Tommy had a lot on his mind as he walked down the sidewalk. On the more emotional end, Clay's lecturing (and abuse) was reeling in his mind. Clay's final words about how Tommy had a choice to make kept ringing in his ears on loop because Tommy didn't know what choice he would be making. He was disappearing without informing anyone about where he was going for an indefinite amount of time to investigate the man he had sworn to be loyal to. To make matters worse, Tommy was going back to his past. He was going back to the place he swore he would never return to once he had left. Tommy didn't know if he was supposed to feel regret, nostalgia, apprehension, or something else entirely. It wasn't like there was a tutorial for this sort of thing. Tommy considered going to a therapist, but he wasn't sure if he was going to be able to afford that. Or if his pride was going to let him sit down across from a therapist. If Tommy had to describe his emotional state, he would use the same phrase that he used to describe his powers: chaotic without cause.

In the material world, Tommy was stuck with an uncomfortable outfit with slightly aching ribs and a rubbed red neck. He was shaking off the aftereffects of his panic attack that left his hands trembling and his eyes searching for every light source around him. Tommy avoided every shadow, and the crowds on the sidewalk made him want to throw up in the nearest trashcan. Instead of doing that, Tommy pulled his hood down lower while keeping a steady, inconspicuous pace. He was hoping that anybody who looked at him would see an edgy teenager in no rush to get anywhere. They wouldn't know that he was an undercover sidekick going rogue with some of his friends because he was suspicious of his hero's intentions with another hero. Tommy chuckled under his breath at the irony.

Tommy recognized the group because of Ranboo's unique appearance. He was wearing a hat over his hair but a few strands fell down. His eyes had faded into a unnatural shade of purple, and the colors of the skin went completely black like a real Enderman. Ranboo remained just as tall and lanky with an air of awkward kindness around him that was unmistakable even with the magic of a disguise. Beside him was Tubbo who was wearing a purple blocky jacket over black cargo pants with a huge backpack on his back. Purpled was wearing a visor with a gray hoodie that hid his bulletproof vest and boots that concealed hidden blades. The three stood near the corner of two sidewalks meeting at a perpendicular angle. Tommy looked them all up and down now that he was closer. He was able to see that Ranboo's cloak had flames sown on the bottom. "Why do you look different? You look hot... er. Uh, red."

Tubbo nearly fell to his knees with laughter. Purpled held a hand over his barely restrained smile. Ranboo had a purple blush against his cheeks while he sputtered with laughter and words that wouldn't form. Tommy's face went a brilliant shade of scarlet as he tried to understand why that had been the first thing to come into his head. Ranboo finally composed himself to take a small bow. "Thank you, thank you."

Tommy released a tight smile as his fingers grasped the edge of Ranboo's cloak to get a better look at it. The craftsmanship was lackluster, but it was clear that someone had really tried hard to make it with the best of their abilities. Tommy trailed his hands along the thread around the edges. Tommy pursed his lips as he felt the uneven ridges. Ranboo had been staring at him the whole time in visible confusion didn't expect Tommy to say that the next chance he got, Tommy was teaching Ranboo to actually sow. Ranboo was about to respond when Purpled said it was time to go.

The walk to Pogtopia wasn't long, but it was clear how the districts degraded the farther they got from the main hub of L'Manberg and the capital district of Greater. Tommy kept his gaze away from the dilapidated buildings to ward off any unwanted memories from that district. His hand brushed against a cement wall that he had a clear memory of being thrown into in a fight with Banshee. Tommy lingered at that building as he saw a splattering of dried blood that would look like paint to anyone else. Tommy reached for it, but he felt someone grab his hand. Tommy looked up to see Ranboo standing there with a concerned frown, and Tommy hesitated to do anything. He almost wanted to explain. There was an urge to tell Ranboo every gory detail of that particular fight until Ranboo was begging him to stop. Tommy closed his mouth before he started doing that. He yanked his hand away from Ranboo's grasp to follow Tubbo and Purpled, who hadn't even noticed that Tommy and Ranboo had fallen behind. They weren't behind for long because Ranboo touched Tommy's shoulder. Before Tommy could flip him off, the two of them were right behind Tubbo and Purpled. Tommy slid away as the pain of spacial displacement ricocheted through his body. Ranboo rubbed a comforting hand on Tommy's shoulder as the blonde felt a sharp stabbing in his ribs. No one said he had healed all the way from his encounter with Minotaur and afterwards with Clay.

"Ranboo, the two of us are going to try talking to the bouncer. Tubbo, Tommy, stay here," Purpled said, looking to see the other three. His gaze lingered on Tommy's paled skin and Ranboo's hand on his shoulder. Purpled might have said something about that subject, but Ranboo was tugging him towards the bouncer before he had the chance. Ranboo and Purpled went down the alleyway, leaving Tommy and Tubbo alone a good distance away. Tommy stared after them, body towards Tubbo but head turned to gaze at where the other boys were going. If he had been paying attention, he would have noticed Tubbo stepping closer. Since he wasn't paying attention, though, he didn't know how close Tubbo was until the brunette started speaking.

"I, well, I wanted to thank you in person. You didn't need to step in when Minotaur and I were fighting, but you did your best to protect me. So, thank- what is that?" Tubbo began but his voice began dripping with worried confusion. Tubbo's hand came up to touch Tommy's neck where he saw a rubbed red line across the skin with light bruising around. Tubbo touched before Tommy could warn against it. At the touch, a neon green string illuminated beneath Tubbo's fingertips. Tubbo trailed where the string would logically be to find that it was actually there. Tubbo continued until he was holding the string in both hands a good foot away from Tommy's neck. Tubbo looked back at Tommy with a saddened frown. "Dream's strings. They're attached to you... why? What does he do that he needs to have permanent control over you? What does he do to you?"

Tommy didn't look Tubbo in the eyes. He couldn't bring himself to stare into those worried eyes. It wasn't like Tommy was going to lie, but something about the bittersweet truth of the matter felt wrong in a way that Tommy didn't completely understand. Tommy breathed out as a means of answering, but he felt Tubbo uncomfortably fretting around him. Tommy closed his eyes as he whispered to Tubbo. "Dream is my friend."

Tubbo didn't get to answer as Purpled and Ranboo came back with good news. Tommy went towards them without bothering to wait for Tubbo. The brunette chased after him, but Tubbo didn't get to give his opinion on the Tommy-Clay situation. The four of them went inside the backdoor of an old building that was much livelier on the inside than the outside. As soon as Tommy stepped inside, he was hit with the stench of alcohol and sweat. Tommy kept himself from gagging as loud music assaulted his ears with neon lights spinning around from the rafters like the lights didn't know who to focus on. For some Primeforsaken reason, Tommy felt memories spring up in his head of this same building many years ago when it wasn't as popular.

"Sign up over here, boys!" A woman yelled at them from over the music and sounds of people bodying each other. The four of them wandered over to her table. She was smiling at them while handing Purpled the clipboard to write on. She seemed to be talking to them, but Tommy couldn't hear a word of what she said. He was given the clipboard after Tubbo had written his information down. Purpled and Tubbo both chose codenames. Purpled went with Alien, and Tubbo wrote down Shulker. Tommy tapped the pen against the paper before he went with the codename Theseus. It was his original name in that place, anyways. He passed the clipboard to Ranboo. Purpled, Tubbo, and Tommy started walking into the Pit, and Ranboo scrambled down to write down his information to catch up with them.

Purpled and Tommy were brought into a hug. Tommy nearly pushed the person away until he realized it was their informant inside the Pit. She had long, redwood brown hair that was braided across her back. Her bangs were held back by black rimmed goggles with an amethyst purple tint to the glass. She had a pale maroon blouse with a black bodice and darker maroon sleeves and skirt. She had black boots with two dark metal chains from a medallion at her heart that wrapped around to her back. There was a Totem of Undying right beside a scabbard with her sword in place. She was smiling at them with a kind familiarity that was out of place at the Pit. She took a step back to look them all over with her gloved hands on her hip. "It has been years, and you two haven't changed in the slightest!"

Tommy grimaced as he remembered Hannah, or her Pit name: Rose. She had been a child when they had met. Hannah had been a mute slave who was stolen from her home in the forests outside the Essempei to serve as a plaything for the highest bidder. Banshee must have seen value in her because Hannah became his property. Hannah was promptly dropped off at where the younger fighters lived and trained for their fights. Tommy had taken pity on the near toddler. He taught Hannah what he knew of the blade, and she absorbed the knowledge spectacularly. Hannah was a natural, a highly skilled individual that would achieve greatness with refinement. This is why Tommy brought Hannah to his only friend in the Pit, an orange hoodie wearing boy who clung to an old Santa cap. Hannah flourished under that boy's tutelage, and that was the last Tommy ever saw of the Fae-human hybrid. Tommy didn't keep in touch when they were in the Pit, and he didn't have a means to when he was taken out while she remained. He could only guess that Hannah met Purpled at some point, and that she was doing well for herself in the Pit.

"We're here on a mission, Rose. Let's leave the smalltalk for when we aren't on a time limit," Purpled whispered to Hannah for the group. Hannah pouted slightly but she turned to lead them to where they needed to go. She shuffled close to an outer wall made of cinder bricks. Hannah turned around to face them while mouthing something with a laugh lit up in her eyes. When Hannah took a step forwards, Tommy could see that she had made one of the cinder bricks flip over to reveal a technological screen. Tubbo got into position to hook the screen up with the cuff on his arm that went from his wrist to elbow. Tubbo began typing away while Hannah hid him behind her as she pretended to be in a conversation with the other boys. Purpled played along for the most part. Tommy kept his eyes darting around, and Ranboo rocked on the heels of his feet like he was antsy or out of place. Probably both.

"Lethe! You're up in the ring!" A guy called out, heading towards them. Purpled and Hannah shuffled around to hide Tubbo better. Ranboo grabbed Tommy's arms with wide eyes. Tommy shrugged his shoulders in confusion. The man who had called out to them had grabbed onto Ranboo's shoulder to pull him towards the fights. Tommy nearly cursed as he realized Ranboo had accidentally put down that he was fighting and not an audience member like the rest of them. Ranboo was gripping Tommy's wrist with a vice, but the escort was strong in his own right. Tommy took Ranboo's hand in between both of his while forcing eye contact with Ranboo. The purple orbed man looked uncomfortable with the eye contact, but Tommy kept it long enough to whisper. "Survive long enough for us to come get you."

Tommy let go of Ranboo, taking steps back to rejoin the group. Ranboo nodded even when he looked seconds away from vomiting. Tommy wanted to chase after him to say that he was actually Lethe, that he would fight instead, but he couldn't let Banshee know that he was there. Tommy pushed down the guilt he felt as he followed the group towards the room that Tubbo had found by hacking the system. The four of them stepped into an old elevator that had a manual pulley system that Hannah took the liberty of pulling to make them go down. Tubbo looked around for Ranboo. Tommy didn't meet his gaze, leaving Purpled to be the one to shake his head. Hannah finally stopped the elevator to let them all out into a room several floors down from the main fighting room.

"I'll be honest with you guys, not many people know that Banshee has been collecting Marionettes. I don't know what their purpose is. I assume it's to spice up the fights, but you never know anything for certain with a man like Banshee. I wouldn't be surprised if he's experimenting on them like he used to do," Hannah said as they walked the hallway that led to a room illuminated by white fluorescent lights. The room that was being lit up was a small rectangular cube with solid desks with screens implanted into the surface. On the other side of the room was a solid wall of glass that showed a huge room with white walls that held a huge group of Marionettes. The puppets had been laying motionless on the ground when they entered. Tommy took a step closer to the glass, his fingers numbly trailing a pattern. All at once, the Marionettes leapt into action. Tommy stumbled back as the Marionettes slammed into the glass, reaching for him with their rounded bumps for hands. Tommy walked the length of the glass, watching the Marionettes follow him no matter where he went.

"It's the string. They want the string," Tubbo finally said, grabbing onto the invisible string that went from Tommy's neck to Clay. When the Marionettes saw the piece of string Tubbo was touching illuminate, they started clawing at the glass for it. Tommy pursed his lips as he added that tidbit of information into his brain. He rubbed his chin as he tried to piece together everything that he knew. Hannah takes a step towards the Marionettes while Purpled and Tubbo went to the desks to hack into the paperwork. Hannah made a noise that got Tommy's attention. He leaned onto his knees beside her as she pointed towards a branding pressed into the skin of one particular Marionette. It looked like a square speech bubble with two lines inside it with a three pronged crown above it. Hannah raised an eyebrow as she pointed to that same image on every Marionette.

"Prime?" Tommy whispered. Prime was part of the Essempei ancient gods. The logo on the Marionette's was Prime's symbol. Prime was known as the god of wealth, mental strength, and hard work. He was the main god of the Holy Lands district with their Church of Prime. Prime was one of the few gods who persisted to that day. He wasn't believed in by most people outside of the Holy Lands district, but most people used the terms 'Primedamnit' and 'Primeforsaken' even if they didn't believe. If the Marionette's bore Prime's symbol, they must have something to do with the god. Maybe they were created in the Holy Lands distract, or the person who made the Marionettes was an avid believer.

"We have to go," Hannah said before Tommy could figure out the connection between the Marionettes and Prime. Tommy became aware of his surroundings to hear someone approaching that room from the hallway. Tommy and Hannah slid back to hide behind the desks with Purpled. Tubbo jumped to the side of the door. When the person came into the room, Tubbo pressed his finger's against the back of the man's neck. The man fell forwards as Tubbo's powers came into effect. The three behind the desk jumped over the body to run towards the elevator. This time, Hannah and Tommy tugged on the ropes to make the contraption soar upwards. When the elevator came to the fighting ring, Tommy and Purpled jumped out immediately. Tubbo thanked Hannah as he followed Purpled out of the Pit. Tommy went deeper in to grab Ranboo's hand. Before anyone could keep congratulating Ranboo for winning his fight as Lethe, Ranboo was gone with Tommy tugging him along.

From the balcony overlooking the entire room, Banshee stared out at his fighting ring. The night was incredibly boring. The latest fight with Lethe and Bartholomew was interesting, but it didn't scratch that itch in Banshee's soul. What did bring a smile to his face was when he recognized an old face in the crowd that was taking Lethe away. Banshee felt a sick type of excitement coil in his stomach when he saw Theseus, one of his best fighters before he stopped showing up at the fights. Banshee had nearly forgotten about his favorite toy, but seeing that familiar face made Banshee excited for the upcoming fights. Hopefully, Theseus would return to amuse Banshee. If the fighters knew what was good for them, they would also hope that Theseus came to satisfy Banshee's twisted desires for a special kind of bloodshed.

"Lethe... I want you to give me Lethe as a gift," the Blade said beside his brother. Banshee had nearly forgotten that the Blade was visiting that way Banshee could provide a gift in the form of a new Syndicate member. The Blade was staring at Lethe as the Ender hybrid was dragged out of the Pit. Banshee rolled his eyes, elbow balanced on the railing with his chin against his palm. The Blade didn't seem to notice his brother's annoyance.

"I bet you only want him because he chose a Greek name," Banshee muttered. Lethe was the goddess of oblivion and the spirit of the River Lethe in the Underworld, also known as the River of Forgetfulness. Banshee straightened up with sweeping arms to call for another fight. Once the combatants stood against each other, Banshee turned his attention to the Blaze. "But I did promise you whoever you wanted. If Lethe is your choice, you can have him."