Alice in Undertale Chapter 30
By Lolitafreak88
Chapter 30 River of Tears
Alice was no trained combatant but even she had braced herself to be suddenly attacked by Sans the moment he had finished speaking those cold words. What she hadn't expected was to find herself suddenly flung backwards furiously, her body incapable of reacting in time, and crashing hard to the ground. She grunted as she took notice that her SOUL had turned BLUE, the same color and properties as Papyrus. Like brother like colors, Alice thought as she struggled to get up. The moment she had barely gotten to her feet, a row of bones sprouted from beneath her and knocked her up into the air.
"Ahh!" She screamed.
While in mid-air she was able to spot two things. Sans moving his arms in the manner of a captain of the guard and the Mad Hatter looking over to her in fear before tossing his hat towards her. To Alice's surprise, the hat managed to grow to a size big enough to cover her inside it's golden sheen and that is precisely what it did, catching her like a butterfly to a net. Alice was relieved to have some moment of safety but she soon heard the sound of several rough things pounding against the hat. The hat appeared to be doubling as a barrier in this moment in time but the intensity of the sounds implied Sans was not going easy on her in the slightest. Proving her worth was the only way to get him to concede. The sound of a strange sort of discharge, like something out of a fantasy or a nightmare rang through the air and when Alice got to her feet and peeked over the hat, she saw something astounding. Several skeletal heads of varying sizes were firing ghostly white beams at the hat. Based on their shape and Alice would've theorized them to be some sort of dragon or lizard. They dispersed after their attacks had failed to penetrate the hat and the hat quickly landed back on the ground for Alice to gain her footing. It then promptly teleported and shrunk back to fit on the Mad Hatter's head.
"What were those things Sans…?" Alice asked, slightly terrified.
"still asking questions? huh. that's one thing i'll give you credit for alice. you are forward in conversation. it's a Gaster Blaster. always wondered why people wouldn't use their strongest attacks first." Sans temporarily gave up the menacing aura to give a jovial-sounding reply.
"Strongest attack?" Alice gulped.
She was starting to feel like she was going to have a bad time. From looking over him, Sans was the easiest enemy who could deal only one damage. Regardless of the damage, she was firmly aware Sans had much more devastating power than that. She quickly weighed in her options. Attacking Sans aggressively to destroy him would discredit everything she had done prior to now and break Papyrus's heart. Attacking Sans in defense seemed cowardly though could potentially allow her to read his moves better. A strong defense would also be deemed cowardly to anyone trained in combat (like Undyne with Alice running away from her) and not show adequate proof she wanted to save the monsters. By process of elimination, she couldn't run away either. Prior to the Underground, Alice would've likely been panicked at being thrust into this sort of thinking about battle tactics. In the present moment, she felt she had a fairly good idea of what the monsters desired from their combatants and how combatants tangled with the monsters. While she certainly didn't enjoy it, it gave her the confidence and DETERMINATION to keep pushing for the right result.
"Mr. Hatter! Let's begin!" Alice gave the Mad Hatter the go to begin.
Regardless of actually being Frisk, he didn't mind adopting Alice's beloved characters as it was when she harnessed her DETERMINATION the most and was at her strongest. Furthermore it had served well to hide his identity from those who would've most likely intervened negatively had they known he was following around the little girl. So as the Mad Hatter, he felt himself imbued with unique, new powers and a sense of justice and redemption that'd allow him to face Sans. While his last defeat ended with death, he was positive that Alice's match with Sans would turn out differently. He decided the best thing to do was to mount an offense to keep Sans from abusing the blue SOUL attacks that had given Alice the most trouble so far on the journey. So the Mad Hatter started by summoning a few golden tea party chairs from the sky, chairs that Alice had moved down several times as part of some game from what he could gather. They fell towards Sans, quick enough to be threatening but at the same time slow enough to keep Sans occupied. Sans was a bit startled by the attack but reacted accordingly by breaking through the chairs with concentrated Gaster Blaster blasts.
"i think i'd rather have you take a seat." Sans poked fun as he retaliated.
He turned Alice's SOUL BLUE and dragged her forward into a line of bones that surged towards her. Alice knew that she couldn't simply let herself be manipulated like a puppet nor let the Mad Hatter do all the work. She used the momentum of being pulled forward in a leap of faith that allowed her to go over the bones in question. The Mad Hatter charged forward at Sans at the same time, but was quickly knocked aside by another bone strike. Sans took the brief pause akin to being in the eye of the storm to speak,
"our reports showed a massive anomaly in the space time continuum. timelines jumping left and right, stopping and starting… until suddenly, everything ends."
"I'm afraid I myself am not responsible for that. I can't say I quite understand the logic of how that works." Alice replied as she noticed another set of oncoming bones.
This time she grew a golden mushroom of DETERMINATION and laid her tummy down on it as it grew just high enough to avoid an army of bones surging down the hall. It also allowed her to narrowly duck bones that seemed to hang upside down like chandeliers due to her reduced height.
"don't pass the blame, you know you are very capable of doing the same thing… and i can't let that happen. you can't understand how this feels."
"Regardless of it not happening to me personally I believe I know enough information to gather how it affects individuals. Sans I'm truly sorry something like this was thrust upon you and your brother. You shouldn't have to undergo a Cacus Race of repeated events." Alice shared her condolences with the skeleton.
"...it's still going to be reset… knowing that it can happen at any moment… that's the real hell alice. what was the worst thing you went through? nearly being beheaded?" Sans once again showed more knowledge about Wonderland than Alice was comfortable with.
By this point Sans had changed up his attacks into a tapestry of angled bones and surprising platforms. Alice had to adjust her mushroom very carefully to get through this attacks without a scratch but her mushroom was starting to get pierced and dented by all the bones it was blocking. To Alice's fortune, the Mad Hatter had once again recovered from the earlier strike and got behind Alice before suddenly conjuring an elaborate tablecloth that knocked away all the bones in a dramatic sweep. Alice had to admit there was a strange sort of beauty to this battle, as though it was orchestrated to a fine medley and artists had carefully arranged and timed each attack. Yet that was only a minor thought compared to having to answer Sans understandably sound words.
"... It's quite true that no lone death can measure to the potential of multiple deaths… but what of those who can't come back? Wouldn't you place our trust in someone that could keep their deaths from being in vain?!" Alice yelled.
In truth she had Asriel on her mind, Frisk, the six dead children, and slightly Chara as she declared this. She felt they were too young, too innocent, too undeserving of being killed for the different reasons that they were killed. Two of them were even accepted by the monsters and only died because of tragic causes while the others had been very bluntly murdered. Yet, even then, their deaths were understood by at least one side as the only hope to escape the Underground. Alice wanted to appease both sides, she wanted to free the monsters but also was hoping to give closure and redemption to the humans. This didn't seem to sit well with Sans who gave a disgruntled expression and suddenly summoned a Gaster Blaster.
"i gave up a long time ago after waiting alice... getting to the surface doesn't hold any joy or opportunities for me anymore… cause regardless of what you want, or what you claim, you're just a puppet alice. Do what you want and we'll still end up back here with no memories at all because you're not real!" He shouted with resentment and a tinge of despair.
The Gaster Blaster blasted the mushroom and Alice simultaneously, knocking the little girl off and crashing onto the ground again. It hurt quite badly, an indescribable feeling of the blast's contact ringing through Alice's muscles. She wasn't even sure how many more attacks of that caliber she could take. The Mad Hatter looked rather enraged by this and conjured a giant teapot with three spouts and a floral motif. It sputtered out a golden haze of steam at Sans that was harmless but would serve to cloud his vision. Sans flinched instinctively when the gold haze spread but was secretly relieved when it appeared to be harmless. The clear downside to this type of attack was that he couldn't see where the Mad Hatter had went off to. Yet for all his laziness, Sans was a sentry at heart and while he didn't care to show it, his physical capabilities were much more impressive than what one would assume. So that is why he was able to reflexively dodge a human-sized teacup of DETERMINATION.
"here's the real t, this ain't a tea party." Perhaps seeing the whimsy of Alice's fighting style was getting him in the mood to making puns.
"I-I am fully aware of that Sans… but I swear I can make my own choices now…!" Alice got up but didn't feel all that comfortable standing.
"alice... maybe if the situation was different and you had originally been here… we could've been friends in a different timeline. you've made my brother very happy. you have spared the monsters you've faced. i don't doubt you care about us either. but how can i trust you when there should've been someone else standing here instead of you? when you've lied? when you exist somewhere else?" Sans asked of her.
"Because I don't have 'somewhere else' to go to. Truthfully, should I never return home I'd hope to be able to find a new one here with all of you. I sympathize with what happened… there's things that we could all learn from what happened here, and if we were able to be free, we could work together to make a new life on the surface. There would be no more sacrifices."
As appalled at times she had been towards the monsters desire to harm humanity or violent tendencies or their destructive past, she felt they could learn. Wasn't making mistakes and correcting them with your own hands the sort of good advice anyone could use? Regardless of the Barrier's blockade, it also served to symbolize the monsters previous mindset that trapped them down here and continued to keep them down here for not learning from history. Yet the monsters now had an opportunity through Alice to overcome this, to be able to acknowledge and apply mercy. Yet as good as Alice's words sounded, Sans was resolute. He was resolute in his plan for Frisk to find the solution and way to break the Barrier and not murder anyone again. She had no reverence, let alone presence beforehand, to influence him strongly enough to trust her. She sounded perfectly dedicated and kind-hearted but wasn't that just an act? Wasn't that just the words of a fairy tale she herself had appeared in? If she couldn't answer how she got here, who's to say the person responsible for bringing her in here wouldn't step in at some point and unveil some devious plan. Like the first time it happened…
"guess you like doing things the hard way then… i think a sacrifice is ok as long as it leads to the right path, not when it's done to the ones you love for some sick genocide. sorry alice… i'm not risking that again." Sans spoke with a tone that meant he was shutting down any potential counterarguments.
He made his choice. He was going to try again but not with Alice. Even though she had lasted this long, she was an anomaly. He decided it was time to unleash his full power against the girl from Wonderland. After dodging a few more tea cups that attempted to crash onto him, he summoned another series of Gaster Blasters that sent blasts within the mist. It seemed as though the mysterious energy of the beams dispersed the mist and cleared it away, exposing the Mad Hatter who found himself blasted down by one of the beams. Alice had chosen to hide behind a pillar, at this point extremely concerned about her chances. As frustrating as it may have been to have all her pleas denied by Sans, she wasn't going to give up trying to prove herself and her DETERMINATION to him. Yet what she didn't realize as strongly as she should've was that he was going to prove himself right in condemning Alice to her death. Sans continued to speak to her as he started pressing his advantage with seeking Gaster Blasters,
"take it from me kid, someday… you gotta learn when to QUIT. and that day's today."
Napstablook at some point had entered the Hall of Judgement after the battle had began. In truth, he had been searching for Alice since he had gathered the determination to find her and aid her. Such thoughts had never crossed his mind before and it was these same thoughts that were showing Napstablook new parts of the Underground he had never seen before. A home that looked very cozy but had a somber feeling about it that would almost make it suitable for him to move in if he really wanted to. They had been early towns that the monsters must've built when they first came into the Underground. Now he was in this strange yet opulent chapel-like building. He vaguely understood that he may have been very close if not right inside King ASGORE's castle. It was daring, out of character even for him to be here. A ghost inside a chapel. Or at least he was to assume it was a chapel. He had heard some tales about the monsters having religious beliefs around Waterfall after all, not that Mettaton or any of his friends talked about it. Before he could reminisce in a somewhat absent-minded fashion, he quickly noticed that there was a great scene unraveling before him.
Alice was in a state of terror and franticness that he had never seen her before. She was dashing away from what could only be described as fossils and bones that apparently could shoot out beams of energy. He also made out a golden figure in a rather lavish outfit and a hat that he would almost imagine himself wearing in terms of it being an equally dapper hat. Then there was the monster attacking Alice. A skeleton from the looks of it, dressed in modern clothes, with a face that was pained, furious, cold, and frightening all at once. The sweat on his face gleamed in the rays of light emanating from the windows as he was dodging the golden figure, who had lunged forth with an attempt at a martial arts arm chop. If Napstablook was to be honest, it looked like the skeleton didn't want this fight at all but felt he had to do it and was giving it all he got. Alice was dodging these attacks, ever the Pacifist as she had said. Ever…
'Indeed. I… just want you to know that I must sincerely thank you again for giving me that determination to keep going. I wouldn't even be here if I hadn't had your friendship and trust in me.' Alice said sweetly.'
'you didn't treat me any less than how i thought of myself… that was such a new experience for me and i liked it… and what you've done is admirable. you're always welcome… and you're welcome to come back and visit…"
'... Y-yeah… I would love that… and I would also love to free you…" Alice couldn't stop herself from feeling extremely sentimental and tears started to emerge in her eyes.'
"i hope she's ok…" Napstablook murmured to himself as he hid behind a pillar and watched.
Not only would showing himself risk Alice's concentration and desire to save the Underground in a time like this but he was worried about what the skeleton would do to her should he find that there was another figure in the room. Part of it was also cowardice that he wasn't proud of. Determined as he was he wasn't at all comparable to the Undyne he lived next door to. Alice continued to act defensively towards the skeleton's attacks, though judging by her panting and the fact she looked rather disheveled compared to when he found her in the junkyard, she was not doing smoothly. The golden figure that Alice had summoned was narrowly missing his opponent at several times but the skeleton proved impressively evasive. even though he's in slippers, Napstablook remarked as he thought back to times where he was stunned by Mettaton's incredible movements in challenging high-heels. The skeleton suddenly gave a put out expression and gave a shout of frustration that sounded more like a roar.
"you know alice, if you keep pushing me the way you are now, the way you've been since the beginning… i'll be forced to use my special attack. and you didn't last long enough to see papyrus do his." The skeleton taunted rather viciously.
"I'm pushing… huff… to save you Sans! I won't let anyone turn time back or RESET to cause harm again! I'm going to make a future for hopefully me, my friends, you, and all of the Underground! I just don't want… huff… any more lives to be lost!" Alice dropped the name of the skeleton while also making Napstablook's heart wince.
She sounded so invested into this that it was making Napstablook feel so shameful for not contributing sooner. She sounded heroic… more than a human child whose soul needed to be collected. Between the Ruins and Waterfall and now, Alice's earnest spirit and strong values weren't lost. Napstablook felt himself reignited with a sense of DETERMINATION at his best friend's courage. However, the skeleton now known as Sans, seemed to be on the verge of a breaking point. The question is, would Alice's words sway him or would-
"those are just pretty words from a pawn alice. you have no proof to justify you'll do as you say. i had proof from someone else and he's not here anymore! but i'll find him again and we'll have good times, good food, and a good future together… survive this and you'll see my special attack!" Sans abrupt declaration cut through Napstablook's thoughts.
Napstablook slightly cowered at that and at the building dread of what was about to happen to Alice. But on the contrary what ended up happening was that the golden figure was lifted into the air by some BLUE attack, They were suddenly carried down the hall and crashed into strategically placed bones as Alice watched in shock and dismay.
"No!" Alice yelped.
The figure did it's best to endure as it smashed through and was sent crashing into the bones but after another round of this, going back and forth down the hall, it suddenly dispersed into dust that ultimately dissolved into nothingness like sugar in tea. Alice had lost her main source of strength and the realization of her skyrocketing vulnerability was written all over her body language. Sans gave a look of slight excitement, realizing he had managed to wear Alice down to a point where he could likely swing the momentum in his favor. The look did not sit well with Napstablook, nor did the sight of strange skeletal heads flying upward into the air like a firework. They shot out a furious array of beams at Alice, the pattern being that of a rotation. Alice found herself fleeing forward towards Sans, barely outpacing the beams as she ran around the room.
"...h-he…" Nastablook was beginning to feel himself tearing up.
His tears dripped to the floor but in a much quicker pace than before. This was a level of magic that ghosts were capable of and as he was not at all the Undyne type, he hadn't ever really tested his potential. Why would he? His interests were about music, happiness, and entertaining similar to Mettaton. He wanted to be free but he was not about to hunt down or ruthlessly kill humans to do it. Yet he couldn't help but suddenly feel a surge of power flow through this tears and a certain strong emotion of protectiveness and slight rage towards what was happening to Alice. The DETERMINATION to get here and the DETERMINATION to protect her were uniting as one. The tears soon formed a puddle under Napstablook's hovering form, a pure white mirror in the shadowy hall. As it began to grow, Alice made an emboldened plea,
"Sans please! For the sake of all the monsters in the Underground, stop! There's no need for anymore bloodshed!"
Sans did not give her an answer, whether out of arrogance of cruelty or a sense of desperation to finish this as quickly as he could. He turned Alice's soul BLUE once more and to Napstablook's horror, flung her around the hall with his right eye flashing dangerous hues of blue and yellow. With each swift movement of his arm she crashed into the floor, the ceiling, pillars, and everywhere in between, having little time to groan and scream out in pain. The puddle started to shape into a river and flowed through the shadows, away from view. Napstablook felt his patience wear thin and knew that he couldn't allow his best friend to be treated so horrifically. Trying to think logically about how to go about this was difficult for him, someone who had been passive in the past and only just now started taking initiative. i have to be something more than i have been before, Napstablook thought with an optimism he had started to adopt from Alice. The river of tears soon made a graceful arc behind Sans and took advantage of his focus on Alice to be deceptive and unnoticed. At the same time, Sans appeared to be concluding his assault on Alice, slamming her roughly to the ground face first. Dirt could be seen on Alice's skin and clothes though there appeared to be no blood at least but she couldn't pull herself up. She placed her hands in an attempt to do so but collapsed quickly under the weight of the soreness and pain her body was in. She didn't even have the stamina or will to cry properly at the pain.
"looks like i didn't need the special attack…" Sans shrugged.
In his heart, Sans felt a mix of emotions. Shame, disappointment, fulfillment, numbness, exhaustion, and a very small amount of hope. He was tired of hearing 'determination'. It was a word that always seemed to be misleading and never worked to help any of the Underground be free. That word was synonymous with the deaths of the monsters he loved and cherished and it also meant that for some reason, Alice had that same level of DETERMINATION and was using it in ways that made him uneasy. Knowing the story of Alice in Wonderland also said to him that this girl before him was not genuine and even if she was, what good would having an inquisitive girl with a short temper and easy gullibility for anything of interest do for their chances of freedom? Even her promises of another way seemed all but shut down, just like it seemed to have happened to Frisk. It all just seemed to repeat over and over… he was hoping Frisk would come back and make a positive change. And he didn't come back… Sans thought, using his skill in hiding his emotions masterfully as he stared at Alice with a small smile. He could only hope that in the next timeline, Frisk would be back and he wouldn't have to be constantly paranoid about this new little girl.
"Mnnngh…" Alice finally found some gumption to push herself to one of her knees.
As she looked up, countless bones appeared and were aimed at her with the same presence as a rain of spears frozen in place. She knew very well already what those bones meant for her future and for a moment panic seized her. She felt the sting of fresh tears appear and her mind desperately thought back to what she felt was her comfort zone. The question of 'what would her sister do'? Would her sister have told her to run away? Tell her to accept the loss of the duel gracefully like a proper lady? Try one more time to get through to Sans? Stand against this oppression? After these thoughts came a moment of reflection for Alice. As much as she had struggled in the Underground and faced the threat of death more times than anyone could possibly imagine, if she were to fall here, the monsters would be free. But how would Papyrus react to losing her? How would humanity fare if King ASGORE led the charge to slay them? Would she be letting her sister's memory down? Or what if this was another test, another test of her conviction to SAVE? It was for that reason that she took a deep breath, ignoring the pain in her bones and muscles, and started to speak to Sans.
"... I-I understand... I've lost… and perhaps it is for the better… for your hopes and dreams… for me to fall by your hand. T-then that way… there'd be no need for a RESET… Y-you can just take my SOUL and deliver it to the King without any interference… and maybe you, Papyrus, and the others could finally be free."
Sans froze, and suddenly gave a look of anguish and franticness. Was he doing the right thing by slaying her and leaving Papyrus to wonder what ever happened to Alice? Was this really the hopes and dreams that Sans wanted out of life? For an 8th child to be killed? If things were to be RESET, could he bear having to pretend as though his brother never had a snowball fight with Alice or had someone who had spared him after several timelines of despair? Would being free make Papyrus the happiest he had ever been in life or would having Alice still alive be the real joy in his brother's future? Without explicitly stating it, Alice was asking Sans these questions and it for the first time since the hotel, Sans felt as though he was free to think more clearly. But what happened next shocked him even further. The sound of a dramatic splash filled the Hall of Judgement, as though the waterfalls of Waterfall (he scolded himself for this unconscious pun) had slammed into some rocks. Then he heard a voice he couldn't recall hearing before,
"you won't take her SOUL!"
A rush of white water swirled around Sans and soon surrounded him within a bubble of what was clearly monster's magic. While the water thankfully did not touch him, which already put Sans at a major disadvantage, it clearly was designed to trap him and keep him from being as evasive as he had been previously. In fact the water was being skillfully manipulated to open up a hole big enough for Sans to see Alice. He quickly started to look around for whoever was responsible for this. To his bafflement, and in some strange way relief, it appeared to be a ghost who floated up to his level of vision while Alice gave an expression of earnest surprise behind them. In some ways, this was honestly more terrifying than facing Chara down. Not only would a single touch from the water likely fell him but this sudden appearance from someone they had never seen before made this timeline even more of an anomaly in his mind. Is this the extent of Alice's DETERMINATION? To be able to get someone new to come to their aid? He thought. In some ways he hoped this would be enough for him to stop having to fight.
"... i know i'm not that strong… or know what's going on between you two but… i won't ever let you hurt my friend!" The ghost shouted with conviction akin to Sans beloved brother.
"... a-are you… an accomplice or a friend?" Sans asked, suddenly feeling very touched and his eye's glow vanishing.
"i'm Napstablook… and I'm here to save my friend.. she's been going through so much and right now you mean to harm her. but i don't want that for her… she said she was going to break the barrier and… i believe her!" The ghost introduced themselves before reiterating what Alice had been saying all this time.
The last will of the persona and the stubbornness to not believe Alice, to distrust her, to think she was going to ultimately RESET the timeline and break his heart further wilted and faded away. In its place came a feeling of great shame and regret but also relief. Sans winced and looked to be tearing up as he saw that not only was Napstablook backing up Alice's claims, but that someone else besides his brother would also want to see her live rather than be killed and used. As much as he had wanted to try to get the timeline back to what he believed would happen, to bring Frisk back from wherever they went off to, to not trust any strange changes in this timeline, and the mystery of whether or not Alice was a genuine living being, he had to concede. He had to concede at long last that Alice was the kind of person who would bring an end to the Genocide. He also had to admit that he had probably not acted within his brother's best wishes. It was time to start thinking more about what would really make the Underground's residents happy. Sans fell to his knees and whimpered,
"i think… i-i can believe her too…"
Napstablook looked at Sans with a bit of surprise but also relief that he seemed to be softening up and showing emotion. The past few moments when Alice had spoken with the power and good-naturedness that made her so inspirational to him, Sans had seemed very torn. Perhaps whatever happened to Sans had given him a sort of post-trauma and had made him so resilient to accepting Alice's words. It took the ghost's own presence, his own DETERMINATION built upon the time spent with her that allowed Sans to see how far Alice was willing to go. Granted he was sure there was much more to the story than he overheard. Yet, being able to save his friend as he did just now, made him feel as though he could take on the world and celebrate who he was now. The bones that hung over Alice fell to the ground weakly and harmlessly and Napstablook quickly dispelled the dome and river of tears that threatened Sans. Sans had his hands on his knees and was sobbing tearfully. It reminded Napstablook of the day he realized he was all alone, with no family around and having to tend to the snails himself. At the same time though, it also meant that Sans had room to find a new friend and comfort in the future at someone else's hands. Napstablook turned around and hovered towards Alice who still looked pained but also had a sparkle of joy in her eye.
"alice are you alright? i wanted to help you… a-after what you did for Mettaton… i'm glad i came in time…" Napstablook said, suddenly feeling slightly modest opening up about what pushed him to come on his own terms.
"I feel quite alright now… it's all thanks to you Napsta. I'm so happy…!" Alice, tearing up once again, pretended to grasp Napstablook's transparent body in a hug.
No further words truly needed to be exchanged between the two friends. They were at a sure point where they could each understand each other's emotions and thoughts perfectly. Alice was proud of Napstablook's newfound confidence and how he heroically protected and talked Sans down from continuing his desperate struggle. She never fathomed this sort of intervention and perhaps she should've known that even when her fate seemed to be sealed, there would still be a way to pacify even Sans. At the same time though, it was clear Sans was very much still in pain and had been clashing with her not only as a judgement to prove she could survive but also as a desperate denial to prevent being betrayed again. She couldn't condemn Sans despite all his hostility in the past, she had made a few social mistakes of her own after all, but she sensed she needed to make amends and help him feel freed of what was clearly a chain of despair. Despite still feeling rather sore, Alice was able to pick herself up to her feet and gazed at the crying skeleton.
"You finally believe in me Sans?" She asked.
"... I-I really, really wanted to at first… w-when I heard you spare the woman in the ruins I was feeling like everything was going to be alright... but when I saw you instead of Frisk… when you were offended and complaining about my brother... I was baffled and scared… everything that came after I couldn't predict. I couldn't be sure… then when I heard you were the spitting image of a character in a book… I wasn't even sure you were real… I-I thought you were just going to be someone used to deceive us and steal away our chance to be free from this hell… For my brother's sake… I wanted you to not see the King and risk a nightmare in the making… I-I've seen too many paths where our chances seemed good but then everything went to ruin… I'm the only one who remembers it all too." Sans confessed tearfully.
"that's so cruel… why is that?" Napstablook asked.
"... i've had time to look over things that've been going on down here… and things that other monsters don't know… not even king asgore would know… it's a blessing and a curse… I've promised someone not to intervene if a child falls down and it's this same child that's been so cruel and heartless after once being a potential savior in the previous times… but now you're here alice and i finally see that you mean well. even though we've been jerks and hunted you down and put you through so much and questioned your very being it's clear you were able to spare all the monsters in the Underground and you even made friendships stronger than i've seen before… and i also believe that you may not have any secrets that you are hiding from us." Sans stared at Alice, smiling.
"That means a lot to me Sans. I know how hard it must be for you to open up to any sort of human child after having to go through what you went through so many times. If I myself went through Wonderland as many times as you had I don't know how I'd behave afterward." Alice sympathized with him.
"... i know… it hurts too much for me to have to face Papyrus again and again knowing he wants to capture a human that might kill him… i want to go towards the future but i've nearly given up thinking it's possible…"
Alice seemed to think for a few moments as Sans looked down at the ground weakly. Napstablook watched the whole scene with surprise, sympathy, and relief at the tension completely dispersing from earlier. He himself was amazed to hear that so many wild and downright terrifying events had happened in the Underground without him realizing it. Let alone the idea that events had been repeating as well without him remembering a child other than Alice being here. He was relieved though to have his memories of what was happening now and that they were true. He then saw Alice walk over to Sans and hug him very tightly. Sans pupils flashed in surprise as Alice said words of liberation,
"Then allow me. I'll free you from the burden of your past and allow you to truly live on once and for all."
It was what Sans had needed to hear for so long. He sobbed some more and hugged Alice back closely, thankful for her forgiveness, her belief in him, and her resilience in finding a way to free everyone instead of all but one. Some time passed afterward in which Sans, Alice, and Napstablook were all calmed down and ready to discuss what was to come next in the journey. The judgement had ultimately ended with a success on Alice's part but there was more that needed to be addressed.
"now. you're about to face the greatest challenge of your entire journey. your actions here… will determine the fate of the entire world. if you refuse to fight… asgore will take your soul and destroy humanity." Sans addressed the elephant in the room.
"you don't think he would listen to reason…? i-i mean… the king is the king but his subjects should have a say too… mettaton would never want humanity to be killed…" Napstablook stepped into the conversation.
"you're right to some extent napstablook. but the king's been through as much pain as i have… and for longer. you've heard the monsters say it… undyne… cats... ... me. there's a limit to how much longer we can wait… and they want vengeance as well… that hardly ever goes well. but if alice were to kill asgore and go home… well that eliminates the only chance of monsters being freed from the underground." Sans explained.
"It'd be silly at this point to free myself when I'm not certain if I have a home to return to… I promise not to harm the king." Alice said sincerely.
Sans regarded Alice's words carefully. There was something he wanted to say but realized that sharing it now may prove hazardous and dangerous. The last thing he needed was for Alice to second-guess herself and lead to more mistakes being potentially made. Before he could speak again, Alice continued,
"And I promise not to RESET either. I'll see things to the very end and ensure our future."
"... you… don't have to promise that alice... i trust you. besides i hate making promises. the best tibia I can give you is to just do your best and don't lose your DETERMINATION." Sans answered Alice in the most ideal way he could.
"But I know you don't want-"
"please alice… i don't want you to feel you absolutely have to do something to appease me. if you can find the other way to break the barrier without bloodshed then that'll mean much more to me than not having to RESET for one reason or another." Sans winked at her.
Alice looked a little disappointed. Perhaps she really did want to give Sans the comfort and assurance that she would not do the thing he dreaded most. Still it was his words and trying to argue against him would probably hurt his feelings more since he sounded completely fine with her not having to promise that to him. So Alice simply nodded in agreement and waited for Sans to speak again. To her surprise, Sans said something that made her suddenly feel much more confident,
"however, it may be a good idea for you to bring napstablook along to see asgore."
"R-really?" She yelped.
"i... i'll go with her to see him…?" Napstablook was naturally just as surprised.
"i'm positive. if something were to go awry he'd be able to help keep you safe… and maybe he has a point too about being a voice for the monsters who don't want to slay humanity if you are to negotiate with the king. it's a good idea." Sans said.
"Oh Sans! Thank you so much! I do believe Napstablook and I could be able to persuade the king to seek another way! Although is that fine with you Napsta? I wouldn't want you do something you weren't entirely comfortable with." Alice regarded her friend politely.
Napstablook was amazed and honestly embarrassed to suddenly be trusted and depended on for such a big mission and undertaking as speaking with the king and trying to get him to spare humanity when they were freed. In truth the main motivation for wanting to spare humanity was because he knew Mettaton wanted to show his star power to any audience waiting in the wings to see him. Alice had also proven to be someone he wanted to protect and spend more time with and thus it showed humanity had truly good people. It wasn't all set in stone that they were evil and criminals like his neighbor Undyne thought, it was much more open-minded and deep than that. Yet going to face the ruler of the Underground was so intense and so daunting… and he only mustered up the power to stop Sans from wanting to keep Alice safe. What if he wasn't strong enough or confident enough to do the same against the King?
'Napstablook… perhaps you'd like to accompany me on my journey again? I'm nearly at the castle I believe and maybe you could see Meta-'
'Napstablook sharply shook his head though.'
"... i said no to you before didn't I… i'm sorry alice..." Napstablook said in realization.
"No I understood completely at the time why you didn't wish to come. Right now it's very much the same situation. Anyone would be intimidated to meet royalty and-"
"i'm coming along this time… i want to be able to help you more… and i don't want anything bad to happen to you…" Napstablook sounded more sure of himself than ever before.
Frankly Alice was extremely touched, if a little flustered by such a selfless gesture spoken in such a gallant way. I wonder if this is the first of many times in my life where someone will offer such assistance to me, Alice had a slightly off-track thought. She also noticed Sans was eyeing her with puzzlement before looking as though he had a sudden revelation and grinning. Or frowning. Or both. Alice wasn't quite able to tell. Granted she realized her reaction was making the situation rather awkward rather than resolute so she shook her head of any lackadaisical thoughts.
"Well… thank you very much Napstablook. I am hoping for the best from this endeavour." Alice said, sounding ready to go.
"you know alice… if i were you, i would've thrown in the towel by now. but you didn't get this far by giving up, did you? you've made strong allies and you have the "determination" in your heart to see this through. as long as you hold onto that, i believe you can do the right thing. and that ghostfriend of yours can help you through it." Sans spoke the last part with a strange playfulness that Alice couldn't understand.
"oh... um… sure… i'll do my best." Napstablook appeared unusually flustered but perhaps it was out of nerves.
"Thank you Sans. I promise not to let you down or anyone else who has rested their hopes and dreams on the chance at freedom." Alice pledged her goal to him and in her heart, to Frisk, Asriel, her sister, and Dinah.
"we're all counting on you, kid. good luck." Sans waved good-bye to them before exiting the Hall of Judgement through a shortcut.
Alice took a deep breath and sighed. In some truth she felt as though pacifying Sans himself had been the most difficult part of her journey but it seemed Sans knew better in that the king would be no easy challenge either. Her bones and muscles weren't aching much if at all now at least and Napstablook being with her now gave her much needed company. She looked to him with a confident smile.
"We'll depart whenever you are ready Napsta." She said.
"we can go now… i'm prepared… i just hope nothing bad happens." Napstablook admitted.
I have a suspicion that something bad could occur but that we'll be able to handle it, Alice thought. Worrying Napstablook wasn't the most courteous thing to do right now so she didn't say it aloud. Instead she pretended to pat his body in reassurance and he seemed to appreciate it. With the Hall of Judgement now silent in its radiant glory, the two friends of DETERMINATION and hope made their way towards the final destination. The went down a hallway similar to the ones leading to New Home and detected a sign that said 'Throne Room' clear as day. Continuing the down the corridor was fairly quiet and somber, with both friends focused on their goal rather than trying to catch up on old times. Both were fine with the silence though as they knew they had the trust and support of their friends in the Underground. Though something extraordinary and rather alarming awaited them as they came down a large flight of stairs. There was a set of coffins lined in a row before them, with a different colored heart on each of them. Blue, green, yellow, orange, and the closest coffin bearing a red heart.
"... So this is… how tragic…" Alice regarded the coffins with more pity than fear.
It was incredibly clear that these coffins were belonging to the fallen children of the Underground. Their SOULS had long been taken and it seemed that Asgore was content with leaving them in fairly standard-sized coffins made of stone. Alice was confident that none of these coffins belonged to Frisk based on the story that Sans and Frisk had told. Yet she was fairly taken aback when she noticed the red coffin was entitled "Chara". The first child to die in the Underground… Alice thought grimly. Yet she suddenly recalled Frisk's description regarding Chara being an ally and also becoming a ghost despite their SOUL having passed on. It seemed odd then for there to be a coffin for them despite what happened to them being so long ago. Maybe it truly was to pay respects for their lost adopted son, Alice concluded with sadness. Napstablook seemed less shaken by the sight though was still a bit uncomfortable.
"... these are where the bodies of the fallen children are… i never imagined it'd be right outside the throne room… i figured they'd have buried them in one of the lands somewhere." Napstablook admitted.
"It's possible King Asgore wished to have them contained in one area as a sort of remembrance of their goal." Alice offered.
But then that made Alice realize an inconsistency. Would Chara's SOUL really have gone as far as it did to the Ruins if they had lived their life within this entire New Home and castle? Frisk had said they were approached by Chara just like Alice was in this timeline so it implied that Chara had all along been in the Ruins. Maybe he was buried there instead and this coffin is some sort of display? Alice pondered with confusion and unease. It would make more sense if that was the case for Chara to not have a coffin if they were buried more respectfully by their adoptive royal family. After all, Asriel was still around at that time and had taken Chara's SOUL after they died according to the story. Yet here was Chara's coffin, unburied. Or perhaps they were planning to reuse this coffin for a future fallen human? Presumably herself? It was hard to say. For a moment Alice considered prying the coffin open but she felt it was very rude and disrespectful to do so. It also didn't seem very positive to try opening it in front of Napstablook. So instead she dusted off her apron skirt and regarding the pathway that was to her left.
"I believe the Throne Room is right beyond that way… are you doing alright Napstablook?" Alice asked.
"i'm... a little outside of my comfort zone right now but… i am determined to help this time… and it is pretty interesting to learn about thing i had no idea about… let's be careful though…" Napstablook said earnestly.
Alice nodded in agreement and the two of them proceeded down the pathway. Contrary to her assumption, it instead lead to another set of stairs leading upward. Alice slightly envied Napstablook's ability to levitate as she was feeling these stairs were rather daunting and each step made her nervous about what was to come. Reaching the top of the stairs provided a path through another hallway and down that hallway was an entranceway with fresh grass and foliage growing right outside and on the ceiling. There was no more doubts about it, this was the entrance in to the Throne Room. Alice briefly recalled how the Queen of Hearts didn't have so much a throne room as she had a labyrinth of curious designs, an elaborate courtroom, and trees of painted roses. Somehow she felt as though Asgore's throne room would be much more majestic than even that architecture from Wonderland. It was also contain so much more importance and history than any place alice had ever been to. Regardless of how things were to happen, Alice knew she had to treat the place with respect and dignity and muster up everything she had learned for this moment. With Napstablook at her side, she proceeded into the Throne Room.
To Be Continued...
