All things considered, Tommy's outing was a success. It was probably more successful than Siren's adventure trying to find the End Portal, at least. Tommy had that premature satisfaction keeping him going as he looked over the papers. It was unfortunate that he couldn't read the last paper, or identify who was all in the group, but he had managed to find the location of three Eyes of Ender and two potential allies. Tommy strengthened his preexisting bond with Purpled. That was not only strategically advantageous, but it set Tommy's emotions at ease. He didn't want to hurt Purpled just because he originated in a time of Tommy's life that he hated and revealed himself to Tommy at a low point.

He had shot a message to Purpled explaining how he had gotten mixed up in the underground water system and ended up outside Las Nevadas. Tommy didn't feel like explaining his mission until it was necessary. Purpled didn't have to doubt if Tommy was his friend for tactical or emotional reasons. Tommy would argue it was a little bit of both but it leaned towards the latter. Purpled sent back that it was alright, and commanded Tommy to stay safe. Tommy sent an emoticon that he was vaguely aware of the meaning of. After that had been taken care of, Tommy pushed his Communicator back into his pocket.

Tommy walked into the cabin with the papers. Before Tommy opened the front door, the smell of gunpowder and Redstone came from beneath the door. Tommy let a snarl rest on his face as he slammed the door open. Like he suspected, Sam was sitting at the desk in Siren's chair. Sam was messing with something as he looked up at Tommy. The man had the decency to look guilty as his eyes met Tommy's. Not only had they left things on bad terms, Tommy was able to learn that Sam was the Warden. The Warden worked for the Syndicate, Tommy's worst enemies, and the Warden was a pain in the ass all around. Tommy had seen the Warden's victims. Tommy had been one of those victims on several occasions. Tommy couldn't forgive Sam. Tommy couldn't forgive anyone but especially not Sam.

"You better fucking tell me one good ass reason why you are here, and throw in another better reason why I shouldn't cut your body into enough pieces that every own of these Prime forsaken countries gets to have their own little piece of the Warden?" Tommy snapped with dark eyes. Tommy was different than the last time they fought. Tommy would take down the Warden this time. There was no doubt in Tommy's head that he was filled with enough rage to get enough strength to win.

"Hello to you, too," Sam whispered with a soft smile that lessened Tommy's pent-up rage. More than anyone, Sam was Tommy's weakness. He was a fatherly figure with a calm demeanor, soft features, and kind words that knew what to say or how to act to make Tommy behave. The Core Three of the Syndicate had made Tommy feel like he was part of their family, but something about Sam was naturally inviting. Tommy found himself shaking with rage as he realized how little control he had over his own emotions when it came to the sinister Warden.

"I came here to look over Wilbur's equipment. I would take a look at yours, but it was forged by an engineer I know nothing about. The metal is also something I've never encountered before. I would mess up your weapons if I tried anything," Sam said as he gestured to the outfit on the desk. It was Siren's villain costume with less edginess. Since the Syndicate had been reformed into the Heroes Association, the costumes had been less scary. Sam was updating the equipment sown into the outfit. Tommy could smell the Redstone in the air, and he could see the faint traces of a red much lighter than blood on Sam's hands. Even when Tommy acknowledged the color scheme was off, he felt a chill run down his spine as he remembered the time that the Warden had been soaked in his blood. Tommy would have been killed if Dream hadn't shown up when he did.

"At least this means Siren won't be completely useless," Tommy muttered to himself as he edged away from Sam. Tommy sat down on his bed, pulling the scope of his rifle to his eye. Nothing had changed about Las Nevadas meaning Tommy didn't leave a permanent affect in his interfering. There might have been a moment when the exterior looked different or the citizens experienced those wishes in their heads, but Tommy didn't have proof of that. Purpled hadn't commented on anything suspicious happening once Tommy was gone. This could have been the leader of the villain group or Quackity (unless they were the same person) telling all the workers not to cause any panicking.

Hey... Quackity... Sam...

"You raised Quackity as his Dad, right? You adopted him somewhere along the line, at least. Do you think Big Q is capable of doing this? Establishing a pocket dimension, and trying to steal the Eyes of Ender to rewrite the lives of the people of L'Manberg?" Tommy asked as he looked at Sam. The man turned to face Tommy from his place working on Siren's uniform. Lots of industrial sized bins of worms flooded Sam's face, but Tommy didn't have the time, patience, or empathy to unpack what it all meant. Tommy could gather that some part of Sam was suspicious. That was really all Tommy needed, but Sam decided to be a jackass who talks.

"Quackity... he's originally from El Rapids. It was a beautiful place before 2b2t took over. Most of the El Rapiders were slaughtered in the conquering. Others were forced to submit as slaves or concubines to the warlords. Quackity was one of the few able to escape right as the war came to a bloody conclusion. I was the one that found him. I took him in, teaching him about L'Manberg and what I knew of his culture. Quackity has always had a fascination with El Rapids. I assumed it was sorrow for his people. I could never confirm if he had a power, but if his power was this... a pocket dimension, I can see why he is trying to piece together the End Portal. He wants to give El Rapids another chance at the life that was robbed from it," Sam explained with a sad voice. Tommy didn't like how human Sam was acting. This was the man who had slaughtered more than the Siren (less than the Angel or Blood God), and here he was showcasing his paternal worry about his charity case of a son. Tommy took a deep breath. No matter how much he hated Sam, Quackity wasn't the source of his anger. Even if Quackity was Pato Sueño, he didn't have a body count. Nobody had died as far as the Heroes Association knew of the drugs Pato Sueño circulated from country to country.

"I'll admit that those reasons aren't... shit, but it isn't fucking fair to manipulate thousands of people to achieve this end. L'Manberg isn't as stupidly corrupt as it used to be. It is one of the most prominent nations in our shitty continent. The people here have lives. They have loved ones, personal drama, jobs, aspirations for the future. Pato Sueño has no right to deny those people what is theirs," Tommy said. Tommy thought about XD. The man had disappeared after handing off leadership to the Angel of Death with no explanation why. He had denied Tommy his right to be a hero all because Tommy made a few mistakes that weren't really mistakes. Tommy had done his heroic duties when he was off the clock, engaged in a battle with the Syndicate leaders, and saved two vigilantes from getting killed by the Number One Hero. None of that was worthy of branding him volatile. XD had just taken away Tommy's rights. Pato Sueño was doing the same thing.

"That sounds oddly personal," Sam commented with an eyebrow raised. Tommy rolled his eyes. He looked back out the window for anything uncommon. Tommy heard Sam shuffled around behind him. Tommy wasn't one to give into his curiosity, but Sam wouldn't even try to be quiet as he tried to get whatever he was doing. Tommy turned around to yell something when he saw Sam holding something in both of his hands.

It was a cow. A calf. Made of metal with reddish pink fur over it. Sam had built a robot strawberry calf that was the size of a real puppy. Sam placed it on the ground. The calf stood on its nimble feet before trotting over towards Tommy. It hit against his legs before looking up at Tommy. The brown glass, marble-like eyes blinked at Tommy with emotion that a robot couldn't possible have. Tommy raised a hand towards the robot. It placed its snout against Tommy's palm while breathing out a puff of air that smelled vaguely of Redstone, water vapor, and strawberry flowers. Tommy had about a thousand questions to ask Sam, but the first one that managed to come out of his lips was: "Can I keep them?!"

Tommy bundled the calf into his arms. He felt the snout press against his neck, breathing warmth into his cold skin. Sam released a little giggle. "I know you don't trust me or Siren, but we both agreed that you needed some form of protection. I didn't know how to do that until I asked around. Nearly everyone you know agrees that you adore animals. Eret was the one to suggest a cow since you used to love farmyard animals. This little guy is yours. You can name him whatever you want. You can really do whatever you want with him. He's programmed to prioritize your safety, your health, and your happiness."

"Your name is Henry, understand?" Tommy whispered in the calfs ear. Henry made a mooing noise as it nestled closer to Tommy.