Frisk had felt terror before, but nothing like this. This was something she couldn't escape. A panic that went hand in hand with the darkness that surrounded her, her constant and eternal companion. She felt a scream swelling at the back of her throat.

"Frisk, calm down!" Sans ordered. "You're going to start hyperventilating. Take a couple of deep breaths."

"I can't see," she croaked. "I'm blind."

"Yeah, I figured that when you said so the first time." She felt bony fingers wrap around her wrists. "Here, lift your head so I can see your eyes."

Frisk tilted her head upwards. Opening and closing her eyes didn't make a difference. The darkness was complete either way.

"Ok." He let go of her. "Ok. We can work through this. Just listen to Flowey's directions, ok? Or here, hold my hand and I'll lead you."

Frisk felt something on her shoulder, a familiar heavy weight. Flowey. She reached forward and let Sans's hand close around her own. He tugged her to her feet.

"It's just the same as it always has been," he told her. "Except with a little bit more blind faith involved. Heh. Blind faith. Get it?"

"Not helping, Sans!"

"Sorry, flower. Everything's going to be ok, I promise."

Darkness. That was all Frisk had left. It was complete, lifeless, entirely devoid of feeling. The same thoughts twisted their way around her mind as Sans led her and Flowey offered what comforting words he could in her ear. Is this permanent? Did something go wrong with the reset? Or do I just need to reset again and everything will be fixed, like a glitch in the system? Either way she was afraid to try.

Without her sight, it was impossible for her to tell how far they had traveled. She could feel the change of temperature as they left Snowdin, the gradual rise in temperature as they approached Hotland. It did her little good. For all she knew, they could just be walking in circles. She was at the total mercy of the darkness. The darkness was all she had left…

"Can you keep walking, or do you need to rest?" Sans's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"I don't know." Her voice sounded pitiful and weak even to her own ears. She mustered her energy, hoping to inject more feeling into her words. "Whatever you guys want, I guess."

"Then we're stopping."

His hand released her own and she was left standing, unsure where to go. Probably best to stand still. Danger could be anywhere.

"There's a rock right behind you," Flowey said. "You can sit down and lean against that if you want. There aren't any pools of lava nearby."

Frisk sank to a sitting position and gingerly leaned back. Sure enough it was only moments before she encountered a hard surface.

"How do you feel?" Flowey asked.

"Aside from being blind?" She took a deep breath. "Fine. Where's Sans?"

"He's just over there, checking to make sure the bridge is sturdy before we cross."

"Good." Her fingers moved back and forth, feeling the grit that covered every available surface. "I'm glad you're here, Flowey. It really means a lot to me."

"What, you think I'd abandon you just because you're blind all of a sudden? Now I know you're crazy too."

"I wouldn't want anyone else here doing this with me, though."

There was a moment of hesitation before Flowey spoke. "Even Sans?"

"It's different with Sans." She chose her words carefully, painfully aware that Sans could approach and she wouldn't have the slightest clue in the state she was in. "If I had to choose, I'd rather have someone who thinks like me. Someone who I don't have to worry about them trying to kill other monsters for me."

"But what if…" There was an even longer moment of hesitation. "What if I'm not like you? What if I was actually a really horrible monster, worse than Undyne? Worse than any of the ones we've come across so far?"

"You're not losing your soul, Flowey." Frisk could hear her own fears echoing in his words. What if it's only a matter of time until I kill you all?

"I don't have a Soul." His response sent a shiver down Frisk's spine. "I'm empty. This isn't even my real body. Just what the royal scientist gave me with her determination experiments."

She could hear footsteps approaching. They stopped just short of where she sat.

"Bridge looks secure," Sans reported. "You… we'll be safe now."

"Sounds like we should get going, then," Frisk said. She felt around for a moment before pushing herself to a standing position. "Which way?"

"You're not scared?"

"Of course not. I've got you two here." In truth the thought of crossing a rickety rope bridge over a pool of lava while blind terrified her, but she wasn't going to admit that. Not when the others went to such great lengths to comfort her.

"You don't deserve this," Sans muttered.

"What?"

"Being blind. You don't deserve it. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have reset in the first place!"

"Don't beat yourself up over this-"

"If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have had to reset so many times in the first place! If I just didn't exist you only would have had to get past Papyrus. I'm so useless!"

Frisk heard something whistling through the air followed by a sharp crack and she flinched, prepared for the worse. Nothing happened.

"That was a plank from the bridge," Flowey sighed. "Sans knocked it clear across the plateau. I'll go get it."

The weight left her shoulder and suddenly Frisk felt alone, as if she could float away at any moment. She hadn't realized how much she had come to rely on Flowey's weight on her shoulder to tether her to the ground.

"You use your shortcut to save me time trying to get past Toriel every time I reset," Frisk said, trying to focus on something other than the mounting fear inside of her chest. "You lend me your coat. You've saved my life at least four times by now."

"But I also let it end-"

"No, that was out of your control. Are you going to beat yourself up for every one of my stupid choices? In the end, my life is my responsibility. Nothing you do can change that. You're already doing the best you can. And my blindness? It was going to happen eventually. There was no way we were going to make it to the barrier in that timeline. There was just too much we didn't know about."

"I guess." I wonder what's taking Flowey so long. I sure hope he hurries. Sans continued talking. "I wish you could see. If you look across this gorge, you can see the generator from here."

"Describe it to me."

"Well, it's really big. And shiny since it's made entirely out of metal. Steam is coming out of all sorts of places-"

Frisk didn't hear any more of his explanation. At that moment she felt powerful cords, cool and slick like metal, wrap around her and cover her mouth. She was dragged away into the darkness before Sans had even finished his sentence.