Dream a Nightmare

The smoke seemed to be taking forever to dissipate, holding the true reveal teasingly out of reach. Technoblade waited in tense silence. Ranboo walked up to him soon after the initial fusing, and he frowned at Mexican Dream standing to the side, but he didn't say anything. He knew there had to be a reason. The enderman always had a reason. Sometimes Technoblade wondered if it was really the smartest one here.

Technoblade shook his head. He didn't know where the enderman had come from, but it didn't matter. It was a friend, Ranboo had said when it first came, and that was enough for Technoblade. And there were more important things to do right now.

Technoblade, Ranboo, and Mexican Dream watched the smoke in a tense silence. It was definitely not normal smoke. Aside from the very obvious purple coloring, it had been at least five minutes and it was still there.

Then three more flashes came out of the smoke, in quick succession. The first was a lime green, the second was purple, and the last was... black, somehow. It was clearly light, but it wasn't. It seemed to almost be pulling in light, like a reverse pulse, but it was exactly the same as the others.

"Could you get any more cliche?" Wilbur asked, coming up behind them with Philza, Tommy, and Tubbo.

"If only there were some groaning sounds," Tommy joked. At that moment, as if on cue, a quiet groaning emanated from the smoke. Tommy and Tubbo looked at each other, and they both burst out laughing, but Technoblade quickly shushed them.

"This is no time for levity," he said. "We only have one chance at this. And it must be now."

Because god will not remain dead, was what he did not say. Even he could not truly kill god, but he could delay his return. However, even as it is, if they took too long, then it might very well be that he would return, and they would have missed their chance.

As he was thinking this, the smoke began to clear much more quickly than it had been. All within the space of a few seconds, it had gone completely. And kneeling on the ground, was one singular Dream, but more. One that was three. A triangle incarnate. One shape, three sides. One body, three minds. A Dream within a Dream.

/perspective shift Dreams

At first, all the world was a blaze of color. For a few moments, it felt as if they had only ever seen purple. But then everything slowly came into focus. As did their thoughts. They were three. But they were one. And yet....

And yet they were all the same person. There was truly only one. Himself. Him as he was. Dream. Dreams. His Dream. Ever since he was a child...

The man behind the mask. The legend that was a man. And, hidden within, the knowledge that it could have been anyone. But the mask was his.

His Dream. Himself. The Nightmare was gone. There was only Dream.

But then his memories caught up. He was being sent back, to the Nightmare. To what he had made. His creation. The master plan. And he doubted. Whether he deserved a second chance. Whether it would all be worth it. Or whether he would do the same thing again.

And then he looked up at the others. He could feel their emotions. They needed this. As much as he did, if not more. He was doing this for them. It was all of their second chance. Not just his. Technoblade. Ranboo. Wilbur. Tubbo. Philza. Mexican Dream. And Tommy.

Dream took in a deep, shuddering breath, and then he stood tall. He looked around at the others with a clear gaze.

"Well," Philza said, breaking the silence. "I think we're ready."

Each of them slowly came out of their trances. Dream looked down at himself. He was glowing and pulsing slightly. He was also half transparent. He raised his eyes to the others, and there was a determination burning there. He knew what he had to do. He was no longer a lost soul, drifting this way and that after death, with no direction.

He was Dream. And he would defeat the Nightmare.