:):

Thank you for all of the wonderful reviews. :)

Things are about to get a little scary, I hope everyone's ready for that!

(Apologies for a small amount of cursing.)

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Echoes in the Dark

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Sans was truly amazed that the tiny kid had gotten so far into Waterfall. They had already past the castle and still Poff urged him forward. She had somehow made it nearly halfway to Hotland all by herself. Guess he needed to give the kid a bit more credit. She wasn't just some lost child from the city, he had to keep reminding himself, she actually came from a rather primitive time period. Maybe spelunking inside a cave wasn't as difficult for a child who was used to roughing it. It wasn't much, but that thought at least gave him a little hope that she might still be okay.

That tiny hope was nearly snuffed out completely by the gust of wind that greeted him in the next area. "please, don't tell me she..." Grin going flat, Sans stared out at the mess of wooden bridges that hung precariously over a vast pit of darkness. He couldn't bring himself to finish that sentence as a depressive certainty fell over him.

Wriggling out of the skeleton's arms, Poff landed lightly onto the wooden planks. Looking back to his friend, the small dog gave him a demanding bark before racing on ahead. They were so close now!

Silently following after the furry monster, Sans started to notice damage to the bridge. Chunks were missing here and there, and some of the wooden planks had deep gouges stabbed into them from what could have only been a very sharp object. "undyne..."

"god damnit." The angry skeleton cursed as he hurried his pace, teleporting himself when he got too far behind. This place was dangerous enough without having the Head of the Royal Guard chasing you down. He could only imagine how terrified the little girl must have been running away from Undyne's full on assault.

He knew that that was her job, but the fact that she would willingly attack a scared little child said a lot about her character in Sans' opinion. This human wasn't like the fifth child, she didn't mean anyone any harm, she just wanted to save her sister. The kid he'd come to know and care about didn't deserve this kind of mindless hatred.

Coming to a stop at the end of a wooden bridge, Poff peered over the edge and barked mournfully. She was down there somewhere. Maybe now that he'd brought back help, they'd finally be able to find her. Pacing the short width of the bridge, the little dog whined expectantly.

Making his way slowly to the end of the wooden bridge as well, the skeleton's eye lights went out as his fears were realized. The kid had fallen. And by the damage done to the bridge, it hadn't been an accident either. Undyne had finished her job quite effectively it would seem.

Clenching his fists, Sans looked over the edge and into the gloomy darkness below. There was no way anyone could survive a fall like that... The kid was dust, he was sure of it. The listless skeleton grimaced, it felt like a strange weight had settled into his chest. He felt... sad. Though, somehow that word just didn't seem strong enough.

Poff whined impatiently before barking again. Why wasn't his friend doing anything? She was down there so they needed to go down there too! How they were going to get down there was entirely irrelevant to the small dog. Looking over the edge once more, he continued to bark.

Sans sighed as he looked over at the furball. Explaining loss to a dog monster was never easy and he wasn't quite up to it right now either. There was only one way to really cement this fact into the tiny creature's brain.

They needed to go down.

...

Making her way through a partially flooded portion of cave, Fearia's bare feet slapped against the slippery rocks as she hastily tried to catch up to Undyne. The area had clusters of Echo Flowers that whispered to her as she ran by. Most of them excitedly claimed to have just seen Undyne, while a few mentioned that the exit to Waterfall was just up ahead. Strangely enough, there was also a single bloom that actually teased at the possibility of free food when she arrived at Hotland.

That all sounded wonderful!

If she were only a little older and a little wiser, Fearia might have been rightfully skeptical. The Echo Flowers were saying everything she wanted to hear right now and for some reason, they all sounded like they were spoken by the same person... That alone should have been reason enough to be suspicious. Unfortunately, the child was filled with blind determination.

That being said, the next area was ironically fitting.

Stumbling into the darkness, Fearia came to an abrupt stop. Standing next to a lantern lit with a weak flame, the small child felt the wind leave her sails. This place was dark! If there was a path, she couldn't see it. Tall trees that glowed with a ghostly blue light sparsely dotted the inky cavern. They were bright, but not bright enough to show her the way.

If this was the last obstacle Waterfall had to offer, then it was a fitting challenge. Especially for someone who had a severe aversion to the dark. Fearia found herself wishing she had the foresight of grabbing her sunstone before she left on this ill conceived adventure.

Not knowing what to do, the little girl subconsciously tugged at her filthy sweater as she scanned the apparent nothingness. She wanted to find Undyne, but she just wasn't brave enough to wander around out there in that sea of darkness. What if she fell in a hole? Or got so lost that she never found her way back? Or... what if there was something hiding out there... waiting...

Fearia felt herself involuntarily shiver as her vivid imagination tormented her with the worst possible outcomes. There was absolutely no way she could do this! Maybe she really should give up...

Just as she was about to figuratively throw in the towel, a lantern flickered to life not too far away, and then another, and another. Bioluminescent grass began to form a softly glowing path through the darkened cavern. It was as if someone was leading the way for her.

Regardless of how much she hated accepting help, Fearia knew that this was not the time or place to be picky. Trying to keep her eyes glued to the path instead of thinking about the surrounding darkness, the small child slowly made her way through the spacious cavern. The further she went, the soggier the ground became until she was once again wading through a marshy landscape. The luminescent trees had been replaced by large glowing purple crystals. Their light seemed to fade on and off periodically.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the sopping wet child pulled herself out of the water and onto slick damp rock. The glowing grass that had been guiding her had dwindled down to the last blade a few minutes ago, but she could clearly see something up ahead. Like a beacon of hope, a small Echo Flower lit up the surrounding area in a dim blue light.

Relieved to be out of the darkness, Fearia approached the flower.

"Behind you." The same voice said with dark delight. The Echo Flower then started to replay a sick twisted laugh.

Hearing a metallic clanging noise, Fearia spun around as her heart began to race. She knew that sound! And, just as she had dreaded, the armored assailant stepped out of the shadows and began approaching her at a threatening pace. Quickly looking around, the little girl realized she was cornered. There was no place to run!

Backing up slowly, Fearia felt the damp mossy wall press against her, its solid cold stone a horrific reminder of just how trapped she was.

"Seven." The armored person said, making the child jump. "Seven human souls. With the power of seven human souls, our king... King Asgore Dreemurr... will become a god. With that power, Asgore can finally shatter the barrier. He will finally take the surface back from humanity and give them back the suffering and pain that we have endured." They stopped their speech to stare evenly at the small quivering child. "Understand, human?"

"...no?" If Fearia still had her boots, she'd be shaking in them right about now. What the heck was this person going on about? She honestly had no clue, but they sounded really serious about it! Like this was her fault somehow... Or rather, humanity's? But why? "I d-don't understand what you're talking about."

"Don't play dumb!" The armor clad person snapped. "This is your only chance at redemption. Give up your soul... or I'll tear it from your body."

Fearia paled at those words. They had been spoken with a deadly finality that held no room for negotiation. The small child gasped when a blue spear materialized out of thin air, only to be grasped by the scary person's metal gauntlet. They readied themselves into a charging stance and then started to creep closer as if expecting her to try and escape somehow. She didn't move an inch. She couldn't!

Right when the armored assailant was within striking range, a yellow blur burst from the nearby reeds and tumbled painfully to the ground in front of the them. "uh..." The kid groaned as he picked himself up. "That was NOT a shortcut!"

Wobbly legs finally giving out on her, Fearia slid her back down the cave wall and landed lightly on her bottom. She felt like a few years of her life had been shaved off by fright alone just now. If the lizard boy hadn't of interrupted them, would she really have been impaled?

Finally taking notice of his friend, the monster kid smiled. "There you are. I've been looking everywhere for you." Not receiving a response, the boy frowned slightly as he turned to see what the terrified child was staring at.

"Undyne!" The lizard boy exclaimed, not unlike the fan boy he very much was. Turning back to the bunny kit, he beamed. "Yo! You did it! You actually found Undyne! Now we've got front row seats to watch her fight!"

Still, the little girl refused to respond.

"Huh?" Confused, the monster kid looked from Undyne and then back to his friend, the cogs inside his brain slowly turning as they tried to process the situation. "Wait... who's she fighting?"

"H-hey!" The boy complained loudly as an armored hand reached out and grabbed him by his head. He was then forcefully removed from the area. "You're not going to tell my parents are you?"

Once the cavern was silent again, expect for the sounds of dripping water, Fearia let out a big breath. That was Undyne? She was the one who tried to kill her before! Why? What had she done wrong...?

Feeling utterly defeated, the little girl choked back a sob as she pulled her knees to her chest. Wrapping her arms around them, she hid her face from the world. She felt like such a fool...

...

After checking the GPS on his cellphone, Sans was surprised to find that they were currently right above the Garbage Dump. And he had a pretty good idea where the kid had... landed. Picking up the white dog, Sans teleported them to the small bed of flowers directly below.

Releasing the furry monster, the skeleton watched silently as Poff hastily sniffed around the golden blooms. To his grim acknowledgment, there was indeed an obvious child size dent in the middle of the cluster of flowers. It was somehow fitting, he thought as he remembered how she described her first initial fall into the Underground. She said she had landed in a heap of golden flowers...

*bark!*

Looking down to the dog, Sans felt that strange weight in his chest grow just a little bit heavier when he noticed what Poff had in his mouth. It was a soggy snow boot, so tiny only a rabbit kit could have worn it. Or an especially small human...

"sorry, buddy..." Sans tried to explain to the hopeful dog. "i don't think you're going to find her."

Poff cocked his head slightly before dropping the boot. Sniffing the air, his little white ears perked with interest. She had been here but she had left. They just needed to find her. Unfortunately, it was hard to pinpoint her scent because of all of the water, but he knew she was somewhere around here...

Barking, the furry white dog splashed into the water in search of the child. Paddling past the debris, he left his friend behind. Or so he thought! Waiting for him on the drainage grate, the skeleton was watching the large waterfall. The gushing pink water was slowly fading back to crystal blue.

After reaching the metal grate, Poff shook his fur dry before sniffing around. His fluffy tail began to wag happily when he found a stronger scent. She had been here too! Barking excitedly, the little dog dove back into the water and sloshed his way further into the garbage dump.

Sans stared at the dog in confusion for a moment before following. The water soaked into his slippers and came up to his patella's but he couldn't bring himself to care right now. The mutt was acting weird. He had expected the furball to come to some sort of acceptance, but this was the exact opposite. Poff looked like he was searching for something... or someone?

A foolish flicker of hope lit up inside of Sans as he quickened his pace. The painful weight that had been crushing him a moment ago seemed to lift a little as he sloshed through the dirty water. It was impossible. He didn't want to get his hopes up, but... Was the kid still alive?

...

Forcing herself back to her bare feet, Fearia tore herself away from her depressive wallowing. She needed to get the hell out of here before Undyne came back. The tiny child had no desire to brave the darkness again, however. Was that truly the only way out?

Scanning the area, she noticed a wall of faintly glowing vines. At the very top of the cavern wall, a blue light, bright enough to dispel the darkness, shone overhead. That was her exit, she just knew it. Well... she hoped so at least.

As fortune would have it, climbing was actually something she was good at. Getting to the top of the vines in record time, the small child pulled herself into a brightly lit cavern tunnel. Echo Flowers seemed to thrive in this location as there were quite a lot clustered here and there.

As Fearia walked past the first flower, it hissed angrily at her making the fragile child jump slightly in alarm.

"You're weak!"

"Pathetic..." Another one said. The voice dripping with disgust.

"Your sister's better off without you."

Fearia's bare feet slowed to a stop as she stared at the hateful bloom. Had... had it really just said that? Feeling her eyes start to sting, the little girl pushed on, trying not to listen.

"She probably hopes you're dead!" A smaller flower spat with contempt.

Covering her ears, the distressed child tried to hold back her tears. That was a lie!

"That Smiley Trashbag thought you were a burden. He's glad you're gone!"

Was it talking about Sans? He didn't really think she was a burden, ...did he? Stomach turning slightly, Fearia shook her head trying to dispel those doubts. No... that wasn't true... it wasn't...

"Why are you even trying?" Demanded the first of a pair of flowers.

"Haven't you learned anything?!" Screeched the second.

"Down here, it's Kill or be Killed." A large echo flower reminded as it loomed over the tiny human's head.

Fearia gasped in fright as she scrambled away from the harmless bloom. The words echoed in her head like an omen. She knew that voice! It was that mean talking flower!

"...you're gonna to die, twerp..." The last echo flower whispered ominously as the child ran by.

...Flowey...

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That wasn't very nice, Flowey :(

...

In the next chapter, Sans races to catch up to Fearia before the unthinkable happens.

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Sheii Bae~