A/N: We're slowly closing in on the "recommended" amount of words for the day. I'm feeling more up to the task and I've got a full outline of everything that needs to happen within the next 10K. We should be all set to win this challenge and drive this story home!
Also, thank you to everyone that has left reviews and PM's thus far. You've definitely shown that I could've done more research and thought things through better in writing this. You've also made me realize that I missed a lot of cool opportunities which is quite disappointing. So thanks for that!
Before we continue, There's a bit of explaining I need to do. You're going to see *...* in this chapter. They're supposed to be thoughts. That is all!
Now for today's bit.
On the last episode of Steven's Tale: TNG
"Stay back!" Steven shrieked as he backed towards the doorway. His breath was quick and his mind was speeding with thoughts. He mustn't but he needed but he couldn't! It wasn't his mom. He tried to burn that thought into his head. It wasn't her it was some crazed corrupt copy or clone of his mom. He tried to convince himself of that.
But every time he looked at her he was reminded of an entire lifetime of longing and wanting to be with her. The hopeful lovely dreams full of her warm embrace. The loving laughter she'd let out. The promise of getting to hold her. It flooded his small mind and held him captive. He couldn't attack her. That would be like striking down every last good notion about his mother he'd ever had!
It was hard! How do you convince yourself to throw away a love you've wanted for so long?! You don't. Steven agonized as he took yet another couple of steps backwards as the Rose monster leapt at where he'd been standing.
"What do I do, How do I," He mumbled out loud as his head was too full of conflicting notions for him to think, "need need"
"de-DeaReesT SteVenn, Wwhy? Pl-pleaSeeE SstTtoooOp Looking at Me LIKE tHaAtT." Steven's whole body revolted against him as the plaintive tone of the Rose clone tore at his sensibilities and psyche. Was this how Garnet felt every time she went up against a Cluster Fusion? This almost existential horror that threatened to leave you screaming from the way it distorted and sullied the most cherished things in life?
Steven glanced up anxiously at the Rose Horror. She shambled at him with her weapons ready. She held the shield raised at him with her sword blade over the shield which was tilted at an angle to bounce any attack from him away from her. He fearfully watched the way she approached and dashed towards her belly side as she attempted to crush him with her shield.
"wi-hey argr yoou fia-ghting me-ME?!",The Doppleganger Rose sent her elbow down at Steven. The boy hurriedly thrust his shield up in time to intercept it. He had been successful but the abrupt nature of the attack had thrown him off his feel and he landed on his belly. He gasped as the wind and his confidence left him sharply. The rose close shook at the situation before shifting the grip on her sword to stab at him.
The blade bit down on the tile as Steven rolled away from her. He whined as he got his breath back into him but not his confidence. He got to his feet with pain racing through his torso from the fall. He squinted through the pain to see the Rose copy charging at him. He turned and ran.
"I-I-I See-EH that Per-Per-earl has been T-ut-ooring you o-o-on F-iaght-eung!" The Rose commented she sent her shield at him like a discus. Steven ducked and angled his shield and the deadly spinning disc scrapped off his own before careening into a wall and stayed there. He grimaced at how deep it had stuck in there!
"pr-Acticss M-ackers Peur-fiact!" He gaped and panted. He wasn't winning. If anything he was losing and losing worse and worse with each passing moment. He dreaded what would happen when he messed up. He knew it would happen. He'd been dreading it all his life! He was going to screw up and everything would go badly and it'd be his fault!
"How- How! HOW?!" He heaved and huffed as the Rose recalled her shield with a quick dismissal and summoning. The Imposter rose had a pleased expression that belied some hopeful idea that Steven would grow into a fine gem who could be counted on for lots of things. The look stabbed at him and haunted him as he turned and ran in more ways than one. His feet pounded on the ground as his mind ran from his own expectations and those of his family.
"Can't! Must! MUST! Need!" He puffed out as his body shook and shuddered under the weight of survival and the increasing pressure to keep calm. He was failing.
He turned the corner and made to rush down another path to lose her. He had to lose her. He couldn't fight her. He had to find a way out! There had to be a way out! There just had to be!
"W-hare Did Y-ooo-uh Gr-o? C-umi OW-ut Come Out! Wherever you Are!" The rose monster teased as she approached. Steven tried to suck in a breath to steady himself. There was an enormous pressure right between his eyebrows and his ears were pounding. He felt hot and his hands were white from tension of clenching his fists.
That and his vision was going because he could see her. He could see Rose. The sight almost sent him into a fit. He'd been found! But the Rose in his sight was blurry and indistinct. Steven blinked and through his headache tried to make sense of it. Hallucination? Nerves? Anxiety panic stuff.
*O-o-o-of Lo-o-o-ove…* Came the whisper in his mind. It cut through the howls in his mind for action and the roars for restrain. It was quiet and gentle. Like water droplets on stone. A far off memory, a distant ideal. A sweet remembrance. Steven could feel himself coming back into him as he remembered something.
"St-eh-vun…" The rose in the maze called out.
*and I want to inspire you… I want to be your rock…* soothed the whisper once more. It played against his doubts and fears. It sang passionately but steadily. Like the crescendo of an anthem. A deeper meaning, a purpose fulfilled. A burning dream. Steven started to feel his limbs more clearly and how he'd been so scared that he hadn't been standing strong or bracing properly.
"I-I'amh Guh-unnoing to Fiynd You!" The rose sounded closer,
*Well I guess there's just some things that will never go away...* assured the whisper. He felt like it was talking about the worries and responsibilities that weighed on him. It embraced the reactions he had to his situation and life without condescension. It painted in darker tones, bringing contrast and distinction to the panorama of things. An acceptance found in experience, strength out of circumstance. A burgeoning new hope. Steven could feel his reluctance melting like snow in spring.
*Beloved child remember this too… in this world of gems there's no one like you.* A smile returned to his face as he felt himself breathe fully and well. His muscles loosened and settled into his kin. His posture improved and his shoulders lowered from the cringe he'd been locked in.
*With my short existence… I can make a difference!* His brows and body lowered as his stance went wide. He could feel his heart beating in time, a steady bass to the rhythm of his mind. How could he have forgotten about them. The people would'd made him who he was. The people who time and again picked him up when he'd fallen down. How had he forgotten that he counted on their support as much as they counted on him.
*If I could begin to be… Half of what you think of me… I could do about anything… I could even learn how….*
"To love like you do." Steven sang. His voice echoing within and without of himself. Like night breaking to dawn and he felt the dread fall away. He felt truly alive. He looked up and saw her. The lady of his dreams giving him an ardent smile. A tear rolling down her cheek as she hugged herself before vanishing.
In her stead stood the monster of his waking. The specter of her memory. The heinous mockery of her.
"Hey!" Steven called out. The Monster turned to face him. "I wanna see your guts."
"Steeven!" The monster charged and Steven was ready. It swung at him. This time he was focused and composed. This time he held the dread inside of him at bay. This time He willed what he felt into his shield. He sent the emotion of defiance spiraling to it's center
*And I'm stronger than you!* Force like a train barreled into the Monster! It was thrown back to the end of the hall, it's weapons flying as it flew. Steven began to walk as the monster landed in a heap.
"Stehvon!" The monster sent her shield at him. He ducked beneath his shield, angling so that the opposing weapon would slide right off and into the ceiling. Upon contact he sent another pulse of emotion, memory and will into his shield. He held it there as he whirled the shield to face the Monster.
*And I know that we can be strong.. in the real way!* The monster writhed as it was pounded into the wall. It hissed and spat at him as it called it's shield back. Rising it roared at him before charging at the young gem. lunged, throwing it's whole body behind it's shield and into Steven's
*We'll be thinking about our friends as we chase the setting sun!* Again the Monster was repelled by another burst of kinetic energy. Steven watched it smash into the wall as he kept on coming.
*I'd sing to you, and I'd do it again!* *I can be there for him!* With a will of his own he pulled the energy behind those thoughts from his mind and into the shield. The pink protector lit up and sent off another bolt of force, bludgeoning the Monster again. The thing lay on the ground in what looked like intense pain.
"Wuh- cann I D-do f-our you…" the Monster gasped out. Steven glared at it in pity before it simply collapsed into dark tendrils of energy. The ruined wall behind the monster broke down as well revealing a path out of the maze and into a new chamber.
Steven eagerly went through it but not before paying his respect.
"Thanks mom." He said as he regarded his shield. He fondly watched the defensive weapon fade into sparkles of light before he ducked through the opening.
The chamber turned out to be a living room. Steven had expected death traps or maybe some other monster to block his path. He hadn't been expecting sofas, a TV and loads of portraits.
But there they were. It was a living room with pleasant colors decorated in a more modern style. A large flat screen television surrounded by tall piles of CD's and DVD's stood at the center of it. A well used sofa was placed in front of it. There were a few pieces of popcorn on it. Some half-finished sodas sat atop today's newspaper on the coffee table situated between the TV and the sofa.
The Newspaper was running a headline that read: "Gem Soldier attacks local park! 10 wounded from the fight! Still at large!"
There were shelves everywhere. Lots of them had what looked like medical records and reference books but between all of them were little picture frames. They covered every surface. Scenes of Undyne and another person doing lots of goofy things. There was one of them eating ice cream as they viewed a city skyline from a bench, another of them at the shooting range with Undyne in shock and Alphys holding up a target with a hole in the bulls-eyes of the head and chest. There were some photo booth print outs framed with them making faces or making out.
Steven blinked as he continued looking around. Mounted above the sofa was a harpoon and a katana in a cross. A golden plaque underneath said: "The sharpest gals this side of the rock layer! Undyne and Alphys."
Every portrait on the walls was of Undyne. Some clothed and in a battle stance, some not so much. They were all artful and beautifully done in oils, pastels and watercolors. Some charcoal pieces of Undyne were sitting on an easel half finished off to the corner of the living room. A work table stood close by littered with books, schematics, paints, herbs, spices and various tools from various fields.
"Hello." Steven looked up. Standing on a flight of stairs leading to a second floor balcony where there were doors was a slim humanoid figure. It had tan colored scales and was only a bit taller than he was. It wore a white coat over a green sweater and skinny jeans. A pair of designer glasses sat on it's muzzled face as he looked to him with beady reptilian eyes. A line of spines followed the curve of her head and neck but ended before her sweater's neck line. A long slender tail poked out from behind her.
A name tag read "Alphys, RS." Steven recoiled.
"Do make yourself comfortable." She withdrew a gun from her coat. It was a strange device with a hazard warning on the side and a scope on top of it despite being a pistol. A laser sight was attached below the barrel of the gun and it's point was trained on Steven's heart. "I hope you don't mind that I do the same."
Steven was immediately uncomfortable. A lifetime of dealing with women and weird relationships had prepared him for this moment. He knew where it was safe.
Nowhere. Nowhere in this living room was safe. Every last article within the room was a mine that could go off at the slightest touch. He wisely chose to stand and not move or speak.
He suddenly wished the Monster he'd just fought were still here. At least that was something he now had a better handle on. This.. This was an exercise in feminine fastidiousness. Most men don't understand women. Most older men didn't understand women. Steven was a young sir with an entire lifetime of study from birth.
He knew enough to know that he knew jack squat. It filled him with shame… and dread.
Alphys proceeded to sit on the stairs, "I've been watching you, you know."
"Observing your actions and relationships. It was rather nice to be honest until…" Steven swallowed hard, "You murdered my girlfriend."
"Now now, I won't kill you." She sneered at him, "That would be too good for you."
"Besides, I made a promise to my funny 'unny and I fully intend to keep that promise. " And thus she pulled the trigger. A golden light flashed out at him. Steven flinched at the light and expected something to happen. He was ready to be at the mercy of this mourning lover.
But nothing happened.
He peeked out and frowned at himself. It was like the gun was some fancy flashlight or something. He looked into the light and just saw that it was a yellow diode. He was terribly confused what was a bit of golden light going to do to him.
"Of course I'm shining an innocuous light at you. A vengeful scientist with a gun is pointing a flash light at you for no reason." Alphys rolled her eyes, "It's a DT Suffusion Gun. You're being subjected to 200 times the safe amount of Determination an Underfolk can survive in."
"What?" "I'm giving your mommy an unceremonious De-termination." On cue Steven's Gem flared to life and a hand reached out of it. Steven paled. The hand groped around blindly as Alphys continued to speak
"You see, I've been studying Underfolk physiology alongside Dr. Gaster. We've been very interested in our make up. Turns out we're all half-corrupted gem shards that have been assimilated into organic lifeforms." The hand extend further and soon a new bit of torso and breast could be made out in the light of the gun,
"When a gem is critically injured it retreats into its stone to recuperate. For Bio-Gems, like the underfolk, they retreat into a broken stone. The necessary energy to regenerate isn't present and the internal conflict between the young but whole organic persona and fractured gem personas is so strong that it fractures the stone itself. The organic body simply degenerates as the hard light construct holding it together dissipates. That is the dust you see upon our death." A hip and leg were now dangling from Steven's Gem. The weight of them pinned him to the ground! The light continued to shine.
"Our magical qualities are based around emotional stability. Gem captives gained from the war described that they needed to leverage the same sort of emotional stability to utilize their powers. It was the first piece of evidence investigators found that lead to the development of Bio-Gem theory." Now a full set of legs and lower body joined the arm and the weight of them was tremendous to Steven. Still the Golden light shone on him.
"Another breakthrough was the discovery of Human Determination. A metaphysical substance produced by humans that allowed their souls to persist after death. A sort of Proto-Gem due to residual Gem particles embedded in their physiology. Such Determination can be extracted and applied or manipulated easily." The last arm appeared and so did the other breast.
"Determination applied to Bio-Gems tends to result in adverse reactions. One such reaction is the dissolution of determination dosed subjects into amorphous masses that readily combine with other dissolved subjects. It is theorized that this is due to determination reactivating the Souls stored in Gems. This investigator," Alphys grinned as she surveyed her work, "Decided that such a theory needed to be put to the test."
Steven felt the world flip on him as he felt thoughts not his own join his consciousness. Emotions, sensations, ideas, body rhythms and concepts flew in his mind. He tried to hold on as he knew what Alphys meant. Rose Quartz was beginning to wake. She was beginning to come back. What that meant for him… he didn't know.
"It is theorized that the old consciousness would be eliminated completely as the Gem persona, whole and dominant in form, would reassert itself. The next theory is that the two consciousness would fight and unite in a chaotic manner. The last possibility is that the organic side wins…" Steven could feel from Rose's forming body and hear them breathing through her ears and his own as her head behind to form at his belly, "...and dies due to the destruction of the Gem persona and it's ability to consciously project the constructs needed to support the organic side."
"This investigator believes that it all begins with a recoiling of the reforming gem body which signals the recombination of the forms." Alphys grinned sinisterly at them as she pointed the gun harder at the two bodies as Rose's form stopped emerging and snapped back. Steven's world went dark, soundless, scentless, tasteless, and empty all the while a wash with swirling colors, a pained cacophony of screams, the smell of sweat, blood, urine and bile, and taste of harsh air and the feel of the floor, air, cold and warm and two beating hearts from all directions.
Steven Lost Consciousness.
Day 25
Word count: 40807 total (3107 today)
Ah, Exposition. You are truly my saving grace when it comes to padding the story for words!
So what do you think of my crazy idea that Monsters are Gems? Hate it? Love it? I'm sure most of you are like "What the crap?!"
Bet none of you saw this coming! Which is sort of funny because the Undertale Wiki's page on Amalgamates has had numerous memetic references to "so this is what homeworld thinks of fusion." I'm totally serious. Check it out for yourself you won't be disappointed: wiki/Amalgamates
Poor Steven's gonna end up like the cluster fusions. Trapped together with his mom in a gem, fighting for dominance. At best, he kills her. At worst... they both die. So much fun! I'm a terrible person for making Steven go through this. Poor kid's been: attacked by his mom, separated from his family, forced to watch a good woman die, forced to confront existential horror on multiple occasions from within and without the conflict, faced with death at least ten times throughout his journey, forced to trudge through freezing cold and scorching heat, and now gets to join the Underfolk roster as an Amalgamate. Is there anything I won't put this kid through for word count?
Before any of you cry "BS" at my theme-song power up sequence and Steven magically snapping out of shock. Stop and check out Chapter 3's dream sequence. That's right, I primed it all up from the start. I foreshadowed the Rose fight! I even made sure to have Rose reaffirm to Steven what kind of person she was in a dream! A loving, super kind lady who respects life and wants to see how it lives and moves. I even did it using the method seen at the start of this. TADA! PLANNING!
Yes, Alphys and Undyne were a couple. A very functional, highly affectionate couple who worked and played together. I'm not an expert on lesbian relationships but I'm assuming it works rather similarly to any other relationship between two humans. Man I wish I hadn't killed Undyne now...
Also, there are a ton of references to lots and lots of other works in this fic: The dresden files, FF7, Star Trek, SoundCloud, Wizardry. It be neat if someone could find them all. I wonder if this is how Toby Fox and Rebecca Sugar's teams feel when they include these things in their productions. It's rather exciting to be honest.
