~Percy~

"That's it, then...!" Undyne yelled as the children approached. "No more running away!" She ran down the cliff, holding out a spear. Percy shivered. "HERE I COME!"

The battle with the great Undyne finally begun.

Undyne attacks!

Brayden was cheering. The eighth human still looked bored. Everyone else seemed pretty nervous. Clover was giving Undyne an intense stare. Percy shook his head. He had a bad feeling about this battle.

The eighth human checked Undyne.

UNDYNE 7 ATK 0 DF. The heroine that NEVER gives up.

"As long as you're trapped in this shield you can't escape!" Undyne yelled. "Unless you learn to face danger head on... you won't last a SECOND against me!"

The kids' SOULs were stuck inside a barrier of spears. Spears came from above. The barrier, however, protected them from the spears, so no one was getting hurt.

"Seriously?!" Brayden groaned, making a face. "This is even easier than freaking Papyrus before the blue attack!"

"It's a catch 22 for both of us," Percy realized. "We're stuck in this barrier, but Undyne can't hurt us."

"This is totally unfair?" Undyne groaned, realizing her mistake. "SCREW IT! WE'RE DOING IT THIS WAY!"

Suddenly, all the children were separated. They stood in a line. Undyne passed them all a spear.

"THERE! NOW YOU CAN DEFEND YOURSELVES FAIRLY!"

Undyne flashes a menacing smile.

"THAT'S MORE LIKE IT!" Brayden cheered.

Cody observed his spear. Percy knew Cody was pretty good with self-defence, so he knew Cody would be able to take care of himself. The eighth human didn't look worried at all, naturally. Melody seemed a little anxious. Clover was still staring at Undyne. Faye was hanging around the eighth human. Percy held the glowing blue spear in his hands. He took a few notes. He realized he was quivering.

Stop, he told himself. Not now.

"Undyne, we don't want to fight!" Cody pleaded. "We just want to talk!"

But nothing happened.

"Let's see how we go with THIS!" Undyne yelled.

Spears rained down from above, left and right. Percy's brain started acting up. He began stressing out and losing his concentration. Whenever things got too chaotic for him to understand, he stressed. And when he stressed, everything went wrong.

"FOCUS!" Brayden yelled, eyeing the others.

The eighth human didn't look worried at all. They were playing some kind of video game on the cell phone, occasionally looking up to defend themselves from spears. Faye was standing behind them. Cody was defending Clover (and Melody) for once. Brayden was running around and waving the spear, screaming a battle cry.

Percy was trying to defend himself, but he didn't have any focus.

The spears seemed to be coming from everywhere. His brain was confused. It needed lines and order, not absolute chaos. Percy's hands were getting sweaty. He panicked. Spears were hitting him. Blood seeped through his sweater. Percy started to pant. He wasn't liking this at all.

"PERCY! FOCUS!" Brayden yelled, glaring at him.

He had a spear in his shoulder, but he still looked fierce. The eighth human gazed at Percy with concern. They walked over, holding out a Cinnamon Bunny. Percy accepted it. Eating it cleared some of the fuzz in his brain.

"Are you okay, Percy?" Melody asked, staring at him with concern.

"I don't know..." Percy mumbled.

He read over his notes to calm himself down.

He scribbled, hard, so hard, so dead. I don't understand.

The eighth human helped him stand up by gently grabbing his arm. They were so nice. Melody looked really worried. Creases appeared around her eyes. Percy took a deep breath. He knew he couldn't give up.

Undyne thinks of her friends and punches the ground with her fists.

She yelled, "For years, we've dreamed of a happy ending... and now, sunlight is just within our reach!"

Spears appeared again. Percy freaked out. The eighth human, however, was there to protect him. They blocked off the spears like they did it for breakfast. They didn't even break a sweat.

Melody was still looking at Percy. She joined him and the eighth human. Percy knew Melody knew about some of his... problems. That's why she wasn't bothered when he excessively took notes. It felt good to have a friend like her.

And it would kill to lose her.

Brayden was still yelling 'FOCUS!' and running around.

Clover and Cody were protecting each other. Faye was standing with them now. She looked a little anxious, sweat on her brow. Percy read his notes once more. He needed reassurance from somewhere.

"I won't let you kids snatch it away from us!" Undyne yelled.

Undyne bounces impatiently.

There were even more spears, appearing from left and right. The eighth human was still defending Percy (and Melody). Percy was a little less stressed now.

"OW!" Brayden complained.

He'd got a spear in his other shoulder. He fell over, almost quivering. The eighth human decided to run around with him for a bit. They abandoned Percy and Melody. Melody gazed at Percy.

"I'll protect you." she sighed.

"NGAHH!" Undyne bellowed. "Enough warming up!"

Melody wasn't as good as defending spears from herself and Percy as the eighth human was. She was quite terrible, actually. She looked rather annoyed and hurt about it. Literally. She was bleeding quite a lot and she couldn't run anymore. Percy frowned. He didn't like to see his best friend hurt.

Undyne waved her spear. The kids' spears disappeared. Brayden and the eighth human were grinning at each other. It looked like they had something planned.

"HEY! UNDUMB!" Brayden yelled, blowing a raspberry at Undyne. "A BABY CAN THROW SPEARS FASTER THAN YOU!"

"Brayden! Don't stir her up!" Melody grumbled.

The eighth human blew a raspberry at Undyne and shook their butt.

"Oh my goodness!" Melody cried. "Brayden, you're a terrible influence!"

"NGAAH! YOU STUPID KIDS!" Undyne yelled.

She chased after Brayden and the eighth human. They led her down a path, past the pile of rocks.

"Let's go after 'em!" Clover said.

The kids followed Undyne and the other two.

They came to a blue pathway. Undyne had caught the eighth human, but they had a smug look on their face. They blocked every spear. They looked away every few moments and yawned, or checked the phone.

"HEY!" Brayden was being annoying in the background. "YOU CAN'T HIT ME! YOU CAN'T HIT ME! NA NA NA NA NA!"

The kids were making Undyne furious. Her spears got faster.

"What is this obnoxious behaviour?" Melody asked.

Percy was glad she remembered to use a word such as that. He wasn't so glad when Undyne turned around and saw the other kids.

"There you are!" she yelled. "You can't escape me!"

The other kids were forced to battle Undyne again.

Smells like sushi.

Percy freaked out. He was given another spear. His hands grew sweaty. He didn't like this.

"You humans will NEVER make it past ASGORE!" Undyne yelled.

Spears came from everywhere. Cody was still very good at defending himself. Clover was slowly improving. Melody was giving Percy wary glances. She wasn't enjoying this. Faye was hiding behind Cody. Percy felt anxious. His brain was still struggling to understand all this chaos. The battle with Papyrus was a little strange, but it was just jumping and knowing when to jump. This was different.

Percy got hit with more spears. His HP had decreased to 5. He didn't like this at all.

Undyne flips her spear impatiently.

Suddenly, Undyne got hit in the head with a stick. The eighth human was giving her the stink-eye. With closed eyes.

"COME AND GET IT, FISH-BREATH!" Brayden yelled. He put his fist in his palm.

"Honestly, killing you all is my mercy!" Undyne bellowed.

She summoned more spears. The eighth human was giving Percy another wary glance. They could tell he had low HP. Percy's breathing became shaky. He clenched his sweater in his fist. He used his other to hold out the spear. His body felt really weak. Blood soaked his sweater.

Undyne fired her spears at the children. They were getting faster. There were yellow spears that went around the other way when they approached you. Percy shivered. He didn't know what to focus on. It was getting so chaotic. His breathing picked up.

"Percy..." Melody stared at him.

She looked so upset. Tears were in her eyes. But Percy just couldn't focus. His notes couldn't help him. He got hit by more spears. The eighth human noticed he was about to die. They stopped helping Faye stand up and raced over to rescue him. Determination and desperation were in their eyes. Percy's vision went foggy, even with the glasses on.

"So STOP being so damn resilient!" Undyne yelled.

Undyne draws her finger across her neck.

"I..." Percy mumbled. He didn't want to give up. But yet... "I... I can't do this anymore..."

"Percy, no!" Melody yelled.

The eighth human was almost there. They were full-on sprinting. But even they were too late. Percy got a spear right through his chest. It seemed to pierce straight through his SOUL. Everyone was watching him. Percy didn't know how to feel. Pain. Peace? This feeling couldn't be described by notes. He knew it had to be experienced to be truly understood.

Death had to be experienced.

Frisk! You have to wake up!

Percy woke up to a black screen.

He was floating.

Was this death?

Words screamed in front of him, 'GAME OVER'. Like a video game. There was a child standing there. It was the child from the book.

It was Chara.

They were watching him with some kind of look their eyes. Before Percy could do anything, he heard a yell from somewhere. He saw his friends for a moment. Melody was screaming at Undyne, tears flowing down her cheeks. Brayden was holding her back, anger in his eyes. The eighth human was staring at Percy's body, their hair covering their face. They looked horrifying. Clover was holding out her gun. Cody was sobbing hysterically. Faye was wiping her eyes.

I... I can't... the nightmare never ends...

The eighth human fell to their knees. They looked up at the ceiling and bellowed, "NOOOOO!"

Then everything was reset.

Percy woke up. He was lying beside the eighth human and the others. They were in front of that pile of rocks again. Undyne was standing on top, looking like she did just before she fought them. Percy shook his head. He was so confused.

"What happened?" he asked.

He felt so strange. He stared at the eighth human. They had a dark look on their face. He was distracted when Melody gave him a big hug. Normally he didn't like physical contact, but for once, he didn't mind. Cody joined in on the hug. Clover glared at Undyne.

"I think they reloaded their save - I mean, reset time." Faye commented, looking slightly anxious.

"YOU CAN RESET TIME?!" Brayden asked, staring at the eighth human. "HOW MANY FREAKING POWERS DO YOU HAVE?!"

"It's a possibility that we all have powers," Percy commented. He realized he sounded shaken up. "It can't be just a coincidence our eyes are the same colours as our SOULs."

The eighth human was shaking their head, trembling from stress. But they were the expert, so Percy had to trust their judgement.

"I'VE NEVER SEEN YOUR EYES, PERCE!" Brayden retorted. He stared at the eighth human. "OR YOURS!"

"We're not here to discuss powers," Clover grumbled. "We're here to fight Undyne." She clenched her fist. "Don't worry Perce, she will pay for what she did to you." She held out her hand. "Want in?"

Percy felt an overwhelming sense of anxiety. Dying scared him so badly he felt like he could never walk again. His breathing became heavy.

No, he pleaded in his head, not now.

His heart pounded. It became hard to breath. Percy looked for his notes. He found his notebook and his pen. He felt like he was dying again. The black screen surrounded him, trapping him in a world he could never escape.

I... I can't... the nightmare never ends...

"You okay?" Clover asked, giving him a glance.

Percy's hands felt all sweaty. He stared at Clover... he had embarrassed himself in front of her again.

Melody was staring at him with concern. Percy knew Melody knew about his anxiety, but he was pretty sure she'd never witnessed a panic attack. Whenever he had one, he always hid it from people. His parents were never around, so they didn't understand, and his babysitters freaked out if they managed to find him having one.

"Need a hug?" Cody offered with nervous laughter.

Faye looked concerned. Brayden looked confused. The eighth human had their brow raised.

"I... I have to... go..." Percy managed to splutter. "Fight her without me..."

"Percy..." Melody began, holding out her hand. "You died... and now..."

She looked so sad. Percy, for once, felt he could be sympathetic. But he felt so sick. He felt so... afraid. He couldn't be near people. Not now.

"I have to go..." he said.

He walked off, clutching his sweater. His notebook was in his other hand. His chest felt tight and his breathing was still heavy. But he knew he had to get away from here. He left the area. He returned to the place with the bridge. He walked across the bridge, still feeling funny. He had an idea about where he was going. He sort of felt like he'd been here before.

For a second, right in front of him, he thought he saw Chara. The child was staring at him. They looked empty inside, yet also regretful. Percy felt obliged to glare at them. They wanted to destroy the world, after all.

Percy took notes. He wrote, Vision of Chara. Seems empty and regretful. Possible theories include intimidation? First appearance since... death.

He went back to the area with the hall, where Faye proclaimed she saw Flowey. Percy sighed. He was so neglectful. But what could he do? He couldn't fight like this. The thought of that battle made him feel like vomiting.

Percy saw Chara again, at the end of the hall.

They were staring at him. It didn't look evil or malicious.

Percy took notes, Chara appears to be following me. Their intention is unclear. He took a step towards them. Chara kept staring at him. What did they want?

"hey, kiddo," Sans appeared at the end of the hall. Chara disappeared. Percy nearly jumped out of his skin. "heh, sorry. didnt mean to scare ya. where are your friends?"

"Fighting Undyne." Percy answered, clutching his notebook.

"oh," Sans replied. He sounded a little confused. "why arentcha with em?"

"I can't fight Undyne." Percy sighed. He flicked the pages of the notebook, frowning at his actions.

"hey, no sweat, perce," Sans chuckled. "im lazy all the time. you need a break. undyne's pretty tough." He scratched his skull. "anyway, i gotta go. ive got work to miss out on. later."

He disappeared. Percy shook his head, wondering what that was all about. Then he saw Chara for a third time. They were closer this time. Only a few footsteps away.

"What do you want?" Percy asked. He sounded emotionless once more.

"I do not have much time," Chara responded. Their voice sounded croaky. "They're preventing me from appearing more frequently. Listen, Percy Verance. They do not have power, merely DETERMINATION. You can use your own determination as a weapon. And I-" They disappeared with a flash of grey. Percy raised his brow.

"Determination." he muttered.

He wondered who 'they' was. The eighth human? That was understandable. Chara had awful plans for the world. Of course the eighth human would try to keep them out. Percy wondered why Chara was offering him advice. What did they want? And what did they mean by determination?

Determination is the only way to survive this world. Percy remembered when he spoke to Melody. If you away... you will die.

How did he know that? How did he knew she would supposedly die? Percy realized he would die too if he stayed here. He already had once. He couldn't give up yet. There was always hope.

Perseverance was the key.

Percy stood up, wiping his brow. He knew what he had to do. He couldn't give up. Determination was the only way to survive this world. And Percy was going to prove it now.

Percy, staying low, followed Undyne and his friends.

The fish lady was battling them nearby a large, electronic sign that read 'WELCOME TO HOTLAND'.

She was surplexing a boulder, just because she could. Percy's friends were blocking her spears. The eighth human still looked bored. The other kids were busy defending themselves. Percy frowned. Melody wasn't very good at defending herself. Brayden was still running around and yelling.

Percy looked at Melody. He didn't like seeing her hurt. He stayed hidden, observing the battle a little longer. He knew there would be a time he would have to come in. He observed his notes.

Melody was getting really hurt. Percy frowned. The eighth human looked worried. It seemed they didn't want anyone else to die. Percy could understand that. He was about to run in, when the eighth human got a phone call from Papyrus. The kids surrounded the phone.

"HEY!" Papyrus yelled. "WHAT'S UP?!"

"Undyne is trying to kill us." Faye answered.

"You don't say." Melody mumbled, limping. She looked so... ill. Percy felt awful. He looked away, pulling his hair.

"OH, REALLY?!" Papyrus asked. "'CAUSE I WAS JUST THINKING... YOU GUYS, ME AND UNDYNE SHOULD ALL HANGOUT SOMETIME! I THINK YOU WOULD MAKE GREAT PALS!"

"She's tryna kill us, Pap." Clover said, making a face.

"LET'S MEET UP AT HER HOUSE LATER!" Papyrus cheered as if he hadn't heard her. He hung up.

"Where even is her place?" Brayden asked, scratching his head.

The others stared at him. Undyne caught the humans before they could get too far.

"COME BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE PUNKS!" she screamed.

"I think I'm going to die, just like Percy did..." Melody sighed, observing herself.

She said it with so much remorse. The eighth human shook their head. They were interrupted by Brayden crashing into them by mistake. They made some kind of angry yelp. Spears swarmed the children. Clover looked like she wanted to defend Melody, but she was too far away. So was Cody. Faye was too scared to move. Percy made a face of determination.

He knew his time had come.

"BAN... KAI!" Percy yelled, running in front of Melody. He held up his books as a mechanism of defense. They glowed purple for a moment, deflecting the spears. However, one spear managed to knock off Percy's glasses. It looked like he was wearing eyeliner. And then his irises were purple, of course.

"Percy...!" Melody exclaimed, eyeing him. She looked stunned.

"YEAH! PERCY!" Brayden cheered, fist-pumping the air. Clover raised her brow. Faye and Cody looked up. The eighth human just smiled.

"THE HELL?!" Undyne yelled. "Where did YOU come from?! Also, was that a Bleach reference?"

"DID YOU REALLY THINK I'D GIVE UP THAT EASILY?" Percy yelled.

Yelled. That killed his throat. And for some reason, he could see fine without his glasses. That never happened. But he did know something. He was feeling very determined right now, like he could take on the world. He never felt like that.

"NO! I'M A SOUL OF PERSEVERANCE!" he roared. "WE'RE DETERMINED TO THE END! AND YES, THAT WAS A BLEACH REFERENCE! THANKS FOR NOTICING!"

"WELL...!" Undyne glared at him. "LET'S SEE WHAT YOU'RE MADE OF, PUNK!"

"HUMANS ARE MADE OF SIX DIFFERENT ELEMENTS: CARBON, OXYGEN, NITROGEN, CALCIUM, PHOSPHORUS AND HYDROGEN!" Percy yelled. "WE'RE ALSO 60% WATER! AND WE HAVE SOMETHING ELSE, TOO - DETERMINATION!"

All this yelling... he usually left that to people like Brayden.

"NGAHH!" Undyne yelled.

She threw spears at Percy. The wind was howling. Pages from Percy's books were flying everywhere. They surrounded Percy like he controlled them. He glared at Undyne. He held out his fist. His black hair blew back in the wind. He grabbed one of Undyne's spears and held it out in front of him, defending himself from the rest of her spears.

"How is he doin' that?" Clover asked.

"DOES HE HAVE POWERS TOO?!" Brayden asked. He stamped his feet. "I WANT POWERS!"

"Percy..." Melody was staring at Percy. She seemed happy to see him there. He grinned back at her. Grinned. Melody was so proud of him.

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF NOTES CONTROLLING MY LIFE!" Percy faced Undyne.

A single spear hadn't hit him. His eyes were glowing.

At least, Percy hoped they were. "I... I JUST DON'T... I JUST DON'T WANT THIS... ANXIETY CONTROLLING ME ANYMORE..." He paused. "It's costing me everything... friends... family... people think I'm just selfish, but..."

He sighed and looked away. He was always thinking about himself. He never thought about other people. He was so selfish, so scared.

How could he have done this to the people who were trying to help him?

"Percy...?" Melody gave him a glance. "Are you okay?"

Melody worst of all. She'd sacrificed everything for him, even her own life. She was a loyal friend to the end, and Percy had been so ungrateful. He was always thinking about himself. He never thought about how Melody felt. He'd isolated her from her other friends, just because he didn't like them. He never even bothered to understand how she felt deep down. What kind of best friend was he?

"I'm sorry, Melody," Percy apologized.

He choked up. He hated himself so much right now. Was he going to cry? He rarely cried. "Because of me, you were alone too." He looked at Brayden. "Sorry, Brayden. You never did anything wrong. I was just too selfish to want anyone else to become friends with Melody..."

"You don't like me?" Brayden asked. He looked confused. "Since when?!"

"WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A BATTLE!" Undyne yelled.

"Then let's finish this." Percy said, giving Undyne a glance.

The eighth human gave him a sign. It seemed they were telling him to copy them. Percy nodded.

He gazed back at Undyne. "Catch me if you can."

He then raced off, yelling, "BAN... KAI!" The eighth human was at his side. "Come on, guys!"

The other kids joined the escape. Undyne roared and chased after them all.

The kids came to a hot, dry area. The ground was barren patches, surrounded by lava. Rocks made up the walls. Occasionally, Brayden would look back and yell something at Undyne. Percy focused on running across the bridge that crossed over the sea of lava (oxymoron?). He didn't even pay attention to Sans, who was snoozing at a sentry station. The eighth human was still beside Percy. He almost grinned at them.

The other humans were there as well. Brayden was carrying Faye, somehow. Clover was keeping an eye on her bro. Undyne was glaring at the snoozing Sans. Percy's hair was flowing past his shoulders. He was pretty sure it was longer than before, somehow. Melody was behind him. She tripped. Undyne stared at her.

"Don't even think about it." Percy grumbled. "Come on, Melody!"

Melody got up, following her best friend. Notebook pages were still floating around. Percy reached the other side. He took a moment to breath. His chest felt tight again. His limbs felt like they were going to melt.

Undyne caught up. She was drenched in sweat. She panted.

"Armour... so... hot..." she breathed. "But I can't... give up!"

She collapsed and fell on the bridge, her tongue sticking out.

"YEAH!" Brayden cheered. "SUCKER! TAKE THAT, UNDUMB!"

Percy shook his head. What was getting into him? His hair was normal length again. His vision was cloudy - he needed his glasses. And he felt very tired. He assumed the determination he used must've drained his energy. He'd never used it before, so what did he expect?

"We can't just leave her here, guys." Cody said, staring at Undyne with a frown.

The eighth human walked over to a water cooler. They filled up a cup of water. They poured it over Undyne's head. Everyone watched Undyne in interest. She shook for a moment. Then she stood up and looked around. She walked off.

"Well... bye, then..." Melody said, raising her brow.

"That was awkward." Faye commented.

"Well, we'll be seeing her later, right?" Cody asked. "When we... 'hang out' with her?"

"Dagnabbit, I forgot about that!" Clover complained. She stared at Percy. "But seriously, you okay, Perce?"

"THAT BOOKS AND YELLING THING WAS AWESOME!" Brayden yelled, grinning at Percy. "YOU SHOULD DO THAT MORE OFTEN!"

"I didn't know I could do that..." Percy mumbled. "Someone told me I could... and they were right..."

"Who told you?" Melody asked, eyeing him.

"Chara." Percy said slowly.

"Chara." Clover growled, a dark look in her eyes.

"CHARA!" Brayden yelled, punching the air.

"Uh... Chara?" Cody said questioningly.

"Chara." Percy said. "Yes. Chara. They spoke to me. They told me I could use determination as a weapon to defeat Undyne... and they were right...?"

The eighth human waved their hands. They made a few signs.

"... yeah, they're right," Clover agreed. "Chara's up to somethin'." She gave Percy a glance. She sounded... angry. Percy gulped. Clover glared at him. "I can't believe you listened to 'em, Percy. They could be plannin' to do something horrible to you. They're plannin' to destroy the world! And you listened to them."

Percy shivered.

No... why did I make her mad...

"Excuse me!" Melody argued on Percy's behalf. "Percy just died! He's very scared! He didn't know any better, Clover!"

"He of all of us should know," Clover said, glaring at Melody. "He's the one takin' notes 24/7." She made a face. "What if Chara's controlling him? That could explain his powers!"

"Clover, that's absolutely preposterous!" Melody argued. "Percy wouldn't let that happen, right, Percy?"

Percy shook his head. "I don't know anymore."

Clover frowned. She sounded serious. "Guys. If you see Chara... don't listen to anything they tell you." She glared at Percy. "And if you already have... then we can't listen to you, either."

Percy widened his eyes. He clutched his sweater. His heartbeat pounded in his ears. This was not what he wanted. Especially not from Clover...

"Clover!" Melody exclaimed.

"Sis, come on," Cody pleaded. "Percy didn't do anything wrong. He helped us! I don't think Chara would do that."

"And I want powers!" Brayden whined. "I can't get 'em if I don't 'listen' to Chara!"

The eighth human stared at Clover. Their expression was hard to decipher. Faye played with her hair.

Clover made a face. She didn't look very happy. "Fine. Majority rules. But if Chara really does something bad to us..." She adjusted her cowboy hat. She stared at Percy. "It's your own fault."

Percy shivered. He had a feeling he just made a huge mistake.