at Tommy, and vanished once again into the hills.

Tommy and Ghostbur made their way back to the little dirt hut they'd built during the daytime.

"So we're staying here?" Tommy said, eyeing the walls with distaste. If he was going to be in exile for a while... at least he'd have some decent housing.

"Just for tonight." Ghostbur answered. "And then I'll build us a good house."

Tommy curled up on the barren bed that Dream had brought. Ghostbur hovered nearby, sitting on the furnace.

"What do we do?" Tommy asked the night sky. No one answered.

Somewhere in between sleep and wakefulness, in between the dull pain of reality and the sweet bliss of dreamland, Tommy came to a resolution: to end the war, to end it all, he'd need to do one thing: get back his discs.

***

The next morning, Tommy informed Ghostbur of his plan. "We need to get my discs back."

"Why? Why do they matter so much?" Ghostbur inquired curiously. Tommy paced back and forth as he waited for the iron ore he'd mined to smelt in the furnace.

"Because..." Tommy thought about it. "Because they're how the server started."

Ghostbur made a vague noise of understanding and began smelting his clay.

"Do you think they hate me now? Do you think that's why they exiled me?"

Ghostbur's eyebrows pulled down as he frowned. "I don't think so. I remember you did very good things for L'Manberg. I remember... you gave up something you loved very much for L'Manberg. Alivebur was so happy that day when you told him that."

Tommy looked at Ghostbur oddly. It was weird to hear Ghostbur talking about himself in third person, as though he had a completely new identity now. Although, perhaps, in death, in "ghosthood", one would gain a new identity, not unlike the way an adult gains a new identity in maturity and looks back at their childhood self almost as a stranger.

"Do you remember that, Tommy?"

Tommy looked at the flickering flames in the furnace, sinking down to a squatting position as he leaned against the wall. "I do."

"Do you remember when you had a duel, and you lost one of your lives to prove that L'Manberg was strong enough to stand on its own feet?" Ghostbur asked excitedly.

"I do."

"That was very cool. Even though you lost very quickly, you were still really cool, and it worked really well. And you gave up your other discs in order to take Schlatt down."

Tommy didn't want to remember that. He didn't want to remember everything he'd given up for the country just to be exiled in vain.

"You did very well, Tommy," Ghostbur reassured him. "Literally no one I can think of would laugh at you. No one on this server could possibly think you're a bad person or make fun of your failures."

Tommy didn't want to look at Ghostbur and instead picked at a spot on the hem of his shirt. "Thank you," he mumbled.

The only person who would show up in time to make a mockery of such a touching moment could be Technoblade, and that was exactly who turned up at the door. Really, what was it with Tommy's exile and all these people suddenly turning up?

Technoblade stifled a snort, and then began laughing without restraint. "The loser!" He exclaimed. Ghostbur turned to Technoblade and grinned widely.

"Hi, Techno!" He greeted Techno brightly.

Tommy shot up to his feet and glared plainly at Technoblade. "What the fuck are you doing here? Actually, I don't care. Leave. Leave. Now. Leave." Tommy felt in part embarrassed, but that would've meant he cared about Techno's opinions, which clearly couldn't be true, so he merely pointed out the door. "Leave."

"Do you want to come on tour with us? We're lads on tour!" Ghostbur invited.

"No! Don't invite him." Tommy stepped in front of Ghostbur.

Ghostbur frowned as he turned to Tommy. "Why not? I only have good memories with Technoblade."

"Oh, I'll give you some bad ones," Tommy said darkly.

"And Phil, though. Why can't we get the gang back together? Lads and dads on tour." Ghostbur giggled to himself, and Tommy made a face despite himself.

"Go away." Tommy muttered to Technoblade. "You're just here to mock us. We don't want you here."

"No, I like Technoblade!" Ghostbur protested, slipping around (or perhaps through?) Tommy's arm. "He's nice. He's awesome. I want him here."

Tommy sighed and aggressively shoved past Technoblade, resolving instead to ignore the pig's constant and obnoxious presence. "Wilbur, let's build our campsite now."

"Okay." Ghostbur jumped up eagerly. "You know, I was thinking, we could build it by the sea, that way we could easily boat out. You know, I want to go back to L'Manberg soon." He seemed very excited about his idea, and Tommy cast his gaze out past the horizon, trying to imagine the state of L'Manberg at the moment. They'd have already woken up and begun their day. What was Tubbo doing? What was the Cabinet doing? Was anyone grieving his leaving?

"I want to, too." Tommy said sadly.

"Then we can go back together!" Ghostbur smiled.

Tommy bit his lip and turned away from the sea. "I can't." Technoblade stifled another laugh, and Tommy glared at him briefly before following Ghostbur and listening to his plans.

"That sounds good." Tommy said vaguely without processing much of the information.

When Technoblade followed them, Tommy wheeled around on his heel and came to a stop. "Go away!" He said, voice trembling with frustration and annoyance. "Just go away!"

"No," Techno drawled lazily. "I think I'm rather enjoying... the show."

"Stop," Tommy protested. "Just go away. Why won't you go away?"

"I'm curious, and I would rather like to know... what are your plans going forward?" Technoblade asked with a lazy smirk as he leaned against a nearby tree. Tommy privately hoped that the tree would collapse on top of him and squash him into bacon, but one could merely hope.

"Why do you fucking care?" Tommy gave Techno a disgusted up and down.

"What do you think we should do for the design of our campsite?" Ghostbur consulted Technoblade.

"You could build a giant elephant?" Techno offered, and Tommy snorted.

"What?" Ghostbur said, laughing. "That's silly. That's ridiculous."

"Yeah," Tommy agreed pointedly. "You're ridiculous."

"Why don't you like Technoblade so much?" Ghostbur asked with a frown.

Tommy let out a frustrated sigh. "He's just here to taunt us! I don't want him around!"

"That is true." Techno interjected, at the same time Ghostbur said, "I don't care."

Tommy narrowed his eyes at Ghostbur for a moment, but decided not to make an enemy out of the poor ghost and possibly his last remaining friend at the moment.

"Techno, why do you hate Tommy?" Ghostbur asked in turn as he harvested more wood to clear the area.

"Well, he's just a tad annoying, and he pretty much causes all the conflict on this server due to his own recklessness. And then he usually blames me for it even though it's clearly his own fault." Techno offered. "Otherwise, I'm okay with him."

"The fuck are you talking about? You blew up everything with a wither."

Techno arched a brow. "You started a government," he countered, as if that was all the explanation needed. Tommy wasn't sure the argument was even worth arguing, and followed Ghostbur's example of harvesting wood.

"How's that government working out for you now, Tommy?" Techno said mockingly, and Tommy gritted his teeth.

"Why are you just standing and staring at me? Aren't you going to help any of us?" Tommy demanded, simply looking for some reason to argue, some reason to help distract himself from the fact that he was never going back to L'Manberg.

"Nah," Techno drawled. "This is much more fun."

"You know, we were going to ask you for help today," Tommy commented abruptly, realizing with a start that this was the person whose help he was going to have tried to employ. Maybe it wasn't so bad that he'd ended up getting exiled anyway.

Techno laughed. "You were going to ask me for help." He repeated incredulously.

"Yes," Tommy said sourly.

Techno took off his armor. "Look at me." He was wearing a light blue and white uniform, much different from his usual rich red robe, but the only thing Tommy could think of was to snatch up his sword and begin to slash at Techno. He only got two lousy hits in with his stone sword before Techno whipped out his netherite one and advanced on Tommy, holding him back with the tip of his sword as he redressed in his armor. The slightest trickle of blood ran down Tommy's neck, warm and unbidden, and Tommy's heart began to race. Even after all the events of that day, he did not want to die.

Techno looked at Tommy with hatred. "As I was going to say, before you tried to kill me, I have renounced my violent ways." Techno withdrew his sword and glared at Tommy. "I suppose that doesn't really matter." He said vaguely before going to join Ghostbur.

Tommy stared down at his hands and threw his pickaxe on the ground. His teeth gritted tightly in an effort not to scream at the heavens, and he sank to his knees. It was all so much.