Chapter Text
Just because he lived with— and was being trained by— a wanted super villain, didn’t make him a bad guy, right?
Thomas Innett was just a very fortunate, or unfortunate, depending on how you looked at it, street kid that stumbled into the wrong alley one night. He met Dream through a one in a billion chance.
Tommy called it pure luck, but Dream always told him it was fate that they had met. Out of the multitude of kids, free from worried parents, running rampant through the city of L’manberg, he had met Tommy.
“Only fate would allow something like that, Thomas.”
Tommy, who was in every aspect, a stereotypical street kid at that point. One that was ready to run his mouth and swing his fists before a word was spoken by his opponent. It didn’t help that he had almost zero control over his powers when Dream had first met him, the man holding a knife to his throat until the boy ripped it from his hands with the use of his weakly harnessed abilities.
Dream knew right then, if the kid had the balls to pick a fight with him, then he was worth keeping around. The man had just been a low tier vigilante when he agreed to let Tommy live with him, an offer to borrow the couch for a few weeks turned into the boy having his own bedroom, but now vigilante was so much more.
A super villain. A wanted criminal. A menace to society, according to the local news.
According to Tommy, he was a hero. The only person who had cared enough to get him off of the streets, not indefinitely, but he gave him a dry place to sleep and unexpired food to eat.
In his eyes, Dream was his savior. He idolized the man. The media was wrong— they always were, just like Dream would tell him.
They saw hero’s as perfect people just trying to keep the world ‘safe’ when all the while they were leveling entire sectors with their fights against ‘villains’.
Ruining cars and blowing insurance fees through the roof.Dream told him the media had it all wrong. Hero’s didn’t want any change in the world, they wanted things to stay the same.
They wanted poverty and homelessness to continue. Citizens to grow weak and vulnerable so they still had people to rescue. Without weakness and an inability for the people to protect themselves, there would be no use for heros.
Villains, on the other hand, needed no one. They didn’t need citizens to be weak to control them. All people like Dream wanted was to make the world a better place. To see obedience from citizens so there was no need for violence, no need for heroes or police.
They just got labeled the bad guys because they wanted change. Change that would eliminate a need for heroes. Apparently, they weren’t ready to be put out of business.
Dream wasn’t either, so maybe that was why his villain persona was a wanted criminal.
Pretty badass, if you asked Tommy
He planned on following in Dream’s footsteps to be just as cool as him, if not cooler. But that involved working his ass off to get where his mentor was.
That also meant waking up with bruised skin and aching limbs every night after patrol.
Tommy huffed a small sound of pain as he took a seat at the three legged kitchen table, which originally had four legs, but after a certain incident with one of Dream’s fire wielding friends, it’s fourth leg had been replaced with a stack of books.
It was like an oversized game of jenga every time he had to take one of those said books away to use for school, and then find one to slip into its place.
The table and it’s contents had toppled onto the floor nearly enough times that Tommy had almost broken the other three legs off in frustration.
Fortunately, they had been spared to live through another breakfast.
Cinnamon Toast Crunch wasn’t his first choice of cereals, but Dream hadn’t allowed him to go to the grocery store for the past few weeks to replenish his stash of lucky charms. Something about Tommy not needing so much sugar and unnecessary carbs in his diet. Hero’s didn’t binge eat a load of sugary cereal for breakfast and hope to win fights.
That was one thing that Dream had always called himself. A Hero. Even when Tommy first met him, when Dream was just starting off as a vigilante, he called himself a hero. Never a villain or vigilante. He truly believed that he was making the world a better place, cleansing the city. Waiting for the morning where a new dawn would rise and L’manburg would be pure again.
Tommy hoped that day would be coming soon. He was getting really tired of waking up to another dull day in L’manburg with the view of the smog covered city.
“What did I say about eating cereal for breakfast?” Dream quipped as he entered the kitchen, a hoodie pulled high over his head. His back turned to Tommy so that he couldn’t catch a glimpse of his blurred features. That was one of the most startling things about Dream. His powers— abilities, if you will.
Mind manipulation. It wasn’t necessarily a rare or extremely useful ability, but if one trained enough and reached their full potential, they could easily become a threat to mankind. They would be as dangerous as Dream.
The man could slip into your mind and manipulate your entire reality without you knowing. Of course, there were limits to his powers. He couldn’t keep a grasp of your mind forever, but it was frightening once you understood what he was truly capable of. He could manipulate you into betraying your best friend, completely against your will, but there would be nothing you could do to prevent it.
Ironically, mind manipulation was Dream’s only ability. Unlike many super villains or hero’s, he had no physical enhancements. He had trained for years so that he could rely on his completely human physique during battle and not just his mental capabilities. He believed that Tommy should do the same, if he wanted to be his sidekick one day. His partner in crime.
“There’s nothing else in the pantry, big D,” Tommy said around a mouthful of soggy cereal. His mentor-in-crime turning around to give him a sharp look. Somehow, without any distinguishable facial features, he still managed to look annoyed.
“I will make you jump out the nearest window if you call me that again,” Dream grit out before turning back to the fridge to search for something edible.
“Fine, sorry,” Tommy muttered, bowing his head reflexively. He wouldn’t put such a thing past Dream.
When Tommy had first met the man, young adult, really, he had been weak and vulnerable. A scrawny orphan that was just learning how to fight with his fists. Barely able to use his abilities.
All gangly limbs and sharp angles, fluffy hair and a baby face. Resembling a baby deer learning to walk during his first ‘training lesson’ with Dream.
Tommy was lucky he had been able to walk in a straight line after that, honestly, he was lucky he could even stand. He could still remember the dull throb of a concussion after Dream swept him off his feet. Toppling the preteen to the ground where he slammed into the mat. Face first.
After that it was a blur, but he did remember Dream cradling him in his arms. He remembered being carried to the pullout couch and being swaddled under blankets as Dream told him to stay awake.
Tommy complied with drooping eyelids, cuddling into the man’s side as the room went dim after Dream had shut the blinds.
“I’ll put on a movie, alright? Try to stay awake and watch that,” Dream hummed as fingers brushed back matted blond hair.
He thought he might have called Dream dad, but things faded to black after that. He didn’t remember any other details.
Fortunately, Dream hadn’t forced him into another training lesson. Not until Tommy had put on a little more weight and height. Enough that a surprise breeze wouldn’t knock him off of his feet.
Still, their next lesson hadn’t ended any better. Dream’s abilities were too strong of a match for even some of the best heroes.
There was a lot that one could do with the ability of mind manipulation. Dream was practically able to control anyone he wanted, get any outcome he desired, by just slipping into another person’s mind. Slowly, at first, so they wouldn’t notice. Whispers of persuasion and tempting words at first, stroking their conscious like a wary dog in an animal shelter until he had completely tamed it. Taking over in mere minutes, allowing his plan to unfold.
That was how he had gotten full guardianship over Tommy, convincing social services that he was a fit foster parent. That was also how he managed to get Tommy enrolled in school without many complaints or concerns on the staffs part. Paperwork be damned.
Of course, the school the teenager had gotten into was all thanks to Tommy’s incredible intelligence. None of Dream’s twisted persuasion had been used. L’manburg School of Science and Technology.
The boy may be a little lacking in the department of common sense, but his skills with tech were absolutely astounding. He had been the one to build his first suit, which sure, the stitching of the fabric sucked, but every part had been hand crafted by the teenager. His goggles programmed to allow him a full map of L’manburgs 14th district. The earpiece’s he created, rewired AirPods he may or may not have stolen, with Dream’s help, allowed them both to listen in on police radios while also easily have communication with one another. Unfortunately, it also allowed Dream the ability to manipulate him when they weren’t nearby.
For Dream’s abilities to work, his target had to hear him. Not the entire time, but to first gain control of someone, they had to hear his voice. Just until he could get ahold on their conscious.
Tommy only had slight regrets on creating those earpieces.
The teenager decided to keep silent as Dream silently stalked through the kitchen, making himself a mug of black coffee before finally sitting heavily in chair across from Tommy. A pamphlet tossed onto the table between them.
“Your school sent this in the mail.”
“What is it?” Tommy piped up as he reached across the table, picking up the paper with a frown.
“Your first solo mission, as my sidekick.”
Tommy froze, his mouth falling open as his eyes darted between Dream and the paper. Opening it slowly as he let his eyes scan the lines until he managed to make out a coherent paragraph.
’Antarctic Industries is seeking summer interns to provide support through an educational experience and hands on learning with some of the biggest names in the tech industry! If interested, please speak to your counselor or contact Antarctic Industries directly through the information listed below.’
Tommy was speechless, staring at the words that he could hardly understand.
An internship. At Antarctic Industries. Created by Philza Minecraft himself. The Angel of Death— well not literally, but that was what people called him. The man who had created the weapons that quickly swept the streets of L’manburg. Items that could hinder abilities completely useless. Sent out and created to stop vigilantes and villains in their tracks. Taking them down one by one.
“Dream, you can’t be serious.”
“I am.”
“What— how is this a mission? This is fucking amazing! I could be an intern at Antarctic industries? I’d get to see the labs? The workshops? Oh my—“
“No.”
“....what?”
“You’re a smart kid. Put the pieces together. I know you’ve got the brain to get into the program,” Dream began the blurry angles of his face shifting as he leaned back in his chair, arms crossed over his chest. “I want you to go in undercover, as a spy, of sorts. I’m going to find the weakness and get those fucking cripplers off of the streets, and then take down all of SBI. Once and for all. I’m— we’re— the only hero’s this world needs, Tommy.”
“What?” Tommy squeaked again, his eyes blown wide in shock.
Dream wanted him to get an internship at a place he had dreamed of working for since he was a toddler— for a hero he idolized— all to be a spy? To destroy the company from the inside, out?
“You, Tommy Innett, are going to help me destroy SBI. We are going to knock them off of their high-fucking-horse. We’ll show them that hero’s can come from anywhere. We’re not just street scum out here”
“Dream....”
“Do you want them finding out about you? Surely learning that there’s a Scavenger roaming the streets that has somehow inherited abilities would be quite a jackpot for this cities hero’s. Would you like to become a zoo exhibit, Tommy?”
At the mention of his species, Tommy bared his sharp teeth. Lip curling with an expression akin to a sneer. Surprisingly, for a raccoon hybrid, considered a Scavenger since his species was so low on the class chain, Tommy didn’t possess very many physical traits. Not like most hybrids.
His canine teeth were sharp and pointed like fangs, but not in the same way most dog-like hybrids were. The most prominent feature was the skin discoloration around his eyes and finger tips. Vitiligo, as Dream had called it. His skin color lighter, almost tinted pink, around his eyes, resembling a domino mask. His finger tips the same way, like gloves were covering them.
Dream wasn’t a fan of the traits, but it could’ve been worse. Tommy didn’t have ears or a tail like others of the same species, not yet, at least. He still had some animal instincts, as all hybrids did, but he was getting better at controlling them. Along with his powers.
He had no other way of proving himself worthy of being Dream’s sidekick unless he was fully in control of his abilities like the man himself.
This solo mission was his big chance at finally impressing the man.
The air was heavy with tension as Tommy stared at the pamphlet in his hands.
“Fine.”
“Fine?”
“Yes sir,” Tommy spat out, tossing the pamphlet back onto the table between them. “I’ll help you take down SBI.”
As much as Tommy wanted to experience the excitement of his childhood dreams, he knew that those thoughts had to be left in the past. They were just dreams and fairytales. What he wanted didn’t matter anymore. He had to prove to Dream that he was worthy to be his partner.
If that meant infiltrating SBI through Philza Minecraft, then that’s sure as hell what he was going to do.
Raccoon hybrid or not, he was going to be the best damn spy this side of L’manburg had seen.
He’d just have to keep his abilities under wraps. Not for Dream’s sake, but for his own.
Tommy’s abilties....were definitely something special. Most hybrids weren’t known to have any sort of powers outside of their enhanced senses and sharp talons or fangs. Philza, one of the worlds most renowned hybrids, only had his wings to aid him. They allowed him to fly, and use his feathers as projectiles, but nothing beyond that. Tommy was just a lab experiment waiting to happen.
His powers went far beyond anything his raccoon ancestry should allow. For Tommy, he had the ability to quite literally mimic and steal any other powers. The metaphor of fighting fire with fire meant nothing to the teenager. Sometimes a person’s biggest weakness was their own abilities.
He learned that early on with Dream, but that had earned him his first broken limb. He didn’t like to talk about that.
As long was he was within a couple of yards of another person who was actively using their abilities, or he could pick up on their power’s current, he could mimic them. Like a parrot repeating a phrase it had just heard, or a raccoon stealing from the garbage bins out behind a restaurant.
If someone with pyrokinesis was nearby and trying to set him aflame, he could return the favor with ease. If someone was using their super strength in an attack against him, he could counterattack them with the same amount of strength, if not more due to his hybrid enhancements.
Dream called him a super weapon. Said once he had reached his full potential, he would be a hero, just like himself. Unstoppable. He would no longer be working the streets as a vigilante— Dream still wouldn’t allow him to be a sidekick— but he could be his own hero. Apart from Dream, but the man said they would work better as partners. Tommy had agreed.
He was nothing without Dream. Maybe a little more free, but he’d rather have rules than be on the streets all alone again.
Speaking of rules, there was a long list of them that Tommy was required to follow, but the first was the one he followed blindly. Without complaint.
He wasn’t allowed to use Dream’s powers. That was the biggest rule. There was no other way to stop Tommy from breaking that rule other than using a crippler— which Dream had only done a time or two— but he had always obeyed. Never once did he break that rule, not after the first incident. Besides, Dream would know. He would feel Tommy slipping inside his mind and be able to fight him off. Tommy wasn’t skilled enough to go unnoticed by Dream, and he probably would never be able to do so.
Not unless he managed to reach the same level his mentor was at.
Right now though, he was just a vigilante. Dream was making him start at rock bottom. As the laws in the city stood, vigilantes were illegal. They were just as bad as villains, apparently, and the entire group, the ones that stood in that middle-grey-area of morals, were slowly being plucked off the streets. The thirteenth district had already lost three of their well known vigilantes in the past two weeks, many others falling to a similar fate. No one knew where they were being taken, or if they were still alive.
Of course, no one knew if they were being taken by hero’s or a completely different set of people. All that vigilantes and villains knew was that cripplers were becoming more and more common, and vigilantes and low-life criminals were quickly becoming endangered. Tommy was included on that list.
He didn’t have an alter ego name yet, but he liked the secrecy. The mystery.
He worked tirelessly to protect the fourteenth district now that Dream had moved onto bigger things, and word of the new vigilante was quickly spreading through the streets. Clothed in red and black and white. Quick as a whip, and agile as a professional gymnast.
No one knew what his powers were. One minute he was strong as an ox, and the next water would appear in the palm of his hands. Dream told him he had to be more careful about borrowing powers, his ability was unique and he needed to keep it hidden. There were ways people could use it against him. Especially if his hand to hand combat didn’t improve.
Tommy brushed him off in favor of getting more patrol time. He could listen to Dream’s lectures another day.
By the time night fell in the city, Tommy was already dressed in his wannabe hero costume. Pulling up his hood after he had slipped his mask into position. Balancing on the windowsill as he warily gazed out at the fire escape and the street below.
He didn’t want any neighbors or late night stragglers to see him climbing out of an apartment window. Vigilante secrecy and all of that.
Tommy’s uniform was a mishmash of what he’d found at the thrift store a few blocks away, patches sewn over holes he’d acquired in knife or fire fights.
An oversized hoodie kept him warm in the frigid weather and rain, the athletic leggings he wore beneath a pair of black basketball shorts allowed for plenty of agility. His running shoes had duct tape holding them together, but he planned on buying a new pair soon, or permanently borrowing a pair from Ranboo.
The latter option sounded more appealing.
As for the mask he wore, it was specially suited to cover his hybrid trademark. Well, he said specifically suited, but he had created it while sitting on the fire escape of Dream’s apartment at midnight. His old laptop propped open so he could finish the final touches on it.
To shield his entire face, Tommy had chosen to use a ski mask made out of thin, breathable material. He was pretty sure the previous owner had probably robbed a bank or two in it, but that was neither here nor there. It worked out great to hide his identity. Other than the two eye holes that were a bit of a dead give away for his identity.
He was lucky that his mouth was hidden from view by the material, but the skin around his eyes was something that could be a blatant give away.
So, as any smart person would do, he’d broken a pair of sunglasses and superglued the lenses to the inside of the mask. It wasn’t the most fashion forward, but it was functional.
Until he’d nearly stabbed an eye out when one had become unglued. After that close call, Tommy created a pair of goggles instead. Swim goggles to be exact, but with a twist. He had managed to create a device on his laptop, with Ranboo’s assistance, that displayed a map of the city that wrapped around into his peripheral vision. It wasn’t very convenient at first since he didn’t have enough information logged, but after a month of patrols with the new tech, he had easily mapped out quick escape routes, dead ends, and places with high surveillance that he was sure to avoid.
It was his best invention to date, but it just sucked that he couldn’t proudly show it off. Not to Dream, and especially not to his school or the public. For now, it was a secret between Ranboo and himself.
The final feature of his costume was a panic button that was connected only to Ranboo. If Tommy managed to get into a situation where he was completely stuck or in dire need of help, he could hit the button and Ranboo could track his exact location. Without using the button, no one could track him. Not even Dream.
Thank God.
Tapping the earpiece beneath the mask, the sound of police chatter crackled to life. Dream was in district one for the night, scoping out Antarctic industries for Tommy’s “safety”, which meant he wasn’t using any audio communication. It was one of the rare nights Tommy got to fight crime all on his own.
No one around to tell him what to do.
Since Dream lived on the top floor, it was an easy feat for Tommy to hoist himself up onto the roof. His long, claw like finger nails digging into the brick. The view of the city from the apartment rooftop was magnificent. The building was just tall enough to peak above the others in the district, giving Tommy a hazy view of lights from the next few districts over. It would be serene if it weren’t for the car alarms and shouts that seemed to be an everlasting symphony of sounds within the city.
“May the force be with me,” Tommy huffed out the quote from one of his favorite films, slowly hopping to the next rooftop with light steps.
He quietly slinked across the buildings until he ran into his first dilemma of the night. A group of masked thieves attempting to rob a twenty-four hour convenience store. The one about two blocks from Tommy’s own apartment— the one that sold the best gummy sharks.
“Not today, bitches.” Tommy found a route down to the ground with ease. His sneakers and socks already damp from the puddles he had stepped in, the squish of his socks making him slightly uncomfortable as he silently headed towards the shops entrance.
With his head ducked low, he looked like a normal civilian entering the twenty-four hour shop for a late night snack, but oh boy were the robbers in for a treat.
He pushed at the poster and advertisement covered door, but found himself facing some sort of resistance. At first he assumed it was a person, but with another shove he was inside with ease. Huh. That was odd. These guys had to be newbies.
“Oh,” Tommy feigned surprise in his voice as he stepped into the shop. Ever pair of eyes turning to him. Guns and knives suddenly drawn in his direction.
“Damnit Ricky! You were supposed to be guarding the door!” A heavy northern accent spat, a glock leveled in Tommy’s direction.
Not even a hello, how impolite.
“Boss—“
“Geez big man, lettin’ the boss down?” Tommy hissed through his teeth, raising his head enough that his masked face was now visible. Clunky goggles and all. “Ricky, was it? I’m gonna go out on a limb and say this is your first day—“
“No! But he—“
Tommy didn’t let him finish that thought before he was sweeping a hand out to knock the gun from the man’s hand. One of them was a wind bender, that must’ve been what had caused the friction when pushing the door open.
Smart, but not smart enough.
Ricky. He was the one with powers. His eyes widened another inch as he was suddenly unarmed, now struggling to fight Tommy off with his powers. Unfortunately, that only strengthened the teenage vigilante.
He leeched off of every ounce of effort the man put forth into using his abilities.
“Sorry man, but I really like this shop,” Tommy quipped as the pack leader was suddenly swept off his feet with a gust of wind. Stumbling over a display of chips and crashing to the ground.
This had to be their first rodeo.
Tommy’s fatal flaw was his cockiness. He knew it was going to catch up to him one day, and in a lot of fights, it easily seemed to. That’s how, when he went to bask in his easy victory of bring two men to the ground, he got a sharp swipe to the side of his face.
Great. Dream wouldn’t be happy about that one.
“Whoa! Didn’t think you guys were the type for hand-to-hand,” Tommy said in surprise, regaining his footing to spin around and face the one man left standing. Boss man was still on the ground and Ricky was checking on him. The third accomplice didn’t seem as willing to go down.
“You talk too much shit,” the third man growled as he charged at Tommy again. His broad, bulky build made him slower and his moves more predictable, Tommy able to dodge him with ease. Attacking instead with a sharp punch to his temple, another gust of wind to tip him off balance.
Ricky was still using his powers to control something.
Tommy didn’t have time to figure out what that was as suddenly sirens were echoing down the streets and red and blue lights blinked outside the windows.
The boys in blue.
The popo.
Not people Tommy wanted to deal with. They weren’t fond of street scum like himself.
Luckily, the elderly man who worked in the shop had already managed to escape through the back during the chaos, relieving Tommy of the burden of dealing with normal civilians while in his hero get-up.
Chuckling to himself, Tommy hopped up onto the counter and gave the three flustered and beaten robbers a quick salute. “Have a good day, boys! Tell the cops I said hello, yeah?”
“You aren’t going anywhere!”
Oh right. Wind.
Tommy found himself tipping backwards, hitting the tiled floor as the air was suddenly knocked from his lungs. Oh shit.
That’s what he got for being cocky.
“Fuck you,” the raccoon hybrid coughed as he struggled to sit up, expecting to see one of the masked criminals to be staring down at him. Instead, he was met with the very confused gaze of a red eyed hero.
Blade.
Oh shoot.
Oh shit.
When did he get here?
“Uh.....ciao?” Tommy meekly said, using the edge of the counter to hoist himself to his feet. His masked face mere feet from one of the cities top hero’s who had his weapon drawn.
Damn that axe looked dangerous as hell, but oh so tempting to reach out and gentle caress...
He was getting a little off track drooling over a hero’s weapon. Back to the problem. A hero. At the scene of a lousy robbery
What was Blade doing here— before the police?
“Who are you—“
The Demi-god didn’t have a chance to finish his thought before Tommy was sprinting for the back exit. His feet carrying him across the familiar route until he was climbing up onto a dumpster to give him leverage in scaling the rest of the short building. His arms tired and palms scratched by the time he’d finished his clumsy and hurried ascent.
Embarrassingly, once he’d finally made it to the rooftop, he realized that the hero was no where to be seen. He hadn’t chased him. Somehow, that was even more concerning than him actually following.
Blade was one of the members of SBI. A group of hero’s tied to Antarctic industries— the same group Dream wanted to destroy.
If heroes were going to become a more common occurrence on the streets of the rougher districts, Tommy was going to have to do a lot of rethinking to his patrol schedule and route.
If— when— he became an intern at Antarctic Industries to fulfill is first mission, he was sure he would see many hero’s other than just Philza. Keeping Dream and his own alter ego’s protected was top priority. That meant evading capture as a vigilante at all costs. It almost meant he was going to be in a load of shit when Dream found out he had already crossed paths with a hero on patrol.
Tommy would have to do some research to see why the hell a top league hero was all the way out in the fourteenth district. Especially on the scene of a low level crime.
Maybe Dream would know, but he really didn’t feel like asking and dealing with that lecture.
Tommy would try to remember to ask, at some point. But first, he needed to get some ice on the quickly forming bruise on the side of his face.