Waterfall - FINAL

"You're a… human?!" Frisk exclaimed.

Laying just a few feet away from her, with broken twisted ankles and pool of blood spewing out from the dark armour, was an older human male in his late 20s to early 30s. With bright blue eyes, unshaven face, and brown hair braided in long flowing dreadlocks, he stared at her with the grimace of an angry bulldog.

"You… you little shit!" Mickey exclaimed.

With a quick pace, he reached into his bottomless pocket and pulled out his pistol. Frisk, almost instinctively, backed away in shock.

But the momentary shock faded as her determination returned. She stopped in her place and stared down the barrel of the gun. She felt the pain in her shoulder weaken her strength but, either through sheer stubbornness or bravery, she stood on.

"Do it…" she said calmly.

Mickey did nothing, just stared at her. His angry grimace lessened as if he was starting to consider something.

"C'mon!" Frisk exclaimed. "What are you waiting for, you chickenshit?! Do it!"

With nothing obviously causing it, Mickey began to chuckle. He chuckled smugly and in a deep voice.

"W-what are you-"

Before his chuckle was about to turn into laughter, Mickey was interrupted as his throat tightened and forced him to cough out some blood.

"What's so funny?!" Frisk exclaimed with annoyance.

Mickey looked back at her, breathing laboriously from his smug smile like he was out of breath.

"Tell me… little Frisk," Mickey growled, with blood leaking down his smiling lips. "Do you believe in miracles?"

"Huh?!" Frisk asked back.

"Do you?!" Mickey exclaimed as if demanding an answer.

His angry grimace quickly faded as his grin returned.

"I don't know," Frisk answered, frustrated and nervous. "Why?"

Mickey took many deep breaths, each heavier than the last like he was on the verge of bursting. Still, he smiled.

"Well, I don't suppose it matters what you believe, little Frisk," Mickey said. "For you see… in a moment… you are about to witness a miracle."

Frisk gulped but kept a stern face.

Here it comes, she thought. Bring it, psycho.

Then Mickey placed the barrel of the gun into his own mouth.

"Wait, what-?" Frisk began.

A loud bang, reminiscent of fireworks, filled the crevice and almost deafened Frisk's ears as Mickey's blood splattered across the rocks and cavern wall behind him. A moment later, his corpse slumped down, the gun dropping from the blood-soaked mouth and his hands falling to the sides like a lifeless puppet. His mouth wide open, the whiteness of his eyes visible as they glazed over, and a hint of a grimace permanently stuck on his dead face.

It took Frisk far too long to absorb what just occurred, and some more time to accept it.

She grasped her mouth to hold in the incoming puke. Some of the vile fluid leaked between her fingers, so she removed her palm, letting it all out. The thick yellow liquid spewed out of her mouth in a rush, splatting on the wet, rocky ground. Her stomach was practically empty now.

"What the fuck?!" she exclaimed as she wiped leftovers from her mouth. "Why the fuck did he just…!?"

She paused and gulped. It didn't matter what or why Mickey just did it. Her broken shoulder and the pain with it was also no longer in the forefront of her mind.

What now? Frisk kept thinking. What now?!

Even if she wasn't terrible at climbing, the cavern walls looked to steep an uneven either way. She could try calling for Flowey and MK, but she was so far down there was no guarantee they would hear her. And even if either of the two had a phone, hers was in the arms of the rest of the warriors.

There was only one way out of here, and she realized it as she glanced at the blood-soaked gun on the floor.

With quick haste, she hurried towards it and picked it up. The smell of the rotting corpse near it was enough to make Frisk gag in any other situation.

But as she held the gun in her hand, Frisk paused. If she did this, she would bring back Mickey as well. She fully understood that risk, but maybe that's what Mickey wanted.

Frisk considered briefly if maybe just letting this timeline play out would be for the best. Maybe Flowey and MK could come to help her? But that wasn't a guarantee, for they might be captured or worse by now, and so she would either starve or bleed out from her broken shoulder.

Someone might just replace Mickey after that, someone just as bad or worse.

Or maybe the selfish part of her was just telling herself that. Frisk shook that consideration from her mind and looked at the gun in her hand. She was sure she knew how to use it. It probably was just like in the movies and games, right?

you are about to witness… a miracle, echoed in her head.

What was that supposed to mean? Frisk thought.

Those words made her feel strangely discomforting. What was this "miracle" of his? And why did those words come into her head at this moment?

She probably wouldn't figure it out, or at least for a long time.

Instead of pondering further, Frisk placed the barrel to her head, placed her finger on the trigger, and…nothing. Nothing happened. Not because the gun didn't fire or that she changed her mind at the last second. What happened was that, literally, nothing happened.

In fact, Frisk not only hadn't even placed the gun on her head, but she was also still in the process of picking it up.

She couldn't make heads or tails of this. Frisk was certain she picked it up and had placed it on her head. Did she, for some reason, just imagine the process?

Whatever the case, she went to pick up the gun for real this time.

Only, she couldn't do it. She couldn't even move forward.

As this realization appeared, she quickly noticed everything else was in this stasis as well. It was like time was stuck. For some unfathomable reason, it was impossible to proceed forward in time.

It couldn't move forward, yet her mind was still there, outside of time, proceeding onward on its own volition.

Frisk tried to speak, but she couldn't even move her mouth. She couldn't even feel her body.

Just as she thought the unease had reached its peak, Frisk felt something approaching. Something coming from literally all directions. It was the only thing her body could sense. She sensed it in her gravity, in her awareness.

No, she was wrong. Something wasn't coming. It was going. Everything was going. This singular moment of time did no longer exist.

What is happening?! Frisk said to herself. What is-

"Yo Frisk, are you still there?"

"Huh?"

Frisk found herself in the same place she did a second ago. She was sitting on the wet grass, MK sitting opposite of her with a guilty look on their face and Flowey to her side, looking bored. The place looked just as it did a moment ago. A small patch of bluish grass with a large blue flower to the side of them, which MK just explained was an Echo Flower. Besides her, Flowey sat, tired and bored out of his mind. But why did she feel so weird?

"Frisk?" MK pried.

Frisk wasn't sure how to explain it. It was a discomforting feeling like she was forgetting something. She had a vague sense it was important, but she couldn't piece it.

Probably isn't that important then, she concluded.

"Sorry, I just had this weird… deja vu esque sensation," Frisk explained. "What were we talking about again?"

"You just told me to… "drop it"," MK said.

"Oh yeah, that," Frisk replied, the guilt coming back. "Look kid, I'm… I'm really sorry about that. I, erm, I tend to overreact to small things sometimes. I've gotten better the last few years about it, but… you know?"

"It's alright," MK said.

They sounded regretful but quickly changed the tone back to their usual excitement.

"Well, let's talk about something else," they continued. "You've heard of Ashu-Tsuki."

"Ashu-Tsuki?" Frisk asked. "Yeah, isn't that the vigilante character?"

"Vigilante?" MK asked back. "Yo, they're more of a superhero!"

"That's… nevermind…"

The comfortable feeling returned, and Frisk grasped her chest with discomfort. Like she did a moment before, she dismissed it.

"Gods, I've never seen them before!" MK began. "But they would definitely beat Mickey in a fight!"

"Heh, how do you know that if you've never seen them?" Frisk asked, hiding her unease.

"Well… it's just based on what other kids say, ok?" MK answered. "Also, no one knows who they are, but I think I cracked the code. From what my parents have told me, I'm betting they're Undyne."

"Undyne?" Frisk asked back. "Oh yeah. Wasn't she The Royal Guard leader?"

"Pretty much," MK replied. "I hatched long after she quit, but she sounded awesome! Also, from what I've heard, her quitting doesn't add up. She never would've given up so easily, so Ashu-Tsuki just has to be her!"

"Yeah, that makes… hang on."

Anxiety reared its ugly head once again as Frisk discomfort grew beyond her scope of dismissal. Before she realized, she began to frantically look around everywhere as if looking for eyes watching her

"Err, Frisk?" MK asked.

"Somethings wrong," she said.

"What do you mean?" MK asked. "What's wrong?"

"Sorry, I just… I feel like we've already had this exact convo," Frisk said. "Except…"

The best way Frisk could describe this sensation was that she felt like she was watching a play she had seen before, and quickly realizing that some of the actors were going off-script in this viewing. That and dozens of conflicting emotions filled her mind.

"Except what?" MK asked.

"Everything's wrong," Frisk answered. "This isn't supposed to be like this."

"Huh?" Flowey finally spoke. "How is it supposed to be?"

Frisk turned to Flowey who, for reasons she couldn't understand, she felt was behaving wrong.

"Flowey, aren't you supposed to… feel weird right now?" Frisk asked.

"Feel weird?" Flowey asked, his "eyebrow" raised. "Why in the world am I supposed to feel weird?"

"I… I don't know," Frisk answered, growing concerned. "I just feel that you're supposed to be staring that way, blankly, like you're hypnotised."

She pointed at a rock wall and Flowey turned towards it.

"Yeah, like that," Frisk said. "And you are supposed to feel… something, and then freak out."

"Hey, you're right!" Flowey exclaimed. "I do feel something! I feel utterly and completely baffled by whatever the heck you're pulling right now!"

"No, you're supposed to-"

Frisk stopped herself, unsure herself what she was getting at.

"You're acting kind of odd," Flowey pointed out, sounding oddly concerned. "And coming from me, that says a lot. Did you smoke something?"

"Frisk…?" MK asked nervously.

"I don't know, I don't know!" Frisk exclaimed, grasping her head. "I'm weirded out too you know, I-"

What came next, Frisk could only describe as an immense headache. Her ears ringed and she felt like her head was close to bursting open like a grape, or like her skull was being torn asunder in several directions by different assailants all wanting the same piece.

Frisk fell on the ground, grasping her head as all her senses seemed to be altering. She couldn't hear anything around her except muffled familiar voices of worries, while the ringing sound kept getting louder and louder. Frisk opened her jaw wide, unsure if she was screaming.

Then, she felt it. And she remembered.

She remembered it all now. The Royal Hunt, Mickey, the pursuit and the ambush on the bridge. She remembered the pain as Mickey's armoured fist struck her twice. She remembered the deafening sound of the minigun, and the dread she felt hiding in the blue woods. She remembered the fall, the agony of her broken shoulder and the shock of seeing the truth behind the mask. And when time froze, and when everything erased. And like it was waiting for her remembrance, the deafening ringing immediately vanished.

"Frisk, please answer!" MK cried.

Frisk rose from the ground as if waking from a nightmare. While the headache and the ringing were gone, the memories remained. And with them, the horror of realization.

"Oh god no!" she exclaimed.

"Frisk?" MK asked fearfully. "Flowey, what is this?"

"Don't ask me," Flowey said. "She's never done this before."

Frisk looked him straight in the eye, terror visible in hers, which made him visibly uncomfortable.

"C'mon, what's happening?" he asked.

"Y-you don't remember?!" Frisk asked.

"Remember what?!" Flowey asked.

"The… the bridge and the ambush?!" Frisk said.

"Wha- what bridge?! What ambush?!"

"Flowey, are you fucking with me?!"

"No, why would I- just tell me what's going on, alright?! You're freaking out the kid here!"

Frisk looked at MK, who seemed to be terrified of her. But it was not the time to worry about that right now. It was not time to worry about anything.

"Flowey?!" Frisk began. "MK?! We… we have to go!"

"Frisk, what-?" Flowey began.

"WE HAVE TO GO NOW!"

On the other side of Waterfall, Mickey awoke. It was always like a dream, where you die and wake up. How often had he shot himself?

He looked around and saw the same familiar scene as when he saved. His warriors, all unmasked, were sitting around the camp, waiting for orders. Eldur was ribbing on Vissie by mentioning her outburst at the bar, who was clearly not taking it as lightly.

"I told you a dozen times, IT WASN'T JUST ABOUT THE PICKLES!" she cried out, just like last time. "It's about chaos theory and the small mistakes that can-!"

Umbla watched them two argue, chuckling with amusement much to Vissie's dismay. Simon sat closest to Mickey, squatting right beside him on the blue coloured grass. Willy, his unofficial right hand, was the only one not sitting, leaning on a tree a good few feet away from the group, carving a wooden figurine.

All in all, everything looked to be in order. Then why did he feel so uneasy?

"Erm, boss?" Simon said. "Your eyes just lit up again. Does it mean it's time to move out?"

Mickey ignored his momentary discomfort as the importance of the situation hit him. Perhaps it was just his imagination. So instead, he looked at his apprentice and gave a quick smirk.

"Indeed," Mickey said.

He stood up from his seat and gave out a small cough, making all his warriors immediately stop their bickerings and turn to face him.

"The Angel's Heaven blessed me with foresight once more," Mickey lied.

Much loudness came from the group, mostly Vissie and Umbla as the duo threw away their trays and food around recklessly.

"Finally!" Vissie exclaimed.

"About time, I suppose," Eldur said a bit calmly.

"Alright, everyone, you know the rule!" Mickey exclaimed as he put on his mask. "Drop your toys, throw away the food, disregard whatever unimportant crap you were doing! Now move it, move it, MOVE IT!"

Frisk ran through the woods, a clueless Flowey and MK following her. She practically dragged them with her, looking over her shoulder occasionally to see if they were still there. Flowey had to crawl faster than he had time to get used to just to catch up to her. He tried to ignore the discomfort that brought.

"Woah, slow down, Frisk!" Flowey exclaimed. "How do you know-?"

"No time to explain!" Frisk answered. "They're coming, and we need to go as fast and far away as possible!"

"Wait, who's coming?!" MK asked nervously.

"The Hunt!" Frisk exclaimed. "The Royal Hunt!"

"WHAT?!" MK cried out. "Wha… why are they-"

"Long story kid," Flowey said. "Alright, Frisk, I know you're anxious, and I'm too as well, but you're clearly going over your head right now! Just slow the heck down and talk about it, ok?!"

"No, there's no time!" Frisk said. "Trust me, you know it yourself! They're on their way here and-!"

"How do you know?!" Flowey exclaimed.

Only now did Frisk finally stop and turn around, exasperated. Flowey and MK were not moving an inch further on the road.

"Can't you sense him?" Frisk asked between deep breaths.

"You mean Mickey?" Flowey said. "You think I wouldn't have told you already if I did?"

Frisk looked around herself, filled with fright, confusion and shame. Only now, as she took in deep tired breaths, did it occur to her just how unusually far she had been running. But other than that, she noticed that there was nothing else in the vicinity. No noise except for the heavy breaths of the trio and wind rustling the foliage.

Did Mickey change his course? Frisk considered. Did this reset somehow destroy the strange connection they shared? More or less, how does Flowey not remember anything this time?

"Yo, I'm really stumped here," MK said fearfully. "What's going on and Flowey? Can you sense Mickey?"

"Sorry, kid, I can only answer like a third," Flowey said.

Frisk took a deep breath, preparing the words in her head.

"Alright," Frisk began. "So- GAH!"

An immense pain struck her shoulder from the inside and she stumbled down, grasping it. The bones inside her face began to hurt as well, and she felt as if something was leaking down her mouth.

"You, she's doing it again!" MK exclaimed.

"Frisk, slow down!" Flowey said. "What's going in?! Why are you…?!"

The rest of his words became utterly inaudible until it was like he was trying to speak while she was underwater.

Frisk stared at the ground and felt it was shifting. Then blood splatters were forming just where she was looking. It took her a moment to realize they were dropping from her face. She placed a finger in mouth and ran through. A front tooth was missing and several others were broken. She

Fearfully, she looked at where the pain was greatest, her shoulder. Fortunately, the pain and her mind trying to comprehend it all dulled any sense of horror she felt. Still, her shoulder was broken, almost on the verge of dislodging like it had been only moments before.

On the other side, The Hunters were slightly confused by their boss' strange new orders, but they went ahead either way. Suddenly the plan was to split up, with each going separate ways through the forests, sneaking by the trio one after another. Then they would reveal themselves once the kids were unknowingly surrounded and catch them in the open. Mickey was also weirdly adamant that this ambush couldn't happen anywhere near a crevice or anything resembling a pit. It had to be in a field where there was no way out, up or down.

Willy and Umbla did not question their boss' orders because they trusted his "foresight". Eldur did not care in the least about the change of plans, just along as it got the job done. Vissie was slightly annoyed but went with it anyway, hoping to get herself back on a decent timeline through this somehow.

Lastly, Mickey made it very clear, especially to Vissie and Umbla, not to use The Shredder during this mission.

"Geez, boss, I get it!" Vissie had said. "It's not like I was planning on using it anyway."

Umbla went much further ahead, for she knew this area better than anyone else in the group.

Sometime later, when the rest of the warriors began to slowly sneak through the woods, Mickey stood behind with Simon, watching them head into the distance. Mickey considered allowing them to run madly to be one of his mistakes. He also decided to stay behind this time and only arrive once his warriors had certainly captured the kids and subdued the flower.

"Don't worry, greenhorn," Mickey said to Simon. "I have things under control."

"I believe you," Simon replied. "When haven't I?"

"Good to hear," Mickey said before he grabbed him over the shoulder. "Alright. Let's quickly run over the last try and see what we learn from it."

Simon looked at his boss like he couldn't understand him.

"The last try…?" he asked.

"Yeah," Mickey continued. "So this Francisca, or Frisk as they call her, is pretty… feisty. She's stubborn and not the type to give in easily. But this time, we must be careful not to hurt her too much. Otherwise, that little flower-boy of her freaks out and goes all berserk on us."

"Wait, stop, what are-" Simon tried to say.

"That flower is possibly a much bigger threat, of course, as he single-handedly screwed us over. So I'm thinking you guys should incapacitate him before the girl. Oh, and there's also this little kid, Maxie, but, eh?"

"Boss, erm, what are you talking about?" Simon finally asked.

Mickey finally stopped and looked at his underling, unsure where he was going.

"What do you mean "what are you talking about"?" he asked sternly.

"Err, you know?" Simon said anxiously. "I mean, how do you know so much about the target this time? Have we hunted this person before?"

At first, Mickey couldn't understand what he was getting at. A moment later, he chuckled as he thought he began to understand.

"Oh, stop playing games, boy," he said.

"I'm not," Simon said, sounding more anxious by the word. "Isn't this our first try?"

Mickey stopped smiling as he read his expression.

"You really don't remember?" Mickey asked, concerned.

"R-remember what?" Simon asked.

There could be no doubt. Mickey knew him for years and could read what he was feeling just from his voice.

Strange, he thought. Simon always remembers the resets. So why can't he-?

Before Mickey could finish his train of thought, his vision, out of the blue, became somewhat blurry and his legs could no longer hold him.

"B-boss…?" Simon asked.

Mickey slowly sat down on the ground, feeling a strange burning sensation growing on both his knees. He felt his face redden in pain and sweat forming under his mask. He slowly removed it as he felt an urge to breathe.

That was when the pain started. The immense pain on both his knees, like someone just snapped them in twain.

"GYAH!" he screamed.

All his warriors who had not already left stopped moving and turned towards him. Mickey looked at their masked faces, looking at his pathetic state.

"Why are you all just standing there like halfwits?!" Mickey exclaimed with frustration. "Come help your lord!"

As his warriors, confused and anxious, came towards him, Mickey snuck a peek at his armoured knees. It was a mistake, for what he saw, was the first thing that shook him in years.

Both of his knees were broken, twisted and piercing out of his armour, with a pool of blood forming from the holes. It did not go past him, the similarity to his last death.

"My… my legs…" Mickey said.

"Why, what's wrong with your legs, boss?" Simon asked, sounding halfway muted.

"Wha… what did you say?" Mickey muttered as if drunk.

The voices around him were no longer real, no longer there. Just mumblings in a dream.

But as the pain ceased, something else was replacing it. An odd sensation on the back of his head like some pieces were missing.

Mickey placed his finger there to check, digging through the dreadlocks. He touched something slimy and squishy, and he quickly realized there was a large hole on the back of his head. Then in some twisted sense of curiosity, he began to dig through with his fingers. It was like carving into a pudding, with some strange hard parts here and there.

Immediately, he removed his fingers and took a look. Some strange pink-red mucous, covered in blood, was on the tip of his glove. On closer look, the gooey object closely resembled brain chunks.

What… hellish nightmare… have I fallen into?! Mickey thought.

"Boss?!" Simon cried. "Can you hear me?! BOSS?!"

And just like that, the mucous on his finger was gone. Gone and vanished, alongside any marks or stains it left. When Mickey looked at his legs, he saw the same thing. No broken bones, no blood leaking out. Even any semblance of pain was gone.

He looked up at his warriors, all looking down at him.

"Did any of you see that?" Mickey asked sternly.

All of them looked around at each other, showing different layers of confusion, with Vissie the only one who looked somewhat in the loop.

"See what, boss?" Eldur asked.

"The blood?" Mickey asked. "The bones?"

Everyone, besides, Vissie just looked more perplexed.

"Blood, bones?" Willy asked coldly. "You simply fell down, my lord…"

It wasn't often that Willy, of all monsters, was confused. Mickey was more bothered though that his warriors saw him like that, furious even. But his legs were still weak, and he dared not go on. But The Hunt must.

"Alright, new plan," he growled. "Simon, Willy? You two stay with me here! I need your medical and magical expertise for this! The rest of you? Bring me the human!"

"Frisk, what's happening?!" Flowey asked with worry.

"I…"

Everything was just fine. Her shoulder had magically lodged itself back without her noticing or even doing anything, and her missing tooth had somehow returned itself as if it never left.

She couldn't understand it. In barely a nanosecond, her body had fixed itself as if nothing had occurred. She couldn't have imagined it, could she? It felt so real. The pain and the taste of blood in her mouth still lingered fresh in her memory.

"What the fuck was that?!" Frisk exclaimed, panting and sweating.

She stared at her newly-fixed shoulder as if hypnotised.

Hopefully, Flowey can answer what the fuck happened this time, Frisk thought.

"Geez, Frisk, are you alright?" Flowey asked gently.

"Yo you looked like you were in a lot of pain," MK said.

"Oh, you think?!" Frisk replied harshly.

MK backed away with confused unease.

"Geez, Frisk," Flowey said with disapproval. "Don't be so hard on them. The kid's already rattled out their mind."

"I… it's alright," MK excused. "I knew a boy like this at the orphanage. Had like a super severe anxiety order, always yelling at everyone."

"Sorry, kid," Frisk said, calming down. "It's just not every day that my face and shoulder break."

"Yeah, I… I'm sorry, what?" Flowey asked with genuineness. "Did you say face and shoulder broke?"

"You heard that too?" MK asked him. "I was sure I misheard. Unless we both did."

Frisk looked straight at them both, complete bafflement clear in her eyes. The suggestion that struck her was maddening, more so than anything she'd seen so far.

"You… you didn't see any of it," Frisk asked, almost in a whisper.

"See what?" MK and Flowey asked, almost in unison.

"Wha… my fucking face just then!" Frisk exclaimed. "It was bleeding profusely and… and then my shoulder was dislodged and broke and I-"

"Yo, yo, yo, what the H?!" MK exclaimed. "Your face and shoulder were broken, what?! When was that?!"

"W- just now!" Frisk exclaimed. "Literally seconds ago!"

"Oh, haha, I see now," Flowey said, smiling with realization. "You're just pulling our legs, eh? Oh my, using my own freaking anxiety against me, that's devilish of you! Now if you weren't so overly hysterical, I-!"

"I'm not pulling your fucking legs!" Frisk almost yelled in frustration. "God, I…"

She stopped herself from speaking and looked away. She looked in the road's direction but didn't really look at the road itself.

Slowly, Flowey crawled up to her and gently placed a vine on her shoulder. She shuddered once she felt his touch but let him continue.

"Please tell me you saw my fucking shoulder break just now," Frisk begged.

"You think I wouldn't have said so?" Flowey answered.

Frisk was on the verge of laughing now. This was all a joke, wasn't it? Why else was reality going strange so much recently? She's not mad, right? What next, would Flowey stop being sentient and then everyone would act like he never was? Like he was always a faceless flower?

"Oh, what in the utter fuck is going on in this world?!" she muttered, a smile forming on her sweaty face.

"You know, maybe I was kind of rude about your nervousness and confusion before," Flowey began. "But-"

"We have to go," Frisk said determined, looking at the road.

"Still going on with this, huh?" Flowey asked.

"Yes," Frisk said sternly without looking at him. "We have to go."

"Why now?" MK asked.

"I agree, why the hurry?" Flowey asked. "You know, it's kind of obvious you're hiding something, Frisk."

Frisk turned and looked Flowey and MK in their eyes, forcing a brave, re-assuring face on herself.

"Something is going on," Frisk said. "Something uncomfortably weird. There's no time to explain but… my power, my resetting ability. I think it's… broken."

"Broken?" Flowey asked curiously. "What do you mean by "broken"?"

Just before Frisk could speak, the ground shook. Something heavy fell from the cliff above.

Frisk was partly stunned as she watched the large, armoured figure rise behind Flowey and MK.

"Guys…?" she said.

"Holy…" MK blurted out.

Slowly, Flowey turned around. As he did, all doubts faded.

The warrior lady Umbla towered over all of them, the coffin-shaped box with the minigun still chained to her back. But Frisk had a feeling she wouldn't need it this time, as she watched the figure clench her fist as if to strike.

"Little piggies," her voice boomed in a mocking tone, the smiling devil mask only complimenting it.

"Run!" Flowey exclaimed.

Frisk felt the awfully familiar rush of adrenaline as she sprinted as much as she could down the road.

Umbla's massive hoofs quaked the earth with each step. She was like a demonic being from ancient stories, or a beast from fairy-tales on its way to swallow the poor children. The frequency of her steps increased with every meter until it sounded like a mad bull was chasing them. Like the whip of a rider, the trio ran faster as the intensity increased. Only once Frisk braved herself to look backwards did she find out, in the worst way, that Umbla had begun running.

"Oh god, don't look back!" Flowey exclaimed with fright.

"Too late!" Frisk exclaimed as she turned forward.

Faster and faster the monster, almost as wide as the road, pursued, long past what her fat body could manage. Once a fork in the road approached them, Umbla was already only a few steps behind.

"Huff, THERE!" Flowey cried out. "BETWEEN THE ROADS! JUMP!"

Just as Frisk's stamina and hope were waning, she felt the surge of determination return them as she leapt through the trees without question.

"OH F-!" was all she could say before she tumbled down the sheer drop.

Flowey lept straight after her, and MK, not liking the idea but unable to think of another choice, followed, unknowingly leaping just a second before Umbla could grasp them whole.

The blue pine-trees were many, thick and relatively close apart, creating thin barriers for the massive monster lady. She tried to push forward, but only barely able to squeeze one arm through. So Umbla's next course of action was to push forward and tear the trees down. But they were so thick and rooted deeply she could only give them a slight nudge.

Roaring and grunting with exhaustion and rage, the fat boar-minotaur lady eventually gave up and wandered off, hoping to find a wider way around.

Vissie climbed over the branches and jumped from tree to tree like a monkey in the blue forest, trying to calculate the best path to the targets. Not just the best one in terms of physical terrain pathing, but rather pathing through The Chaos of Time.

All things were devoted to The Chaos, almost all without knowing, thus never truly awake. Just entities sleepwalking through life without true comprehension and causing chaotic twists in the strands of time. But not Vissie, for she was aware of the disconcerting truth, and considered herself the only person truly alive besides Gaster. Every moment of her waking life, her brain was a busy centre of activity, taking every single step, every single grain of sand she would see into consideration. The Chaos wasn't just an aspect of life, it was life, and it devoted to her just as she was devoted to it, and she devoted herself to only selected others besides her self-preservation. Vissie could no longer see others as anything less than walking meat or dust. As Vissie gazed into the innards of someone, she could purely see nothing but machinations like that of a robot. But like computers, tearing them apart and putting them together differently was a surprisingly satisfying hobby. Creating and learning the workings of flesh, fur or scales. The problem of dusting was the first thing she searched the solution to, so now she could freely look into the machinations.

Mickey promised Vissie a long time ago to guide her through The Chaos as he would guide this realms inhabitant to the surface, to paradise. So many souls for his plans. The Hunt could take years or maybe centuries, but as long as Mickey helped her through The Chaos and supported her fascinations, she would savour every second. He was the only one to do that. Not even that creature Gaster had the interest to be a part of it.

But now, something was off about The Chaos. Time was broken, and the paradoxical order of disorder was breaking as well. Vissie remembered strange echoes, echoes of a timeline that no longer existed. There was a bridge, and following that, a struggle, and then suddenly, nothing. But something else happened as well, for, in a moment, Mickey suddenly broke both his knees. She watched along with the others as he was bleeding on the ground, with bones twisted beyond usability. However, for some strange reason, only she was able to perceive it. The others looked completely confused as if nothing was wrong, and just a moment later, the blood and bones were gone. Was it another vision? Or another broken mirage manifested in her broken brain? What was fake and what was a foresight is sometimes hard to discern with her flawed brain.

Either way, she travelled through the trees, following the new plan of his despite hating it so. Going solo had fewer chances leading to the best outcome according to The Chaos, yet she respected Mickey enough to still followed orders.

So Vissie sniffed around, looking for any irregularities down on the ground. Then she heard the commotion nearby. From the sound of it and piecing it together quickly, an answer was clear. Umbla found the targets and then lost them again.

Vissie proceeded to hasten her movements as she lept and climbed to its direction.

After a short time, she found them, laying on the ground by a steep hill, standing up slowly like they just woke up from a rest. Their eyes, even in the flower, were filled with unease. Scared they were. Always a plus.

"Are you guys alright?!" the human girl exclaimed.

"Y-yeah!" the little yellow monster kid replied.

"Define alright," the flower said with annoyance.

"Oh Jesus, that bad?" the girl asked, sounding concerned for some reason.

"No, no, I'm fine," the flower said. "Have you heard of hyperbole?"

Interesting, Vissie thought.

Butterflies filled her stomach as she perked atop the trees. Vissie wanted to strike immediately but remembered her order to inform and wait.

"So…" the human girl began, sounding exasperated. "Now you believe me?"

"Obviously," the flower said. "But in my defence, I wasn't really disbelieving you. Still, if what you say is true-"

"No time right now," the human girl said. "Let's go."

Vissie picked up her radio and was about to call the others where they were heading. But once she saw the trio hastily move away, Vissie stopped as she quickly realized one thing.

If she went ahead with Mickey's plan, then there were way too many unpredictabilities. What if the others couldn't make it? What if they got lost or didn't get her message?

She had to make a quick decision, stay with Mickey's new plan, or follow The Chaos' path as she once always did.

As the goblin lady followed after the kids from the trees above, the discomfort grew. Mickey might punish her for this. He could give her Blood-Knuckle treatment. She grasped her index finger as she imagined the pain.

The kids were getting away. The choices were beginning to make her sweat.

No, she couldn't risk following the plan. If she and The Hunt were to persist, she had to defy her orders. Defy The Royal Hunt to save it and herself. Even if it could bring excruciating pain, she and The Royal Hunt would live.

Vissie reached for a vial on her belt. A green-blue liquid as clear as freshwater filled it just about. A new experiment she had procured.

"Yo was that really Umbla?!" the monster kid exclaimed.

"The one and only," the flower answered.

They were now just far enough apart, so Vissie raised her arm like a stone thrower, and flung the vial towards the centre of the group.

"Wait, if Umbla's here," the kid continued. "Then that means Vissie-"

Before the kid could finish, the glass vial shattered on the ground. Just as the kids quickly turned to look, the entire area got covered in glowing, green-blue smoke, followed by some electricity sparkling in the air. With a smile hidden under her mask, Vissie jumped down.

Frisk coughed and coughed as the strange smoke entered her mouth. It was so strangely bright as well and burnt her skin slightly.

Is this yet another goddamned hallucination? Frisk thought with unease.

"Guys!" she cried out. "Flowey?! MK?!"

The smoke was simultaneously foggy and blinding. She could barely see two feet away.

"Yo, Frisk, is that you?!" MK's voice cried out from somewhere.

"Yeah!" Frisk cried back.

"God, this smoke tastes awful," Flowey's voice said. "Where are you two?!"

"Flowey?!" MK cried out. "I don't know! I can't see anything!"

Suddenly, Frisk turned and saw an eerie silhouette of an impish humanoid crouched over. Then Frisk saw the silhouette of a small, out of place flower not far off.

"Frisk is that you!" Flowey cried out.

"FLOWEY, LOOK OUT!" Frisk yelled.

But it was too late, for as soon as the figure heard Flowey's cry, it ran towards him as if possessed and pushed him on the ground.

Finally, the smoke dissipated, and Frisk finally saw the armoured figure holding Flowey down. Frisk recognized Vissie immediately.

"Got ya," Vissie said gleefully.

She looked around at Frisk and MK and chuckled.

"Let him go!" Frisk cried out.

"Run!" Flowey cried out. "It's not worth it!"

"I beg to differ," Vissie said mockingly.

"You think I'm just gonna leave you, Flowey?!" Frisk cried out. "I can handle her!"

"Huhuhu, I like you, humie," Vissie said.

"Fuck off!" Frisk said bravely.

Quickly, the goblin pulled out a shotgun from her back using her tail and fired a single shot. Fortunately, Flowey quickly snuck an extended vine and pushed Frisk down to the sides so that the shell just barely scraped past her knee. Falling on the ground, she grunted as she slammed onto the stones and bruised her skin.

"What… DID YOU SAY TO ME, GIRL?!" Vissie yelled.

"FRISK!" MK cried out.

"Don't move, kiddo!" Vissie exclaimed. "Or this flower gets it like his brave saviour's knee."

MK hadn't even considered moving and stood frozen like a deer in a headlight.

Frisk quickly looked around for anything to assist during this short window of being unnoticed.

Meanwhile, Vissie stared down directly at the Flowey, pushing her shotgun closer towards him with her tail.

"Touch me with your magic vines," Vissie began. "And you'll miss having a face, you abomination. What are you even?"

Flowey had to practically descend into the ground as the barrel was now up to his pistil.

Frisk, thinking quickly, grabbed a nearby loose branch and rose back up on her feet.

"Oh, aren't ya just a pretty little flower, eh?!" Vissie said. "I almost want to eat you alive."

"Hey, hey," Flowey said, unable to hide his anxiety. "Maybe we can… talk about this?"

"Hey, lady?!" Frisk exclaimed.

The goblin did not look up as she expected, but Frisk struck anyway. With only a swing of the branch, the goblin lady flew off MK and flew high in the air before impacting a large tree, back first. The swing was enough to strike the shotgun from her hand and the smiling theatre mask off her face. As the goblin lady landed on the ground, Frisk could see her reptilian face for the first time. Her yellow eyes were massive, with pinkish eyeshadows as if she hadn't slept much. The eyes were also partly covered by her incredibly messy, ink-black hair that looked like a dead spider with far too many legs. Her skin looked slimy and almost froglike, and her mouth massive with yellow teeth like a piranha's. Frisk almost expected her to be a human as well, even while considering the elongated mask and tail. It was clear now that her hypothesis was bunk.

Only now did Frisk finally realize just how risky and, in hindsight, moronic her manoeuvre was, and with a palm over her mouth, looked down with worry. Fortunately, Flowey looked unharmed.

"Get up!" Frisk said with urgency. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Flowey said dismissively.

"Yo…" MK said, awestruck. "Frisk, how are you so strong?!"

Vissie grunted with annoyance rather than anger nearby. She had a peculiar expression like she expected Frisk to strike but was still incredibly pissed off. However, once Frisk noticed the stream of blood leaking down her face, she realized they were dealing with a ticking time bomb of hate.

"Guys?!" Frisk exclaimed with urgency.

Flowey quickly helped MK up in their feet just as a few blood drops landed on Vissie's long, pink, dangling tongue. She immediately dropped the grunting and breathing and changed her expression to that of concern.

Vissie then placed her armoured hand on her temple, massaged it a bit, and then looked at her now blood covered palm. She seemed shocked as she watched the blood turning to dust. Afterwards, her face turned redder and redder as if she were going to burst.

"Oh… crap baskets," Flowey muttered. "Let's go, LET'S GO!"

The trio began to quickly run into the opposite direction once more. Behind them, there came an explosion of angry cries like a furious banshee of hate.

Eldur did not miss the noises. It was so loud he was certain everything in the forest heard.

To no surprise of his own, after breaking through countless blue foliage he found Vissie sitting on the ground, her back to a tree. She was unmasked with blood running down from a scar on her head, and a face filled with wrath. Standing next to her was Umbla, who had arrived at the scene earlier for the same reason.

Several trees had been ripped to stumps as if torn asunder by some force, and the ground was covered with what looked like several pointy spikes protruding in different directions. Most monsters would've been utterly baffled. But those familiar with the lengths of Vissie's anger, like Eldur, didn't think twice.

Guess I won't piss her off again, the drake thought.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Those… those FUCKING…!" Vissie began and pointed her finger towards one direction. "Ugh! Those kids fled that way!"

"Alright," Eldur said, thinking. "Umbla, stay with her. I'll deal with this."

"They can't have gone far!" Vissie said. "Catch them and… GAH! MAKE THESE LITTLE SHITS SUFFER!"

Frisk ran for a good few moments before the group noticed that their surroundings had gotten silent. She and MK paused to take a breath, which came out in great quantity.

The group walked a few more steps in silence, moving the branches and foliage until they revealed a wide crevice with only a thin log working as a makeshift bridge across.

"Great…" Frisk said sarcastically.

"D-do we have to cross that?" MK asked softly.

"Seems like it," Frisk said and sighed.

"Can't we at least look around for another way?" MK asked. "Like, maybe we could go around and-"

"Nah, too risky," Flowey said. "It could take a while, enough for The Hunt to find us. Sorry kid. Sure this may not be the best way across, but it's the best we can manage."

"Alright…" MK said and gulped.

Closing her eyes, Frisk took the first steps on the log. It hobbled a bit from the added weight. When she placed her other foot the log shook. Finally, with both feet on the makeshift bridge, Frisk opened her eyes.

Flowey crawled quickly on the underside, using his vines to pull himself forward. In only a few seconds, he was on the opposite end. When Frisk reached the middle, she realized the chasm wasn't that wide, so much so that one could possibly jump it after a sprint.

"Hurry up you two," Flowey called from across.

"Just hang on a moment," Frisk replied.

She turned around and extended a hand towards MK.

"I… I don't have hands," MK said.

"I know, it's just a gesture," Frisk said. "It means I'll help you across. Hop on."

"O… ok," MK said.

They slowly placed one clawed foot on the log.

"Yes, just like that," Frisk said. "One foot at a time."

"We don't have time for this," Flowey said.

"Flowey, just give us some, ok?" Frisk said.

The sounds of nearby rustling came from the woods just as MK placed their other foot on the log.

"Oh no," MK said.

"Guys?" Flowey asked anxiously.

"Kid, can you run?" Frisk asked with urgency.

"I… I don't…" MK began.

The log shook once more, and this time Frisk heard it creaking.

Oh no, she thought.

"Kid, there's no time," Frisk said with growing urgency. "Be right behind me."

"Erm…" MK muttered.

And with that, the first cracks appeared on the log. Frisk didn't have to think hard to realize the log was on the verge of splitting in two.

"KID?!" she exclaimed.

The log bent and creaked and then, finally, sundered, and without a moment to think, Frisk ran across. She jumped at the last moment as the log finally snapped and the pieces fell into the abyss below, landing face-first on the ground.

"Goddammit," Frisk muttered. "Are you alright kid? Kid?"

Frisk raised her head and saw Flowey stare in the distance with shock, and she instantly began fearing the worst.

"Frisk?!" MK cried out from the other side.

Frisk sighed in relief, hearing their voice. However, once she turned to look, she saw a situation that was only slightly better but still harrowing. MK was standing on the other side, looking around while sweating and shaking.

"No…" Frisk muttered, feeling the guilt wash over her.

"Frisk, did you just-?!" Flowey began, sounding baffled.

"It's not my… I thought they were right behind me," Frisk said.

"F-Frisk, Flowey?" MK said nervously, sounding on the verge of breaking down. "W… what do I do?"

"Kid, can you jump across?!" Frisk exclaimed.

"I… no, I… I don't think I can," MK replied.

At that moment, an armoured figure with a dragon mask emerged from behind them, walking slowly and calculating. He quickly spotted the kid first.

"LOOK OUT!" Frisk yelled.

"Wha-" MK began.

They turned around and cried out as they tripped on their back. MK crawled backwards, staring at Eldur helplessly, while the drake just walked and slowly unsheathed his cleaver of a sword.

"Flowey, do something!" Frisk exclaimed.

"I… I can't…" Flowey said. "I don't think my vines can reach that far."

"Wha-, fine use your air spike thingy then!" Frisk exclaimed.

"My what now?" Flowey replied.

"You know! The thing where you conjure up a bunch of spiky things and throw them, just like back when-!"

"Frisk, what the heck are you talking about?!"

"Oh for… alright, try your vines then!"

"I told you, I don't think they can reach!"

"Of course they can reach that far!"

"I… I don't-"

"Can you try at least?!"

"I…"

Flowey looked across the chasm, at the large, intimidating warrior holding a block of metal. He didn't look scared or even angry, but rather his expression was almost devoid of life. It was like this sight utterly tore apart any semblance of emotion.

"Frisk?" Flowey said softly. "We have to go."

Frisk quickly turned towards him. She couldn't believe what she just heard.

"Are you serious…?" she asked.

"I'm sorry," Flowey said. "But there's nothing we can do, and-"

"Bullshit that there's nothing we can do!" Frisk exclaimed. "I'm not leaving them behind!"

Flowey looked at her, and then towards MK and the drake towering over him.

"Well, in that case, goodbye for now," he said. "Sorry, Frisk."

"Flowey?"

But Flowey fled away, crawling towards the bushes with quick haste and vanished between the foliage.

"Flowey!" Frisk angrily cried out after him. "Flowey, you…you fucking coward!"

Shaking her head and unable to fully accept what occurred, Frisk grunted angrily. Why him, of all people down here? She was so unbelievably hurt and angry. But she knew it wasn't yet time for that.

Filled with determination, Frisk put on a brave face and turned to face the dragon alone.

"Hey, asshole, over here!" Frisk exclaimed, waving her arms.

Eldur slowly moved his gaze at her from MK.

"If you lay a single finger on them!" Frisk began. "Then I will, honest to god, jump over there and freaking gut you! Believe me, I will!"

Eldur said nothing, just looked back down at the whimpering child and slowly raised his sword.

"Please, don't!" MK cried out.

"Hey, hey, I'm the one you want, remember?" Frisk said sternly. "Well come over here and take me then! Or are you too scared and would rather take on a little kid?! Is that what gets you off, you chicken?!"

Eldur said nothing, just kept staring at MK, sword high in the air, like he couldn't hear Frisk anymore.

"You… you don't have to do this!" Frisk exclaimed with more desperation. "You know that right?! They're just a fucking kid, ok?! A little… kid, scared and confused! They're barely 13! They don't even wanna be here!"

She paused to take a deep breath. Fortunately, for some reason she couldn't understand, Eldur hadn't struck yet.

"Please…" Frisk said calmly. "Elder, wasn't it? Something like that? Please just… just let them go. I don't care what you'll do to me, just don't hurt them. Don't bring them into this."

Despite her words, despite her pleas, her threats and cries, Eldur did not even acknowledge her anymore. His blade was high in the air, ready to strike at any moment.

MK closed their tear-filled eyes, preparing for the final impact. But then the drake lowered his sword slightly.

"If you ever tell anyone what really happened here," Eldur growled. "I'll hunt you both down and kill you for real."

He placed his sword on his back, with a sharp sheathing sound as it slid into the scabbard.

Frisk couldn't believe what she was seeing or hearing. Neither did MK from the look of it.

"W-what?" they asked.

"Go," Eldur said. "Before the others arrive."

The armoured drake turned around and began walking back to the forest.

"T-thank you, mister-" MK began.

"Don't," Eldur said sternly. "This never happened."

A moment later, he disappeared between the trees.

Did that really just happen? Frisk thought to herself. That wasn't me who did that. Was it?

MK slowly rose from the ground and turned towards Frisk and the chasm. Just looking at their face, Frisk could see several conflicting emotions.

"Fuh… Frisk…?" they asked. "W-where's Flowey?"

"Fuck him," Frisk answered. "Can you jump?"

"I-it's so deep," MK said. "And far."

"I know," Frisk said.

"M-maybe there's another way across," the monster kid said.

"I don't think there's enough time."

"B-but maybe that warrior guy is giving us time? Or maybe they're making the others leave us be, and-"

There came sounds of further commotions far in the trees behind MK.

"Kid?" Frisk asked with urgency.

"I… I don't know about this," MK said fearfully.

Neither do I, Frisk thought.

"Maybe I could try sprinting first…" MK said.

"Yeah, good idea," Frisk replied.

"W-will you catch me?" MK asked.

"Of course."

MK backed a few steps. They closed their eyes and took a deep breath. A moment later, they opened them and ran. They ran and jumped with wide-open eyes.

And then halfway over, they fell and cried out as they descended into the black abyss.

"AH, HELP!" they cried in the air.

"MK!" Frisk yelled in agony.

But then a long, green vine slithered in the air and grabbed the falling kid by the knee. MK had closed their eyes as they fell, and kept them closed for a few more moments after being gripped. They opened their eyes once they finally noticed they weren't falling anymore.

"What the…" they muttered.

No longer in despair, Frisk quickly followed the vine direction and saw exactly someone she had hoped to see.

"Flowey?" Frisk asked.

Grunting and struggling, Flowey was back beside her, heaving MK up with his vines.

"Yo Flowey?!" MK asked.

Relief entangled itself over Frisk's previous sense of betrayal. She didn't know how to react, be glad that he came back or yell at him for abandoning them in the first place. But, despite everything, she pushed her grudge to the sides for now. Seeing Flowey struggle, Frisk grabbed his vines and helped him in pulling MK up.

"C'mon, kiddo!" Flowey said, grunting. "Up… you go."

And with a quick heave, the kid was pulled up and Frisk quickly embraced them while Flowey loosened his hold. MK shuddered in her arms and wept softly.

"You're ok, kid," Frisk comforted them. "You're ok."

Flowey breathed long and heavy breaths and looked at Frisk with a saddened expression.

"You… you came back," Frisk muttered as she looked at him.

"Aye," Flowey said, tiredly. "That's what… friends do."

Maybe I can forgive him, Frisk pondered.

There came some rustling and distant voices from the other side of the crevice.

"Right, let's go," Frisk said.

Carrying MK in her arms, she and her friend proceeded deeper in the woods, running even after they were long out of sight.


Author's note:

So this is kind of unusual, cutting the final part of a chapter in two. Well, not really, but it is when I designated it as FINAL 1/2 instead of Waterfall Part 5.

There's a reason for that that I'll get into further in the second part which, is pretty much gonna come out, most likely, later today.