Another Him

"The frontline of this war is not in the dungeon, but rather, inside the mind."

-The Ancestor (Darkest Dungeon)

Chapter 1: My Own Worst Enemy

"The true unknown enemy is within."

-Chosen Warlock (XCOM 2: War of the Chosen)

The whispers hadn't stopped yet, and despite his best efforts, Kris was unable to tune them out. Glancing out his window, he let out a dejected sigh. This wasn't the first time Chara had forced him to violently tear his soul from his body, and he knew it wouldn't be the last. Despite being intimately familiar with the feeling, he had never gotten used to it.

Chara had been living rent free in Kris' head for as long as he could remember. He wasn't even sure where she had come from. No one was. No one even knew she had possessed Kris until the first time he removed his soul. Ever since then, she had existed in the back of his mind, whispering of a plan to eradicate all life in this world. She never explained why she wanted everything dead, but her reasons couldn't have been good ones.

"Seriously, do you ever shut up?" Kris finally said to her. Her ominous murmurs were quickly grating on him.

"Silence won't get me anywhere, will it, Kris?" Chara's ethereal voice responded. Every word she spoke sent chills down Kris' spine. Everything about her seemed so unnatural and foreign, almost as if she had come from another reality altogether.

"I mean, silence will at least let me go the hell to sleep. And considering you're so hellbent on controlling me, wouldn't you want me to be well rested?"

If she had a physical form, Chara would've shrugged, "Well, negotiation is always worth a shot, isn't it?"

"I'd hardly call this negotiation," Kris said dryly.

"I should've shattered your soul when I had the chance."

"Yeah... Thanks for that lapse in judgment, by the way."

Kris silently thanked Officer Undyne for her late night patrols. He shuddered to think what would've happened if she hadn't heard him screaming, and quite literally kicked the front door down.

"Well, if you're done whispering sweet nothings into my ear, I'd like to get some rest," Kris remarked, climbing into his bed.

Chara's voice echoed again, filled with malice, "It's only a matter of time, Kris. I will take control eventually. Your luck will run out eventually. This world will go empty before long. You know it as well as I do, don't you?"

"As long as I have a say in it, you're not hurting anyone."

Chara continued with a false friendliness to her voice, "Very well. Goodnight, partner."

Kris lied awake for several moments, multiple thoughts going through his head. He was truly terrified of Chara. He knew she derived some sick pleasure from killing people, and he knew that she wouldn't spare anyone if she got her way. He couldn't let that happen. But, he was painfully aware of the fact that he was completely helpless against Chara on his own. He needed help from someone.

'Who can I tell about this, though?' he thought. Two names immediately came to mind: Ralsei and Susie.

'We only became friends yesterday, though. I can't drag them into this...'

He sighed deeply.

'...But I might not have any other choice.'

The next day...

Kris stood outside the school, his eyes darting back and forth between crowds. Susie was nowhere to be found. He had mentally rehearsed their conversation several times, but he still had no idea how she'd react. Would she be sympathetic? Would she laugh in his face? Would she even believe him? Otherworldly demons weren't exactly a common phenomenon, so he wasn't expecting it. Still, he felt the need to tell her. If there was any chance at all that she and Ralsei could help him, he had to take it.

"Hey, Kris!" Susie's voice shook Kris from his thoughts.

"Hey, Susie. I expected you to be late again," Kris replied, his voice low.

"I could say the same to you," Susie grinned.

"What can I say? Finding out the supply closet leads to an alternate world has a way of making school a lot more interesting. Speaking of which, we're still heading there tonight, right?"

"Hell yeah," Susie said with a smile. It was only the second time Kris had seen her genuinely smile, and he was just as pleasantly surprised as the first time.

"Great. I'm looking forward to it," Kris said, forcing a smile.

Susie's smile faltered, "Hey, are you okay? You seem kinda down."

"Yeah, about that..." Kris' gaze shifted to the ground, then back to Susie, "Susie, I need to tell you something."

"You're not gonna confess your undying love to me, are you?"

Kris chuckled, "No, but I really wish it was something as simple as that. I need help with something serious. It's gonna sound ridiculous, but I don't know where else to turn."

"After what happened yesterday, I think I'd believe just about anything."

"Alright then..." Kris went silent for a moment before continuing, "Susie, I think I've been possessed."

Susie blinked, "As in, by a demon?"

"Probably," an undertone of despair had crept into Kris' voice, "Her name is Chara. I don't know who or what she even is. I'm not even sure she's from our reality. I don't even know how it happened. I blacked out one day and all of a sudden, I had a demon in my head."

"Right... And when did this happen?"

"She's been with me for nine years now. I've got no idea how to get rid of her."

Susie's facial expression was unreadable, "Okay, so you've been possessed by a demon from another reality for the past nine years? Is that all?"

"Pretty much."

Susie contemplated this for a moment. Truth be told, she didn't find this situation to be too unbelievable. After all, she and Kris had gone from fetching chalk from the supply closet to overthrowing a tyrannical king in the span of a single day, so it seemed like anything was possible. On the other hand, Susie never believed in demonic possession, and she couldn't even begin to guess what interest an otherworldly being would have in Kris.

However, she could tell something was weighing heavily on his mind just by listening to him speak. Whether it really was possession or another underlying problem, she wasn't sure. Whatever it was, she couldn't just brush it off as nothing. This was her friend.

Finally, she spoke, "Alright, I believe you."

"R-really...?" Kris didn't expect her to accept his story so quickly.

"Honestly, after 'Chaos, chaos! I can do anything!'" Susie mimicked Jevil's cadence, "Possession seems pretty basic."

Kris grinned slightly, "Well, thanks for taking me at my word."

"So, what has... Chara been doing to you? What does she want?"

Kris looked down at the ground grimly, "She just wants to kill people. She wants to make the world 'go empty'. Sounds to me like total genocide. The thing is, she talks about it like she's done it before..."

"Why would she want to do that?"

Kris shrugged, "Hell if I know. All I know is she's using me as a vessel. She's gone so far as to make me rip my soul out of my body so she can have complete control."

"You can do that?"

"Apparently."

Susie took a moment to contemplate the situation before asking, "You think Ralsei would know anything about this kind of thing?"

"I don't know, but I think he's the only hope I've got."

"Well then, let's go see Ralsei after class," Susie grinned. "Think you can hold it together until then?"

"I think so."

"Then it's settled. And if that doesn't work, I can always decapitate you, right?"

"Why don't we save that for a last resort?" Kris laughed at her joke.

"C'mon, it's the ideal solution! If I axe you, the demon dies too, right?"

"I would prefer to keep living, if possible."

"Ralsei it is, then. C'mon, we're gonna be late," Susie beckoned Kris to follow her.

Kris began to smile. They had only been friends for a day, but he already felt like he could trust Susie with his life. He was truly grateful to have her as a friend.

He spoke, "You know, it means a lot to me that you're so willing to help me. Thanks, Susie."

Susie smiled again, "Hey, that's what friends are for, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Kris whispered, following Susie into the school.

Just a few feet away, Noelle Holiday stood dumbfounded, having overheard Kris and Susie's conversation. She stood in silence, trying to make sense of what she had just heard. Was there really an alternate world so easily accessible? Was Kris' mind really not his own? Who was Ralsei? It almost seemed like the two had lost their minds.

Noelle quickly realized she wouldn't be getting anywhere on her own. She began to wonder if Kris or Susie would even be willing to tell her anything about these things.

'Maybe I should ask them...' she thought to herself, 'What's the worst that could happen?'