Chapter 23: His Theme, Our Memory
As the souls of the six fallen children disappeared, Hyper-death Asriel and the River-person walked through the now empty ruins, and then through Snowdin, until they arrived at the river where the River-person's boat was docked. The two got on the boat and the River-person began taking the boat down a path that Asriel had never seen before. "Hey, I've been through every part of the underground, how come I haven't seen this path before?" Asked Asriel.
"Only I can access this part of the river." Replied the River-person. "And where it leads, isn't part of the underground."
"What do you mean by that?" Asked Asriel.
"This part of the river, will take us to the spirit world." Replied the River-person. "That is where you are going to be working from." The boat ride continued until they arrived at a large green field with a giant tree in the middle. Asriel was speechless, but the River-person just chuckled before showing Asriel around.
"This is it; this is how I'll get Chara back." Said Asriel.
"I'm sorry, but that's not what our goal is." Replied the River-person. "Our goal is to ensure the safe and proper passage of souls from the living world to the spirit world. Finding your friends soul is only one task you'll be working on." The River-person spent the next few weeks making sure Asriel knew how to do his job to the best of his ability, but Asriel never took his mind off the thought of getting Chara back.
Asriel eventually placed a piece of his soul in the mortal world, in the form of Flowey the flower, to keep an eye out for the appearance of Chara's soul. Then one day, Flowey sensed the presence of Chara's soul and called Asriel to meet with him, but it turned out to be a false alarm. "Hehehe, HAHAHAHA! You know, Frisk may be the same, but your definitely not who you used to be." Said Flowey. "I wonder, is it really possible for people like us and Chara, to be who we were before? Ah well, I guess it doesn't matter, because fighting change… That's a wonderful idea!"
Eventually Asriel had to tell Flowey that they couldn't bring Chara back, but it didn't go as well as he had hoped. Flowey looked appalled, even though he saw the sadness in Asriel's face, he couldn't stop himself from screaming "YOU'RE GIVING UP!? AFTER ALL THIS!? WE BOTH KNOW YOU ONLY TOOK THIS STUPID JOB TO BRING HER BACK! YOU IDIOT! DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN CALL YOURSELF HER BEST FRIEND IF YOU AREN'T WILLING TO BREAK A COUPLE RULES FOR HER!?" Flowey's words stung like needles, but Asriel didn't know how to respond. "Fine, if you won't do it, I will!" Said Flowey before he quickly disappeared into the ground.
As the River-person was taking Asriel back from the world of the living to the spirit world, Asriel promised not to misuse the power to restore life, but the River-person knew that it was a promise he couldn't keep. "Don't lie to me, I know you intend to bring your friend back to life, but that is not what the power is meant for. It is only meant to restore those who weren't meant to die but did as the result of an accident. To use the power any other way would violate the rules." Explained the River-person. "I know you want to help your friend, but the rules of the spirit world are there for a reason, if you were able to bring back anyone you chose, there would be no death in the world. Though that might sound good, it isn't, doctors would lose their purpose, overpopulation would cause famine, the world would be in complete chaos. I truly am sorry for your loss, but that is the natural order of things."
"…I want to be your heart Azzy." Said Chara as she lay on her death bed.
Tears ran down from Hyper-death Asriel's eyes as a flood of memories overwhelmed him. "Flowey, it's over. All I can do now is take Chara's soul back." Said Asriel to the ghostly flower in front of him. Flowey didn't respond, but just kept looking at Asriel. "Why are you suddenly in favor of mercy anyway!? You made me kill everyone I know and love at least once!" Yelled Asriel, frustrated with Flowey's lack of response. "Maybe you're right! Maybe I'm not who I used to be! But in case you forgot, if Alphys hadn't made you, then me and Chara never would have been separated!" Yelled Asriel, completely losing his temper. "I hate you! You stupid flower!" Asriel finally calmed down when he realized, there was no flower. "Flowey?" Called Asriel.
But nobody came.
When Chara woke up, she continued her walk through the ruins, when suddenly she felt a pulse come from her locket. "Azzy." Said Chara to herself. He's in anguish. Thought Chara. Well don't worry Asriel, when I take your soul, you'll never be hurt again.
Credit: Song: "Nightcore – His Theme" By: Nightcore Kink
"Ooh~" Chara began to croon the tune of an old lullaby that Toriel would sing for Asriel, and even though he was too far to hear her, Asriel began to croon in harmony with her. "Deep, deep down, I believed, I could bring you back to me." Sang Chara.
"In this game, I found fun." Sang Asriel as he began walking towards the river.
"Can the damage, be undone?" Sang Asriel and Chara in unison.
"Even if I'm no longer really me, there's still a part that lives inside." Sang Asriel.
"My heart that hopes to be, by your side until you reach the end." Sang Asriel and Chara in unison.
"No matter what I am by then." Sang Asriel.
"I'll always be your friend." Sang Chara as she walked through the ruins, easily avoiding all the puzzles. "Don't leave… me behind."
"Won't you let me win, this time?" Sang Asriel and Chara in unison once more.
"I don't want, to let go." Sang Chara.
"But I'll be, okay alone." Sang Asriel as he began to board the River-person's boat. While Chara returned to humming, Asriel continued to sing. "Deep, deep down, I believed, I could bring you back to me." Finished Asriel.
"Sorry, could you repeat all that? This time using full sentences." Requested the River-person.
Asriel let out a sigh, before replying. "I think I'm losing my mind."
"Why? Because you were singing to yourself? I do that all the time." Said the River-person, not noticing the irony of his statement.
"My mind is playing ticks on me. I thought I saw Flowey, but he's dead. I argued with him, and I lost my temper because he was in the right." Explained Asriel.
"Oh, is that all? Asriel, you're about to have to fight someone dear to you. If you weren't being plagued by guilt, then you would have lost your mind." Explained the River-person. "I know you're probably starting to hate me, with all the rules and the less-than-ideal task, but we're both just trying to do what's right. For what it's worth, I'm truly sorry, for everything."
"Don't be, if it wasn't for you, I'd still be stuck as a flower. At least now I have a chance to stop this nightmare." Replied Asriel. "You've done everything you could, now it's my turn to do the work." When Asriel finished, he summoned a ball of fire in his palm.
"Alright Azzy, let's end this." Said Chara to herself as she walked across the spike bridge. After a short walk, Chara finally arrived back at the underground's entrance, where she sat and waited for Asriel to arrive. Soon Chara heard footsteps approaching from the ruins. "Oh, it's just you." Said Chara slightly disappointed as Frisk and her friends entered the room.
"Chara, you have one more chance. Stop this while you still can." Begged Frisk.
"Stop? Please, I'm just getting started." Replied Chara.
"Alright then." Said Frisk before she summoned a flame shield and fire sword.
However, before Frisk could attack, Chara's locket began pulsing uncontrollably. "Hehe, too late." Said Chara. "He's here."
After arriving in Snowdin on the River-person's boat, Hyper-death Asriel began running through the ruins towards Chara. He already knew the puzzles better than anyone, and with his speed he was able to make it to the underground's entrance in almost no time. Asriel felt his locket begin to pulse as he stepped through the door, where he saw Chara, Frisk, Toriel, Asgore, Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, Mettaton, and Miss Muffet all waiting for him.
"Asriel!? I don't understand, I thought you were dead!" Cried Toriel as she ran to Asriel and hugged him tightly.
"Howdy mom and dad." Greeted Asriel nervously. "I'm sorry about all of this, but I can explain. The six human souls that dad collected each gave me a piece of their souls so I could have a soul of my own, but it came at the cost of not being allowed to return to this world without proper cause. So instead, I left two horcruxes to keep an eye on things for me. Since Chara destroyed them, I really do have a reason to be here." Explained Asriel quickly, earning a confused look from everyone except Alphys.
"Oh, it's just like the first episode of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie 2." Said Alphys, before she gave her comment a little more thought. "Hey… That was the worst episode ever!"
"To be honest, I have some questions though. Chara, how is it that your body didn't decay after all these years?" Asked Asriel, ignoring Alphys's comment.
"Hehe, you aren't the only one who knows how to make a horcrux." Replied Chara. "Now tell me, are you planning to kill me? I destroyed the only things tethering you to this world to bring you here, do you plan to kill me for it?" Asked Chara.
"Chara… I-" Asriel looked down unsurely, before freeing himself from Toriel's hug. "…Yes, I'm here to take your soul." Said Asriel as he walked towards the center of the room, where Chara was. "But I have to ask, why did you want me to come here?"
"Very simple." Replied Chara, before she dashed in front of Asriel and prepared to drive her knife into him. "I want your soul."
Frisk took the opportunity and blasted Chara in the side with a fire ball. "Thank you for the help Frisk, but I need you to go back to the others now." Said Asriel.
"What? Why?" Asked Frisk.
"I have to take Chara's soul, but I don't want anyone else getting hurt in the crossfire." Explained Asriel.
"Wait. Asriel, it's pretty obvious how you and Chara feel about each other. Just don't fight, we can still work this out." Pleaded Frisk.
"I'm not leaving here without her soul Frisk." Said Asriel more firmly.
He's still thinking like he did back when I fought him. Thought Frisk. There's no stopping him now. I'll just reset if anything goes wrong. "Alright Asriel but try not to get killed." Said Frisk before she ran off towards the others.
"Are we really just going to let them fight?" Asked Toriel.
"I don't think we have a choice." Replied Frisk.
"So, you think you can steal my soul Azzy?" Asked Chara. "Ha, good luck with that. I have no soul."
"That body of yours must have something keeping it going." Replied Asriel, before he fired a blast of multi-colored lightning at Chara. However, she easily side-stepped the shock breaker and charged at Asriel and slashed at him with her knife.
Summoning his chaos sabers, Asriel blocked Chara's strike with one and attacked with the other, but Chara created a red knife in her hand and blocked Asriel's strike. "Not bad, huh?" Asked Asriel.
"Heh, you're just copying my style. By the way, I like the new black streaks in your fur." Replied Chara.
"Really?" Asked Asriel, before Chara kicked off his stomach and threw her red knife at him. Asriel staggered back, and his chaos sabers disappeared, but Asriel quickly summoned and threw a blazing star attack at Chara's knife. When the two attacks collided, the star exploded into a flurry of little starts and flew at Chara. Chara quickly used her arms and legs to protect her head and torso but was hit by the flurry of stars. "Let's wrap this up, Chaos blaster!" Called Asriel as he summoned a large blaster with what looked like a Gaster blaster on the back, a charge meter in the middle, and a stinger on the front. Asriel then fired several bullets from the stinger on his Chaos blaster, but Chara managed to avoid them. The Chaos blaster then pulsed and released a flurry of small star like objects that struck Chara once again. When the charge meter was full, the Chaos blaster turned itself around on Asriel's arm and fired a multi-colored beam of energy at Chara.
Chara leapt into the air to avoid being hit by Asriel's blast and used her knife to deflect a fire ball that he threw right after. Chara then threw a red knife down at Asriel, only for him to dodge it. "See if you can keep up with this!" Yelled Chara as she landed on the wall and began rapidly jumping from wall to wall and from ceiling to floor at such high speed that Asriel couldn't keep up with her.
"Huh, I guess I used that attack on Chara too much." Said Sans.
"What do you mean?" Asked Frisk.
"Well, a few times when Chara was in the judgement hall, I would use my telekinesis to throw her from wall to wall, but now she's doing that to herself to attack Asriel." Pointed out Sans.
"Well, we have to help him. If he goes down, we're next." Said Asgore.
"No objections here." Said Undyne.
"A-actually, it doesn't look like we have anything to worry about." Said Alphys as she pointed towards the fight.
Chara had managed to land several slashes on Asriel using her speed, but she was eventually exhausted and landed on her hands and knees near the middle of the room. "D-darn it…" Panted Chara, before she coughed violently and spat out some blood. I coughed up blood? Again? What keeps causing that? Wondered Chara as she tried to stand up but failed.
Now's my chance to end this. Thought Asriel, with a hint of sadness. He quickly summoned a chaos saber and began walking towards Chara.
He's going to kill her. Realized Frisk. Dang it Asriel, you'd never forgive yourself. I have to stop this.
Hyper-death Asriel loomed over Chara and raised his chaos saber to finish her off. You said you wanted to be my heart. Let's see if you meant it. Thought Asriel as a tear ran down from his cheek. Asriel tried to swing the chaos saber, but found his arm being held back by something. "Let go Frisk." Said Asriel as he turned his head and saw Frisk standing behind him, with a pleading look in her eyes.
"Asriel, I haven't stopped you yet." Said Frisk as she held out her hands, revealing that she wasn't holding back Asriel's arm. "You just don't want to kill her Asriel, and you don't have to; we can find another way."
Chara eventually managed to struggle back to her feet and swung her knife at Asriel, but he quickly jumped back and pulled Frisk back with him. "I don't want to kill her Frisk, but I do have to. So, please stay out of this." Said Asriel as he dropped Frisk with the rest of the group, then returned to fighting Chara.
"Don't feel too bad deary, I thought that was a great plan." Said Muffet. "Having me hold back Asriel's arm with a web, so he'd think his own body rejected the idea of killing Chara, was brilliant."
"Thanks, but now we need to see if it worked." Replied Frisk.
"Actually, now you need to pay up for that favor." Said Muffet as she held out her hand. Frisk sighed and handed Muffet a hand full of money.
If I use my full power, or even just the Hyper-goner, Chara would be beaten in an instant, but… I just can't do that to her. Realized Asriel. Chara sprinted at Hyper-death Asriel with her gilded knife in hand, and Asriel charged at Chara with his chaos saber. When the two bladed weapons collided, there was a high-pitched whine, which only grew louder as the two continued to collide.
"What is with that noise? I've never heard a sword make a sound like that before." Said Undyne as she covered her ears to try and drown out the noise.
"It almost sounds like the weapons themselves are crying. They don't wish to fight each other." Analyzed Mettaton, earning a confused look from the group. "I already told you that I can hear aura like a song, is understanding aura from noise really that unbelievable to you?"
Despite the blades screaming, Chara and Asriel continued to strike each other, until they both leapt into the air trying to gain an advantage, and as their blades collided once more something strange happened. As the force of each other's strikes sent both Chara and Asriel falling away from each other, their lockets, as though pulled by magnets, reached out for their counterparts. When Asriel and Chara landed their lockets dropped back onto their chests.
While this display was ignored by Chara, Asriel knew that he couldn't keep up his attack anymore. Dang it, I'm sorry everyone, but I just can't fight my best friend anymore. Thought Asriel. As he looked Chara in the eye, Hyper-death Asriel returned to his young Asriel Dreemurr form. "I'm not going to fight you anymore Chara." Declared Asriel.
