Disclaimer: I don't own Undertale and sorry for the late update, everyone reading this I hope you enjoy.
It was dark as she turned the corridor, and Frisk couldn't help the unease settling over her. The golden glow of the star shimmered enough where she could make out the ancient writing on the wall.
"The humans afraid of our power, declared war on us. They attacked suddenly and without mercy." She frowned as images from her book came to mind. Dust littering the ground so much that they said it created deserts. She honestly hoped that wasn't the case. She glanced over at the golden star.
There was a rush of a feeling, of familiarity as she came closer and let her own magic mingle for the save. Was that her? Or…
Asriel...
Her head throbbed and her mind for a moment went back to that music box. Her eyes caught more writing as she moved to read it.
"In the end, it could hardly be called a war. United, the humans were too powerful, and us monsters, too weak. Not a single SOUL was taken, and countless monsters were turned to dust…"
"It was a massacre…"
She could hear her mother's words in her head, Frisk felt solemn as she moved away and onward. She came across a bridge, her footsteps seemed loud, or it could be the unnatural silence filling the air. It was dark and eerie; a shiver went down her spine as she looked down a moment seeing the edges of another bridge.
She looked closer, thinking she saw a soft blue glow from somewhere until she looked around seeing it surround her. Her eyes widened, and she looked down, finally seeing Undyne under her just as spears shot from below.
Don't just stand there! Run!
She took off quickly, trying to stay aware of where blue spears pulsing with magical energy as they come up each time. She made sure to keep moving, not trusting herself to stop as she ran across the bridge. She could hear Undyne underneath, she was too close every time. She ran faster, finally hearing less armored footsteps as she tried catching her breath as she came to the edge.
She wildly looked around, trying to find a place to go to. No, no, no! Frisk was mentally screaming. She looked around more, starting to back away from the edge towards where she came from. Maybe Undyne left? She walked more, not hearing anything but her own feet.
She took a deep breath, trying to let relief wash over her. Good, she's gon-Oh, no… She heard the clunk of metal, her body going still in fear as she saw Undyne come closer. The fish woman was soon right in front of her. Frisk could see the bright lights of the spears come towards her, her eyes widening and she knew they would hit her. There was nowhere to hide now.
The loud sound in front of her took her by surprise when instead the spears hit in front of her, as though something shifted their direction. She barely had time to question it as the bridge shook and soon she was falling.
"It sounds like it came from over here…"
"Oh, you've fallen down, haven't you…?"
"Are you okay?
"Here, get up…"
"Chara, huh? That's a nice name. My name is…"
Voices. All Frisk could hear was voices as she winced, her head throbbing in even more pain as she sat up. She was sure those weren't her thoughts, not her memories. Frisk rubbed her head, wishing she possessed healing magic and looked up blinking at the distance she fell. Mage or not she should be dead.
Frisk felt under her as her hand touched grass and flowers, and she looked around at the golden bed of flowers. The sight of them made her feel uneasy. They grew in her town but controlled. She got up, trying to brush the sticky seeds off her until looking around at mounds of garbage.
Now, where am I? She looked up again and around, her options were limited on where to go.
She carefully starting walking, stepping into murky water as she went from one spot to another catching sight of objects, trash and brand names that were common on the surface. She glanced upwards at a waterfall behind a mountain of garbage, feeling sure that it all was coming from a cavern opening at the mountain. She never questioned where her town got rid of their trash, now it was obvious what they mostly did with it.
Her stomach growled, reminded her that it had been awhile since she last ate. Her body was sore and tiring, her own magical durability was being pushed with her near nonstop journey. Maybe there's something here…
Frisk searched the trash, she came across desktops and laptops, monitors, bikes, clothes, and so many other things. She even opened a cooler to find space food inside it, and moved to put it inside her bag and gasped at it not being at her side. Frisk went back to look for it near where she fell. Her stomach growled and rumbled again, and she sniffed at the space food and unwrapped it before a huge bite. It settled her stomach, but she wished that it was imbued with some magic to help her heal faster.
She kept searching for her bad, checking different corners and sighed. She couldn't find it and frowned as she turned around to travel back upwards. She caught sight of a dummy, something about it made her uneasy as she looked at it and it looked back at her. Frisk squinted her eyes, trying to study it until a spot of color caught her eye, and she ran past the dummy to pick up her bag.
Putting it back on, she still let out a sigh. She had no idea how to deal with Undyne beyond fighting her. The thought of actually fighting a monster and then being forced to choose between her own life and it's was not something she wanted to deal with.
And then you'd be no better than those other mages…
I'm sure you mean knights… Frisk mumbled inwardly until realization was hitting that she was arguing with herself. Moments passed, and she even found herself waiting for the next comeback. Her mind was oddly silent, and yet Frisk could still feel the disagreement. Just another thing to add this to her list of problems.
She started walking again once the silence didn't seem to be going anywhere and she neared the entrance as she heard a scuffle behind her. She looked back, seeing nothing as her brow rose. She was confused to no longer see the dummy until a loud shout in front of her made her jump, and her hand went to her chest as she looked in front of her.
There it floated, erratic with the angriest expression she'd ever seen.
"Are you really that scared of fighting me?" It yelled, and Frisk barely understood what had made it so angry.
"I…I mean…"
"Well too bad! I know what you did!" It yelled, leaving Frisk blinking as it yelled about his cousin and avenging it. She could barely get her mind wrapped around it. "And I'll be taking that soul of yours!"
Frisk's eyes narrowed, she definitely heard that. She was tired. Hungry. Wet. And she really didn't have time for this. Taking another step, she started to make her way around it until an attack came her way.
The dummy cackled, laughing as Frisk huffed. There must be a way out of this…
She dodged again and again as more magic attacks came at her, breathing heavy as they never seemed to be stopping. She looked past him to the door and then back at him. Once again, he was monologuing.Now's my chance…
She quickly ran towards the door, she could feel the magic attacks following her like a homing beacon. Faster she ran, right past him until pausing at a loud groan of pain behind her.
Why. Are. You. Stopping!
She frowned, ignoring the sudden yell in her head as she looked over the dummy. It was clearly in pain, and Frisk moved to come closer, wondering what just happened to it. "Are you okay?" She barely got the words out as he started ranting again.
"You idiots hit me! Get her! Not me!" It screeched, having magical attacks being aimed at her again as Frisk took off. She was running out of places to go as she took the risk to go past him again, and heard the dummy yelp in pain after seeing the attacks fly over her head hitting him.
"YOU IDIOTS! YOU KNOW WHAT! FORGET THIS! YOU'RE ALL FIRED!" It bounced in the air and Frisk blinked, wondering if she should move. "I'LL DO IT MYSELF!" It cackled, and Frisk's eyes widened, seeing a knife levitating close to the dummy. "I'LL USE MY KNIVES! PREPARE TO DIE!" It laughed as it launched the knife at her and Frisk started moving again. She moved quickly then turned a corner to find herself at a dead end. She slowly turned around, her eyes closing as she prepared for the next attack.
"I can't believe this…" It grumbled, and Frisk was confused. Why is nothing happening? She opened an eye, and the mad dummy looked at her with an irritated expression.
"I'm kinda…" It mumbled as Frisk stared at him. "all out of knives. BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER!" It laughed, glaring at Frisk. "YOU'LL BE STUCK FIGHTING ME FOREVER!" His laugh echoed, and Frisk looked around him to the door again as she started to inch towards it. She refused to be stuck in some endless battle. She moved closer, trying to take advantage of the moment until she heard the mad dummy howl in pain.
"AH! WHAT IS THIS!" She immediately stiffened and looked back at it, surprised to see it now on the ground writhing. "YOU KNOW WHAT! THAT'S IT! IT'S NOT WORTH IT! KEEP YOUR STUPID SOUL!" He yelled out before leaving, leaving Frisk in a daze.
"What just happened…" She muttered, wanting the world to make a little sense again.
"I... I think it's my f-f-fault…" Frisk heard a voice, and soon she could see Napstablook materializing in front of her. "I- I I'm sorry...I made y-y-your friend leave. I-I just wanted to say hi..." He sniffed, and Frisk was still trying to wrap her mind around what just happened. Napsta did it? "I'll...I'll just go now…"
"Huh? Wait! Napstab-" She moved towards him, her hands reaching into nothing but empty air. She supposed it would end that way anyway, with him being a ghost.
"Di-di-did you want something?" She heard the ghost behind her and turned to face him. Smiling to see him. "Because I was just going home...I…you can come to my house. B-but you don't have to come or anything. No big deal…" He muttered while looking away, and Frisk shook her head.
"I don't mind. I'm not too busy for you Napsta." Frisk's smile was wider than usual, her eyes closed as she did so, and she gave him the best smile she could.
"Oh…well…if you want to come…just come. But if you don't I understand. I get it if you're suddenly busy. You have other friends…. other more important things to do…" He started to float away, and Frisk sighed at her friend. She wondered if she'd ever convince that ghost that he wasn't a bother. Following him quickly, Frisk could hear him mumble out the direction to his house before disappearing again down a path. She followed quickly, trying not to lose sight of him, but saw something odd on her way there.
"Snails?" She was sure she saw snails.
I wouldn't go that way, you won't like it…
It can't be that bad. Frisk stopped the moment she responded and groaned. Talking to herself was becoming a bad habit. She really needed to stop doing that. She walked towards it, having to stop quickly to not run into Napstablook.
"I…um...hi. I work here. But…I'm the only one so…I…yeah." Napstablook went on to explain his job and the Blook family farm, but Frisk found herself getting caught in memories.
It growled with its fangs bared as it looked at her until she jumped away as it came closer, but it was pulled back by its leash.
"Sorry about that. Wolves are much harder to train than the dogs were from what I hear, but they're the only ones left." The guy at the other end of the leash laughed, petting the wolf as Frisk moved away.
"Wait, no. You don't have to be afraid. He won't hurt you. I promise. You're a mage too, right? I'm a Green Soul mage. I usually work in the kitchens, and I'm always out here feeding these guys too." He pointed out to the wolf monsters.
"You help the Knights?" Frisk's head tilted. Her mom would kill her for wandering around town and not coming straight home after the store. Her curiosity was growing though, and it was getting harder to just go straight back home.
"Well, it's not rare for them to employ Green Soul mages to look after their animals in their monster farms and help out with cooking in the house. We're good with animals and food…wait! Oh! I know…" He grinned, getting up as he wiped his hands on his apron then held out his hand with a bracelet. He pulled off a charm that reminded her of a frying pan.
"What are you doing?" She watched the frying pan grow larger with a fiery green glow, she'd never seen another's mage's magic.
"Never seen a Green Soul Mage cook before?" He laughed, food just seemed to appear as he called out a recipe. His hand moved the frying pan as green flames were at the bottom of it, she breathed in the sweet aroma. The moment the food appeared in the pan her mouth was watering.
"That looks so good…"
He blushed, sitting down and patting a spot nearby as he gave her some of the food he made. It was the best she ever tasted.
The next day, she decided to stop by that house again on her way from the store. She wanted to tell him how he had got her interested in studying other mage's magic. She stopped in her tracks at the sight of bones and meat torn to shreds, and an apron barely holding together stained in blood within the fences. And there was a knight, standing there watching.
She had later learned through rumors that the family of knights that lived there had punished him for wasting his magic on some girl when he was employed to only help them. No one could prove that's what actually happened. When Frisk told her mom what she saw her mother told her nothing could be done without visual evidence, and she had none. Just a mage's word.
Not all knights are like that…
Frisk had nothing to say to that voice, as she just stared at the snail farm. The enclosed fenced in area and then there was Napstablook. She really didn't like farms after that. Knights were just as quick to use a mage against a monster, as they were a monster against a mage.
"Are...you okay…?"
She looked at Napstablook, his eyes were sadder than usual, and she finally noticed the wetness at her cheeks. She quickly rubbed at her eyes and gave him the best smile she could muster.
"How about you show me your house?" She wanted to get far from here, and she watched one of Napstablook's rare smiles form as he took her there. She tried to not think to think of that memory again.
Napstablook's house was different yet interesting, and she enjoyed the music he created. The most exciting moment was laying on the floor, she had felt one with the universe and free. As she left, she couldn't help but laugh. She never thought she'd make such good friends with a ghost.
She blinked hearing her phone ringing and blushed, realizing that she must have dialed someone as she was laying down.
"Hello?"
"HUMAN! I WAS NOT EXPECTING YOUR CALL! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?"
"I'm all right, Papy." She forced a laugh, not wanting to tell him that his best friend nearly killed her multiple times. "I'm just over at my friend Napstablook's house."
"YOU MEAN THE GHOST? BUT…. ISN'T THAT SPOOKY? HMM….AND HERE I THOUGHT YOU LIKE YOUR FRIENDS WARM AND CUDDLY. YOU KNOW, LIKE SKELETONS!" He laughed while it only made Frisk more curious to what their bones felt like. That thought only led to worse ones as she blushed furiously.
"I'll talk to you later, Papy, I promise." She heard a click and felt relieved. The last thing she wanted was Undyne to show up near Papyrus and then the skeleton being forced into another situation.
Leaving the house, she made her way down the path and to the right, only to see another doorway. There was a box next to it, and she was sure if it worked like any of the others she'd still see the same thing. It was the same type of spatial magic her bag used to hold many items up to a certain amount. Though all the boxes were connected.
She looked at the doorway, wondering should she go in. It might be something interesting…
Are you a cat? Your curiosity is going to get us killed.
Us? She paused only a moment in confusion then stepped inside, her mouth gaping as she saw everything. It was a store, but unlike the rabbit monster's store, this one seemed to be a whole collection of items and trinkets. Some even looked to be like something out of her history books.
She saw a small purple glow, it was barely there as she came closer and picked up some glasses from a shelf. They were cloudy, the magic was barely hanging on to it, and without its user, she knew the cloud would never lift. Purple Soul mages were known for their fail safes, she'd be able to use it but nowhere near the level of a real Purple Soul Mage.
But if there are glasses, then that means there might be… She looked around quickly, feeling giddy as she found the notebook she was looking for. She flipped through the pages, frowning at where it was torn and not even surprised she couldn't read it well. The parts she could read were all attack phrases from what she could gather, and she had no plans on attacking any monsters. She had been looking forward to trying to use defense spells from the book.
"Finding what you're looking for?" An elderly voice came from behind her. She jumped, narrowly missing hitting the turtle man behind her who only let out a laugh. "Whoa there! I see you found something. I got plenty of neat junk here for sale." He let out a laugh.
"I don't think it's junk at all..." Frisk gave a small smile, and she couldn't help but look the turtle over. He barely had teeth, and the ones he had were crooked, his beard was long and a grayish white. She could only imagine how old he was, but it seemed rude to ask.
"Oh, is that so. So, what are looking for?"
"I wanted to buy these." She held up the glasses and notebook, even if she wouldn't use them. She could at least return it to the family of the mage somehow. That part she hadn't worked out yet.
"Oh, yes those!" He laughed, moving slowly as he made his way back behind the counter. His garb reminded her of an archaeologist, especially with the large magnifying glass. "Never seen no one interested in those before. And I been here a long time. May not look it, but I used to be quite the hero, Gerson, Hammer of Justice they called me." He chuckled.
"Did...you work for the guard?" She thought of Undyne as she followed him closely. Her mind also went to history books, the name seemed familiar.
"That was a long time ago, missy. Back when we had the war, and King Asgore rushed together to put an army together. Put the seven of us in charge he did of our own squads. Though you could tell Fluffybuns wasn't one for war."
"Fluffybuns?" She blinked at the name, putting her items on the counter as Gerson moved to stand behind it. Frisk swore she could hear mutters of dad and laughter in her head.
"Oh yeah, you haven't met Fluffybuns yet? Well, you probably will if you keep walking this way, he's real friendly. Too happy-go-lucky for war but still a good king. Just not all gusto for seeing folks hurt, was a real good idea making Undyne captain not too long ago. That girl has spirit and determination an old geezer like me hasn't seen in years." He laughs. "She worked real hard to get where she is."
"Oh…" She really didn't have much to say about Undyne, taking her items once they were paid for and she started to make her way out.
"Actually…" Frisk paused to look back at Gerson. "She just came in here not too long ago, pretty sure she was looking for someone with your description. You seem like a good enough human, try not to get killed. Alright, young lady?"
Her eyes widened, he knew she wasn't a monster kid. "I... I will." She turned back to leave.
"Good! Be careful out there, kid!"
She gave a brief wave and shouldered her bag against her while thinking. She wondered just how much Gerson knew, before shaking her head and continuing on. She tried to figure out where she was going as she moved along a new set of paths. The bright glow of mushrooms was helpful, and she continued down the winding area until squinting at a bright light as she entered a cavern not prepared for the sight in front of her.
"Oh...my…god..."