Alright, I'm back again! Once flipping more!
Chara: And he's just as mad at himself as he was before.
Frisk: Really mad.
Asriel: Absolutely INCENSED at himself. He's gotta regain his inner fire!
Yes, all of that.
Anyway, let's not waste time, and get to it.
Chapter Start!
Chara couldn't really say that he hasn't fought while poisoned before. It was a very uncomfortable experience, and most definitely not an ideal state for fighting.
But alas, here he was, fighting off a bunch of mages who he would have crushed easily, had it not been for Toxin living up to his name very quickly. Now everything hurts and he can barely stand up straight. This is while being smashed by various magic attacks that threw him around with reckless abandon. The toxin was very identical to the very toxin-buttercups-he used to kill himself for the very first time in the past, and he remembered how PAINFUL was. Now he had to fight with that handicap.
Chara was having a bad time.
There was little else he could think of to describe how quickly things went wrong for him. He thinks this, as the barrage of magic attacks assaulting his body appeared to prove. He's still standing and resisting, but he was reduced to a slight limp while defending himself.
Bad memories coming up...really bad memories of one of my absolute worst life decisions... Chara thought tiredly while dodging a brief flash of flames. His limp caused him to stumble, but still managed to barely dodge it. Good to know that they have no qualms with attacking a poisoned teen. Such brave mages-
Pain exploded in Chara's back as he suddenly fell on his face. Blood spilled from his mouth as the pain was intensified by the poison. He felt a barrage of blades digging into his back, including swords, spears, and-to his heart's annoyance-knives. Despite this, he still had the strength to lift his head and glare at his enemies.
...You know what...I think I kinda deserve this. Still can't let them get away with it though. He thought as he collapsed, blood matting his hair and sliding down his eyes. ...Need to resist the urge...to black out...from the pain...can't shrug off poison...
In the meantime, Undyne landed on a glowing water platform, across from Tryton. They glared at one another, before Undyne's eye widened as she turned to another direction.
I'm sensin' Chara quickly going down for the count...and so quickly? What the hell is going on over there?!
"You seem to be worried about your little demon friend." Tryton smiles softly as water gathers around her. "That's a strange concept, being worried about demons. I bet you wanna go over there and help him, don't you?~"
"You shouldn't taunt me over wanting to help my friends. I take that VERY seriously." Undyne said while holding out her spear. "Demon or not, highs or lows, Chara's my friend."
"You're definitely a curious existence, Undyne." Tryton wondered. "I heard about how you've killed the one known as Ratoveros, but kept his troubled son under your fin. Merciless one moment and compassionate the next?"
"I'm a complicated gal. Sometimes I even surprise myself." Undyne shrugged. "My heart and soul tend to do most of the thinkin' for me. Though those two, and my mind, can agree on one thing right here and now." Her spear charged with more magic, and her eye focused on her target. "That someone needs to take you down several pegs!"
"Perhaps you can do something such as that. Only one way to find out..." Tryton clapped twice. Water gathered around her, which turned into large glowing water sharks, with sharpened teeth, fins and all. They all shot towards Undyne with the speed of a torpedo.
Undyne reacted accordingly, with a spear shot towards the water shark in question. It pierced straight through, causing the sharklike projectile to explode into a geyser of water that caused brief rain. She instinctively ducked as Tryton nearly run her through with a trident.
"A trident? Pfft, Asgore does it better." Undyne called out as she attempted to pierce Tryton with her spear. They briefly clashed with their respective weapons, pushing against each other. Then again, I'm quite sure that's not the only weapon to use...kinda like me. Except...
Undyne swiped her spear horizontally, with Tryton ducking under it to try impaling her again. A shield of water briefly defended her, though it pierced through just enough to cut into her side. The blood floated near aimlessly in the water they were swimming in. She ignored it easily enough, while glaring at her smugly smiling Tryton.
We're both using Water Magic...so we're both at an impasse. Undyne thought as she smashed through another wave of water sent her way, which dissipated into water particles. Another one was sent crashing her way, and she pierced through that one with her spear, and slashed through the next one just as quickly. Luckily for me, I've got some pretty credible back up!
Tryton's eyes widened as a spark of lightning was sent her way. She turned to see that Alphys was the one who shot it. She meeped at the sudden attention, her tail accidentally swiping at another enemy behind her, shocking them intensely. Undyne made sure to take care of the several second opening, her water weapon turning into a mace, and smashing it right onto her. Though she shielded herself briefly, though the impact still sent her flying. Though she recovered easily enough.
"Your wife, Alphys. She's quite cute and powerful. If a bit on the chubby side..."
"Her chubbiness makes her extra cuddly!" Undyne shouted proudly.
That's not something you shout aloud! Seriously NOT the time, Undyne! Alphys thought with a bright blush.
"I have you now!" Undine forcefully gathered a torrent of her own water, and blasts Tryton with it, the force that surpasses that of a cannon. It caused the monster quite a bit of disorientation, throwing her world around for several moments, before she stopped herself in one of the largee water bubbles.
"Doesn't it get confusing, pretty much having the same name?" Tryton asked playfully.
"Don't see what that has to do with you." Undyne retorted.
"Fair enough." The monster chuckled, before more water gathered around her. "Want to know something fascinating about water? Given how it takes up most of our world, it's one of the more dominant natural elements." She gathered a bit in the palm of her hand. "It's the most ideal element for cleansing, aside from fire. The former washes away things, while fire burns it into nothing. Given my element, you can understand which I prefer."
"Enough of your spouting, Tryton!" Undine shouted as she sped towards her targey targey with numerous water canons shaped from the water itself, each blasting a stream that briefly smashed through all defenses. Tryton barely dodges, jumping into another water bubble, before continuing her focus on Undyne.
"What I am trying to say, is that I merely wish to wash away the sins of Legatum that currently taint it, in an effort to force it to start over and for the people to learn from their predecessors. It's gotten too dirty. Needs to be cleaned." Tryton waved her hand. "Of course it's not completely Rebecca's fault. This was more of a buildup of dirt coating Legatum with each generation of her family. Though if she does end up perishing, her family legacy can no longer pollute Legatum."
"You bastards can't just hold her responsible for something her predecessors did! Especially since she hasn't followed in their footsteps at all!" Undyne glared, clenching her spear tightly.
"The citizens of Legatum certainly did not agree with that stance. Gives you a bit of insight on their true nature, doesn't it?" Tryton frowned. "All the abuse they've heaped towards her as she grew up, and yet she refused to punish them. Even when they've also wronged me."
There it is. Undyne snarled as she jumped back and clashed spears with Tryton, pushing her back with several steps.
"Tell me, Undyne. How would you react when the very people you're supposedly protecting single out and unjustly kill your lover?"
Undyne's eye widened. Wha...?
"And despite knowing this, Legatum's previous rulers, nor a majority of the Kingdom itself showed any empathy for my loss despite my loyal service to both. The aggressors were never apprehended. They showed no regret for their crimes. They were allowed to live happily and ignorantly as if they didn't take someone who meant the world to me, while I myself was sent to the depths of a lake to never be seen again." Tryton noticed Undyne's shocked eye, and how it briefly, thoughtfully focused on Alphys. She took the opportunity to gather another torrent of water right above her head, which slowly darkened and felt more malevolent. "She never hurt anyone, yet they took her away from me. I was wronged, yet they weren't taken to task for it. And you expect me to let that go?" Undyne was unable to answer as the torrent of water smashed into her.
"UNDYNE!" Undine shouted ot towards her ally as a black torrent of water crashed down on Undyne, separating her from Tryton. Undyne herself was sent hurtling towards the ground, only to be caught by a spiderweb managing to catch her and pull her out of the torrent.
"Whoops! Undyne, you should really be more observant." Muffet hummed as she helped Undyne back up as she attempted to shake off the blast of dark water.
This dark water packs a much heavier punch than usual water magic... Undyne grunted as she brushed herself off, staggering slightly. "Muffet. Chara might be down for the count. You have to go help him."
"...Chara-Dearie's in trouble?" Muffet lowered her smile at the warning. Seeing how serious Undyne was due to the look in her eye, she didn't hesitate to immediately hop in his direction across numerous drops of debris. She picked up the pace when she realized she could barely sense the magic he put out.
"Undyne! Are you alri-gah!" Alphys attempted to ask, but was blasted away by another blast of dark water. She ended up being thrown into the wall by the force, and landed on her side, clutching her arm. Same could be said for me...
She ended up nearly surrounded by several a mage and monster who aimed several missiles of water towards her while she was down. She was quickly shielded by a dome of green magic. The dome cracked slightly due to the water's nature, but otherwise it held true.
"Alphys, we have you covered." Richard declared as he and the rest of GROUP gathered around her and drove the enemies away a bit. The shield's own nature helped gradually heal her wounds, if only a bit. It was enough to help her stand up a bit.
"Nevermind me, you need to go help Chara! Muffet already went after him, they both need you." Alphys reluctantly said while equipping her specialized wrench and smashing it into an oncoming mage, knocking them unconscious. She hated having to ask them this, as she promised to watch over them. But Chara really needed help.
"Don't worry, we'll get after him. Reckless jerk." Lizzie huffed as she swiped her hand, a storm of blue knives erupting from the ground and cutting away the surrounding enemies, leaving them on the ground with numerous cuts across them.
"Clear a path, GROUP!" Justin shouted as several of his gun shots ricochet, destroying several water projectiles and piercing through defenses getting in their way. The rest followed after him, on their way to Chara.
Alphys sighed, brushing herself off for a moment, before realizing that quite a bit of her jacket was shredded from the onslaught of damaging dark water, revealing a bit of her top. She blushed and covered herself. Not again...! She shook her head as she gazed at Undyne. No time, gotta focus. These guys need to get out of my way! She emphasized this as she formed a digital wall around herself to defend from oncoming projectiles, and pushed onward, bowling over the enemy mages and monsters that tried to stop her.
Undyne in the meanwhile was regaining her focus, trying to shake off what was told to her, as Undine dueled with Tryton above, their numerous clashes creating waves in the airborne water bubbles above her. She gazed at Tryton with a lowered eye.
"You can't use that as an excuse!" Undine shouted as a torrent of water was blasted into Tryton. "Your response to that was to lure those people's loved ones into the lake you were imprisoned in, then trapping them down there, leaving them to drown! That's going too far!"
"They took my beloved away, so I took theirs. That, is karma." Tryton said resolutely as a water shield surrounded her, causing Undine's blast to harmlessly bounce off of it.
Undyne was hearing all of this, still mildly disoriented. Though she heard enough of the genuine pain in Tryton's voice to tell that she's not faking, causing her to sigh to herself.
Shit. She means it. Undyne mentally groaned in frustration. Broken hearts resulting from circumstances outside their control can be rather rough. Magic began seeping from behind her eyepatch. Still...!
Tryton and Undine were once again boucning away from one another, as their waves of water constantly clashed against one another. Before another one could be made, a much stronger spear of water pierced through Tryton's water bubble, bursting it outright.
"I think it's pretty clear that due to our ideas on justice, we won't be seein' eye to eye." Undyne swims upwards from one of the water bubbles, bursting up from one of them and standing on top of it. "While I see where you're coming from, I can't exactly approve of your responses."
Tryton narrowed her eyes as more dark water gathered in her hand. "Is that so? Shame. I really thought you'd side with me on this."
"Then you're an idiot who doesn't know how I tick." Undyne said with a scowl. "I'm a gal who prefers to keep innocent bystanders out of the collateral damage caused by vengeful people like you. Anyone who does something that negatively affects their lives, I can't ignore it, regardless of their reason."
Tryton clenched her fists, the water around her growing more hazardous. "And you truly believe that applies to citizens outside your Kingdom? You insist on coming to the aid of those you have no connections with?!"
"Karma is messing with the lives of good people. Good people we would like to get along with." Undyne narrowed her eye. "You've given us plenty reason to come out here and fight you."
"Undyne...!" Tryton snarled, water daggers forming quickly. She tried to reach out to her fellow aquatic monster, but now she knows that it was a hopeless case.
Undine listened to the exchange with wide eyes, then turned to Alphys, who caught up and seemed surprised herself. I see...perhaps this is why she one to be looked up to where she's from...
Undyne and Tryron's spears clashed overhead, the water explosion resulting in a brief shower of rain, which Undine unconsciously covered. She narrowed her eyes as more enemies came to interrupt them. She pushed Alphys behind her and got ready to attack. "In any case, I have a job to do, and it's to defeat the ones that endanger my home!"
Amidst the rain, a certain monster sheathed her sword as several mages were laid at her feet. Staring behind her mask, Hounda gazed up at Undyne, who was looking wild as ever, looking to launch a spear barrage. The canine monster tilted her head.
"...The Spear of Justice...Undyne..."
Asriel knew what Zephyr meant, as in the definition of the word. Two which came to mind . A gentle breeze, and a very light article of clothing. He decided that the Zephyr he was fighting related more to the latter due to his clothes, which were mostly robes that weren't too heavy or restricting. He was sure of it.
Because Zephyr's wind magic was not gentle at all. Even less so when he was also using smoke, which did even less than pleasant things for the eyes.
Luckily, this team had two people who were able to effectively counter him when it comes to elements.
Slyph managed to purify the malevolent smoke that attempted to suffocate them, and Tempest blew them away with a push of his paws. The onslaught was effectively countered, and briefly put Zephyr on the backfoot.
"Looks like the two of you can counter me when working in unison." Zephyr noted while gathering the elements in his hands. "Might be a good idea to separate you two, then."
"You're not getting the chance!" Slyph shouted as she took a deep breath and discharged a powerful blast of wind towards her target. The force knocked Zephyr off balance and devastated not only the platform they stood on, but the enemies that stood in the way of the blast.
"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE BLASTING YOU STUPID PIXIE!" Red shouted as she was falling due to the resulting whirlwind.
"Who're you calling pixie, mutt?! That's an entirely different monster!" Slyph shouted back irritably. Tempest could only facepalm.
"Those two really don't like each other, dude!" Monster Kid shouted over the whirlwind as he landed on several platforms at a time, hopping off of some of them to get to another stable foothold not yet destroyed.
"I noticed!" Asriel shouted back, as he could see that Red was still a bit disoriented from the wind blast. With a charge of lightning magic around his body, and used the increased speed to leap several of the falling debris to catch her bridal style, landing on ground hard enough to crack the ground.
"...Ah?" Red blinked in surprise.
"Whew..." Asriel sighed while standing up straight, frowning in Slyph's direction. "A little bit of a warning would have been nice." He turned to Red with a relieved smile. "That sent us all flying for a bit. Are you alright, Red?"
"Dog biscuits, Asriel. I'm supposed to be the bodyguard here. And yet you're saving me." Red grumbled with a small blush on her cheeks. "I would have totally been alright from the fall, y'know...but thanks."
"Let's hold off on the bodyguard bit for now, cause we're fighting together. Prince's Orders." Asriel smiled as he set her on her feet. "You're welcome, by the way." His ears heard the air itself whistling, and heard the sound of several wind blasts bursting from where Tempest and Slyph were fighting Zephyr. "They're really fighting aggressively in there..."
"WATCH OUT!" MK shouted fron above as he leapt down and kicked an incoming wind mage in the face, knocking them away so hard that they bowled into a group of them, knocking them down.
"Thanks for covering for us, you certainly took your time." Red huffed.
"They're coming...!" Asriel narrowed his eyes as his paws began catching fire. He already saw the look in their eyes. They wouldn't be listening to any plea for them not to fight, until after he had already defeated them. So he took the advice Red usually gave him when fighting an enemy.
He chose not to bother. Reluctantly so.
He started via punching forward with said fire fist. What the enemy hadn't expected from a fifteen year old like him, was a large blast of flames resulting from the punch and proceeding to burn them, as well as throwing them back with severe burns.
Red was up neck, with her paws on her sword. In a flash, she sped past them after seemingly only slashing once. They soon found themselves slashed several times at once, and being pushed back by the force of the slashes actually catching up and taking effect.
MK took a deep breath, and sighed just as deeply, before jumping up and kicking away another wind mage, with his tail slapping another one away, then knocking the next one's face into the ground, hard enough to crack it into webs. He surprisingly balanced on his mechanical hands and twirled a few times, a multitude of kicks and tail swipes knocking the rest of the mob away and into unconsciousness.
Asriel turned around briefly and noticed that the shield still didn't go down. It appears that the main enemy needed to be taken down before some progress can be made on that front. Zephyr must be defeated, and soon. Fighting in such an enclosed space was not going to look well for them in the long run.
Tempest and Slyph were striking at Zephyr with swift slashes of wind that sliced through the clouds of smoke that the latter tried to blind them with. It him no good, and he ended up being cut slightly from the slashes.
"You're going down for good this time, Zephyr! You're not getting away again!" Slyph shouted aloud and with authority.
"That's funny. Because I'm not exactly planning on trying to get away this time." Zephyr said while throwing a gust of wind towards Tempest. Tempest cuts it apart with a summoned sword. Though Zephyr took those several seconds to appear in front of Tempest in a gust of wind and briefly attempted to impale him with a sharpened blade of wind. Tempest barely dodges it with a side step assisted by wind, only for a blast of wind to push him down from above, was well as cut him numerous times.
Tempest grunted while trying to push himself back up, rolling out of the way of the wind blade jabbing into the ground, strong enough to form a wide crater that spread several feet outwards. Slyph swiftly kicked him away, boosted by a burst of wind gathered by her wings.
"Zephyr! I'm taking you down today! You're not getting away again!"
"That's not for you to decide, little pixie."
"I'M NOT A PIXIE! MY NAME IS SLYPH!" She shouted as a powerful whirlwind gathered around her and pushed towards Zephyr, who dispelled a bit of it with his hands yet was still pushed back. Tempest recovered from the confusion briefly, his swords gleaming as he quickly dashed towards Zephyr with a wind coated slash across Zephyr's ghroat, intending to decapitate him. The human ducked backwards in slight surprise, becore chuckling in remembrance.
Tempest was an assassin, after all. He's more adept in actual killing than fighting in of itself.
"The wind is an element of freedom. It goes wherever it wants, regardless of what fate says." Zephyr says softly as he ducks under a slash from Tempest. "And yet despite that, your wind is so weak as to constantly allow others to control where it blows. That's pretty much the same as being unable to control your own fate. Don't you agree?"
Tempest said nothing, mostly emotionless as he slashed again, a wind slash razor sharp enough to slice through the concrete separating them. Zephyr paid it no mind, simply smiling smoothly as he returned the favor, but larger.
"Tell me, Slyph. The day of the old outsider Queen's death. A truly pathetic one, at that. Drowning in a swamp? Seriously?" Zephyr rolled his eyes. "When that happened, she was hounded upon by assassins, yeah? Did you ever see who did it? Did any one of you catch a visual of the culprit? They must have been stupefied that the Queen went and got herself killed, when it was supposed to be their job. That voice being added to the haunting winds was a pure accident. But nevertheless, they drove her to her death. I wonder who that person was..."
Slyph, ditzy as she was, did not miss the path that was beginning to form between thoughts. Especially since Tempest slightly slowed his attack, and she could sense his soul becoming plagued with guilt. Her eyes narrowed. "...It was you."
Tempest did not defend against the accusation.
"I can't believe this. It was YOU?!" Slyph shouted in outrage, though didn't take her eyes off of Zephyr was she blasts him with another torrent of wind. "Don't think this means I'm done with you!"
"I haven't humored the thought. I'm simply saying that Tempest aimed to kill a Queen, and yet she died so pathetically before he had a chance. Can't if that's a discredit to her or Tempest." Zephyr shrugged. "Oh well, not like it matters."
"You jerk! All that, and you would assist in something like this on a whim! Why?!"
"The wind blows freely. I have no true master, except for that." Zephyr says almost sagely. "It just so happens that the wind is blowing towards Legatum, and begs to become a storm to rend it apart. Tear it down enough so it can later build itself up to something better, stronger. Or it can be completely destroyed, putting it out of it's own misery as well as ours. Same difference, really."
"Why you...!" Slyph glared as she charged a much stronger wave of wind towards Zephyr, which he forcefully pushed back, with difficulty. He then reflected it towards Tempest, who did nothing to defend against it, being blasted right in the chest and being knocked on his back.
"Tempest seems to have gotten the wind knocked out of him. Even to this day, he still cannot sync up with his wind. He still isn't free from the constraints placed on his mind and soul." Zephyr huffed. "No spirit in his wind at all. So incredibly weak..." He continues, as he raised his hand, a sickly black spiral of wind, sharpening quickly. "I might was well rend your soul and put an end to you right now. And you won't do much to defend yourself, will you? Like you've earned the punishment?" Zephyr glared. "Then just lie and die, like the broken, weak dragon you are."
Tempest said nothing as Zephyr prepared to blast him with a sharpened spear of wind.
A blast of fire interrupted the wind gust. They clashed briefly, before the flames ultimately won out and overcame the wind. What followed was a bolt of lightning that nearly struck Zephyr through the chest, which he barely dodged.
Too late did he discover that it was a feint, as Red leaps towards him from below and slashed at him diagonally. A sharpened slash of wind manage to barely parry it, but that only gave an opening for MK to jump upwards, spinning above his target, them coming down with an axe kick that broke through his guard, smashing him into the ground.
"Oh! Alright, not too shabby!" Slyph huffed with an impressed smile. Asriel landed in front of the still dazed Tempest, with MK and Red doing the same.
"Tempest. You need to get up." Asriel requested gently. Tempest was still unresponsive, simply gazing upwards, expression locked on guilt.
"Yo, dude. You can't just lie there. We're kinda in the middle of a battle." MK said while not taking his eyes off Zephyr. Still nothing from the dragon.
"Tempest! Your Prince is addressing you! You WILL get off your tail and respond!" Red shouted in irritation. Tempest's eyes widened as he actually pulls himself up in response to the statement. Asriel himself didn't turn to him for a bit, keeping a focused eye on Zephyr. And even if he did turn away, MK and Red won't allow him the opening it would create.
"Tempest. How are you feeling right now?" Asriel asks, the wind around him causing his scarf to flutter. "Feeling inadequate? Unworthy of finding peace? Somewhat responsible for something tragic?" The prince continues, the flames dancing around him smoothly. "You feel like you have to make up for something, even if it takes you the rest of your life?"
"...I do." Tempest blinked in slight confusion. Said confusion tripled when Asriel turned towards him and smiled toothily.
"You're definitely part of the Dreemurr Faction, then. Have you forgotten that nearly all of us are haunted somewhat by the past?" Asriel said, briefly surprising Tempest. "Whatever happened with you and how it affected Rebecca, we'll deal with it. Tell her the truth and get it off your chest. Whether she understands and forgives you or not, is for her to decide." He turned towards Zephyr with narrowed eyes. "But right now, let's focus on reaching that point at all by defeating Zephyr and his allies first!"
Tempest gazed at his feet for a moment, pondering his decision. He still feels like his soul and heart are in a state of unrest. But for the time being, the he knew what to focus on. He stands back up as a sword of gold graces his paws, as he tightened his grip around it.
"Sheesh. You defused that quicker than expected. How'd ya do it?" Slyph wondered as she send a green spiral of wind towards Zephyr, who held out his hand to dispel it, and was surprised by Red and MK taking advantage of the opening with a swift slash/kick respectively. The former tore through his cloak a bit and the latter sent him crashing into the wall behind him.
"Never mind that! We have to focus on our enemy!" Red said while throwing numerous manifested magic bombs towards Zephyr. A barrier of wind kept them from literally blowing up in his face.
Damn it. I was so close to killing Tempest. Then goat-prince had to go and reignite the fire in his soul. Zephyr thought to himself as he landed on the ground, glaring especially hard at Asriel. It's definitefly a reason why the Dreemurrs slowly gained massive influence. Igniting a fire in people's hearts and using that fire to bring everyone together, even those that contrast far too much for it to be possible. And now even their friends are capable of doing it to an extent, which makes it even worse for their possible future enemies.
In all the commotion, Monster Mam was still hidden, even amongst many of the enemies she's kicked deep into the concrete below her. She could see the strong, practiced kicks that MK was delivering to his own enemies, and how Asriel brought Tempest back up and prepared for battle again.
She smiled at what she saw. Perhaps it is indeed a wise move for her group to place their trust in the Faction's potential...
Faryn was livid.
Frisk could tell because the Fox Princess was generating much more fire than he's seen from her so far, and they were far more hostile. Said hostility was matched by her gentle green eyes shifting to a sinister purple, complete with her catlike pupils being more sharp than before. Her nails lightly extended enough to be claws, her fur was frizzled and wild, and her growling was echoed throughout the stone walls.
It wasn't hard at all to see that she was genuinely angry. And it was even easier to see why. A bad impression was already formed between Faryn and the woman before her, as she had the gall to mock her mother's death and what it did to/for her and her father. That might be one of the few things that Faryn simply would not let go without retribution.
It was one of the cases that shows that she truly inherited her father's wrath.
"You can't just badmouth Mama like that. Mama was a good person. She didn't fail. She didn't fail at all." Faryn growled, before her eyes shot open and she pounced, flames licking across her arm up to her hand. "Take it back!"
"You're a Princess, aren't you? I sense a soul of royalty." Daleen says as Faryn swiped at her, trails of flames following said swipe. Daleen jumped back from the flames while standing on a raised earth pillar. "You're not acting very Princess-like, little one. Such anger is rather unsophisticated for someone of your standing."
"Take back what you said!" Faryn shouted furiously as her fire grew more intense, with a stronger blast shooting towards her, destroying the pillar her target stood on. Daleen avoids the debris cause from the exploding fire with little effort. She instead used the newly formed debris and launched several larger pieces of it towards Faryn. She managed to duck under the first and leapt right over the latter, but was left open to Daleen personally kicking her back mid-jump, sending her tumbling across the ground.
"Why should I take back the truth? Seems pretty counter-productive, if you ask me." Daleen said as she landed gracefully on her feet. She had her eye on numerous variables in the space around her, such as Frisk and Toriel fighting off her men, while Lunar and Gnome handled Terra. She kept all of this in mind while briefly fighting with a furious Faryn. "The bottom line here is that you are here while your mother isn't. No amount of glorifying or honoring of her name will change the fact that she left her daughter to face the world alone. Don't you hold at least an inkling of resentment towards her for that?"
"STOP IT!" Faryn roared with an untold amount of fury, her flames increasing in intensity as she tried to incinerate her target. Daleen once again countered with raised, hardened pillars of earth. She pushed her hand forward as one of the launched towards Faryn. The fox princess ran towards it, punching it with her ignited flame. It was shattered apart in various flaming rocks, which stopped in midair and shot towards her, blasting her back again. "Gah!"
"Royalty being thrown about in such a manner, how unsightly." Daleen hummed. Faryn snarled at her as she struggled to stand up again, unwilling to bend against the woman's taunts. "Then again, it's not your fault. You are a young woman, still growing. You will grow much more if you settle under my wing." She held up her hand. "Allow me to look after you, as a real mother should. Let me do what your birth mother failed to."
"Mama is not a failure!" Faryn still glared at her, her fur standing on end and her flames intensifying even more. Her fox ears were pulled back, only because she was prepared to pounce angrily again. Though she failed to hide the tears gathering in her eyes. "She didn't fail me...she didn't!"
"You don't sound so sure-"
She was interrupted as Toriel leaped at her, boosted by a jet of fire. Her fist was ignited with flames, and the fire in her eyes left a glowing trail of light from them, signifying the furious inferno within them. Daleen only had a second to put up her defense before the flaming punch made contact, sending the arrogant woman flying into the other side of the room, crashing into the wall.
"That will be quite enough." Toriel seethed quietly, smoking rising from her clenched fist. "You shall not allow such drivel to leave your lips in my presence anymore, lest I sear them shut."
"Truly?" Daleen raised her head, keeping an eye on Toriel. "How...forceful of you." Before Toriel could respond, she was sent flying back by a brief blast that couldn't immediately be seen. She barely out her arms up to defend against it on instinct, yet it still hurt her, tearing a hit of her right sleeve apart. Though at least through this, she managed to get an identification for Daleen's magic.
Psychic Magic...that's how she's doing this. She's peeking through Faryn's memories and using them to break her down! Then there's her telekinesi-
Her thoughts were cut off as she crashed through a wall, rolling to a stop until she landed on her side, groaning. She slowly stands back up, her clothes tattered even further from the onslaught. The most obvious damage is her right sleeve being completely torn off.
"W-What's going on?!"
"Is there a fight?! Lemme see!"
"Get behind me!"
Toriel heard several young voices at once, and she turned her head towards them. Her eyes widened as she saw the source of the noise.
Children, many of them. Very few of them were older than at least ten. They were looking at Toriel with expressions that ranged from confusion, to fear, to curiosity. This seemed to be a room purely for them, as there was a large assortment of toys, beds, blankets, desks, and even snacks all around.
It looked like a combination between a classroom, a playroom, and a bedroom all at once. It briefly surprised Toriel how spacious this place was, and how it acommadates the children as comfortably as possible within a fortress like this. This room was made with very delicate care.
"Oh dear. I went too far. You weren't supposed to see this place." Daleen said as she levitated in the room, sounding genuinely upset and anxious for the first time.
"What are all these children doing here?" Toriel asked cautiously, keeping her guard up. She was conflicting on proceeding to fight further with children this young in the vicinity.
"Children. Head to the safe corner that I made for you. Mother Daleen is busy." Daleen instructed gently, further surprising Toriel. The children were anxious, but proceeded to follow her direction and headed to a spot that was slightly cramped, but not enough for them to be unable to move around in. A dome slowly covered the area they stood, and it proceeded to harden with defensive magic, keeping them secure and safe. "There. Now we won't have to worry about them distracting us. Don't want them getting hurt in our crossfire."
"You didn't answer my question." Toriel said heatedly, her fists clenched.
"These children have been abandoned, Toriel. Their families discarded them because they couldn't live up to a certain legacy in a certain amount of time." Daleen said angrily. "Can you imagine that? A family just throws their children away because they couldn't live to a certain standard. If that's the way they thought about them, why did they bother having children in the first place?!"
Toriel blinked, her muzzle lightly dropped open at the woman's sudden anger.
"They are victims, Toriel. They need me to take care of them. No one else would. When these children were discarded by their high-status families, not even the orphanages would take them in. They were forced out of their homes into the cold of the night simply because they weren't good enough right there and then. That's an abhorrent way to see the youths you've brought into this world!" She narrowed her eyes. "It's fine, though. I took these children in when their families abandoned them. Then I made sure they couldn't hurt them anymore."
"...You killed their families..." Toriel deduced with slowly widening eyes.
"They didn't deserve these children! Someone who discards children for such reasons is not fit to be a parent, let alone live. I will not be like them, though. I'm not a failure of a mother. I'll raise them better than they ever bothered to. I will not fail again, nor will I abandon them."
...Does that mean what I think it means? Did she lose her own children...? Toriel thought, before she shook her head and glared at Daleen. "Be that as it may, these children shouldn't be here. They should be outside, experiencing the world for what it is, good and bad, learning from both, rather than keeping them caged here. It matters not how gently you care for them, you cannot keep them from seeing the world. Protecting them from it's cruelty has no benevolent value if they are robbed of the chance to experience it's beauty."
"I will do so when they are ready. Right now, they're nowhere close. Only when I deem them ready will I allow them to experience the outside world."
Which was likely never, Toriel deduced. She knew this familiar attitude. Daleen had no intentions of letting them leave, ever. "You allow them freedom within this earthen fortress, yet refuse to allow them to see the outside world." Toriel muttered. These children are locked in the darkness, probably won't ever see the sun again if Daleen could help it, just so the latter can comfort her own broken heart over the loss of her own children. Their families did not appreciate or love them, so she killed them and took the kids for herself.
To her, that is Karma.
Despite all this, Toriel stood her ground. She stepped in front of the dome of children and swiped her paw across, flames dancing around her. "They cannot live like that. Shielding them from anything from the outside world is not how a child should grow up, let alone live."
"I thought I would be able to reason with you, from one mother to another, even if you are the inferior one." Daleen frowned, rising in the air as psychic bolts charged brightly. "If you can't see things my way, then we have nothing more to discuss. Die."
Toriel prepared for battle once more, though a lingering thought passed through her head as magic flames clashed with magic psychic bolts.
Once more, I will be facing a darker reflection of myself...
Back with the others, Terra was almost casually waving her paw about as large chunks of earth were launched towards Gnome and Lunar. It was easy enough for the latter to smash through them, and for the latter to dodge. Despite this, the latter was the only one willing to fight back. Gnome really didn't want to fight his friend, and thus wasn't fighting at his best.
Lunar finds friendship very annoying sometimes, because it risks causing things like this when friends start disagreeing this intensely.
"Terra...! I'm...your friend...!" Gnome slowly shouted to her as his globe bounced away from a barrage of sharpened earth. "I...don't...want...to fight...you...!"
"That's rather unfortunate, because that's what we seem to be doing." Terra said evenly as several boulders were divided into evenly diced cubes, then shot towards the duo with the speed of a rocket.
Lunar grunted as one crashed into her and made her fall to the ground, disoriented. Before she could recover, a pillar rose from right underneath her and smashed into her belly, launching her upwards and making her cough from the abrupt pain. She was then smacked down by another pillar descending from the ceiling, sending her back down into the ground. She roared as a blast of her Twilight Magic destroyed any remaining pillars that attempted to pinball her again.
"Just WAIT until I get my paws on you!" Lunar snarled viciously, twilight emitting from her body.
"You always were in need of a leash." Terra remarked evenly again, as she tapped a decently sized rock, launching towards Lunar. The latter's eyes widened as she sensed a buildup of energy within the rock, and made to dodge out of the way.
The resulting explosion managed to send her crashing through several walls, briefly sending her out of sight. Gnome paid no mind, keeping track of Terra.
"If you truly don't want to fight me, then surrender." Terra offered gently. "Truly, I don't want to fight you either. But I have no choice in the matter. They made sure of that when they got hold of me."
"Whatever it...is...we can help...you...!"
"...After that island stunt, I don't deserve anyone's help." Terra replied somberly, her paw swiping across and sending earthen statues in the shape of dragons towards Gnome. They widened their maws and attempted to chomp on him. He didn't move, but the counter was two giant earth hands decending from above and slamming down on the two statues, shattering them apart in a moment. "How terrible. Our skills in Earth Magic are equal. Yet you simply can't bring yourself to fight me to the death." She shook her head. "You really need to do something about that gentleness, Gnome. It will do you no favors here. Save it for someone who deserves it."
"Deserve...has nothing...to do with it..." Gnome replied, his aura remaining strong yet retaining a sense of longing for his friend to return so they could work through their problems together.
Frisk was keeping cover under a green shield he conjured from switching Soul Modes. He had it surrounded around himself and Faryn, who was still on her knees, whimpering. Lunar was getting knocked about, Gnome didn't want to fight Terra, and Toriel was fighting Daleen. This truly was a difficult situation they were in.
If we don't turn things around quick, things will keep getting uglier! Frisk mentally noted. He turned to Faryn, who still shook a bit as she tried to pull herself together. She knows she shouldn't be falling apart here, yet Daleen's words hit her harder than they thought they did. Frisk needed to get her back in the fight.
And he knew just how to do that.
"Faryn. Remember when you invited me over to the festival? The festival that celebrated the life your mom lived in Astus?" Frisk began, stepping in front of her and kneeling. "You were so happy to see me and my friends there. You wanted us to know exactly how much she changed people's lives in Astus and how she made you all better people. How much you all loved her and how she loved you all. Even your Dad, who loathed humans because of how they mistreated him and others, decided to reopen his heart to them because of your Mom's influence. And of course, one of her greatest achievements was bringing you into the world. Because of that, I got to meet you. If you ask me, I'm counting more successes than failures."
Faryn slowly lifted her head to gaze at Frisk, sniffling slightly. For the moment, Frisk opened his heterochrome blue and gold eyes and stared into hers own jade green ones. They were sparkling slightly from her tears. She rose her head a bit more, her superior height becoming more apparent. This did not deter Frisk, for he reached out and lightly placed a hand atop her head, causing her to close her eyes and gently nuzzle into it.
"No one gets to decide what your mom meant to you or how well she did as one. You know this more than anyone else. You're certain that she did well with you despite what happened, so no one else should be able to shake that certainty." Frisk smiles, lightly patting her head, scratching behind her fox ears. "You're much stronger than that. I've seen it myself. And that strength will help you persevere."
Faryn blinked softly at Frisk, considering what she was being told. She then shook her head slowly and wiped her eyes.
"...Sorry you had to see in such a weak moment, Frisk. Just...give me a second." Faryn says, shortly before regaining her composure and standing up on her two feet, her tail waving behind her. She made sure to turn to Frisk and pull him into a gentle hug. Due to their comparative height, his chin rested just above her bosom. Neither of them minded, they just wanted a small hug break, with Frisk's shield protecting them from interruptions via attack. "Thanks."
"Don't worry about it." Frisk nodded as he gingerly returned the hug.
Faryn slowly released Frisk and turned towards the path ahead. "...I have to get better. As the future Queen of Astus, I can't be breaking down when an enemy says some harsh words that hit a little too close to home."
Somewhere within the fortress, mages were downed when they tried to chase after him. Tengu interfered, his talon pushing down on one of their unconscious heads with a wide grin.
"Cawhawhaw! It's been a while since I busted to heads for the hell of it!" He said near-maniacally.
"Just don't go overboard and reveal to the group, alright? And where did Gaster and Revan go?"
Tengu heard blasts of lighting and Gaster Blaster beams clashing with one another in the background. He sighed and scratched his head.
"I'll take a few guesses..."
Revan and Gaster both appeared within the fortress, the former crackling with lightning and the latter surrounded by Gaster Blasters.
"Hmph. Looks like you couldn't keep me contained after all." Revan scoffed. "Looks like your Void Magic isn't as stable as you prepared it to be."
"An unfortunate miscalculation on my part." Gwster admitted humbly, his hands cracking even further, to the point that he could barely move them. I've overestimated my current ability to keep a void area sustained...it still requires practice...I can't teleport right now...
"Too bad for you. Because this presents me an opportunity." Revan sensed Frisk nearby, qnd immediately shot towards him as a bolt of lightning. Gaster's eyes darkened in fear for Frisk, and attempted to cut him off with a wall of bones. He knew it wouldn't do much, but it would warn Frisk ahead of time and give him time to dodge whatever headed his way.
Faryn's fox ears flicked, her eyes widening quickly as she turned to Frisk. "Frisk, DODGE!"
"W-"
Frisk was glad Faryn warned him, and instinct propelled him to slightly move to the side with a short leap. Otherwise, the lightning-coated knife would have found itself piercing through his heart, instead of simply through his shoulder.
"-hat...?" Frisk just barely finished, briefly surprised by the knife jabbed right through his shoulder.
"Damn you, boy. That was supposed to pierce your heart." Revan snarled, and Frisk could clearly see the crazed rage within the man's eyes. They were forced apart as flames and plant vines shot out from underneath them, making Revan jump back in surprise. On the other hand, Frisk falls back in Faryn's arms, the back of his head gently cushioned by her bosom.
"Falling back in someone's arms...that's a trust exercise thing, right?" She asked with a tilted head.
"It usually takes a bit more than that...but yeah. I can safely say you did well there..." Frisk grunted, glad that she was mostly back to her usual self. He got back on his feet, gazing back at the recovering Revan, gradually raised a glowing green hand towards the shoulder he was stabbed through. "Another enemy? He feels more powerful than the rest..."
"...So, this is my setup?" Revan stood up, glaring all the more. "I was trying to kill the spawn of the woman I hated most, and not only did I fail at the first blow, I was interrupted by a half-breed mongrel."
"Mongrel...?" Faryn tilted her head slightly.
"Hey, you can't go calling Faryn something like that!" Frisk shouted back. "Who even are you, anyway?"
"He is Revan, one of the Seven Great Magicians from the Monster-Human War." Gaster declared, riding in on a Gaster Blaster, having it fire a blast towards the elder mage, which was quickly dodged. There was no time or room for subtlety. "He's after your life, Frisk."
"...He's what...?" Frisk said in disbelief, gazing at Revan in stunned shock. The immense amount of magic he was giving off became much more noticeable. He did seem to be rather aged in the eyes, signifying that he's been around for a while. And the sheer, untamed malice within them was even more noticeable.
"One of the Great Magicians?" Faryn blinked. "Those guys are super strong. And...one of them wants Frisk's life...?!" She immediately jumped in front of Frisk, arms spread out and shaking her head. "No way! Frisk's life is his own! You can't have it!"
"You don't have a say in the matter, half-breed abomination." Revan scoffed while clenching tighter onto his knife. "I'm quite confident in my ability to annihilate all three of you, so you'd better prepare yourselves for death."
After Frisk gets over his initial shock, he shakes his head, lightly pats Faryn's shoulder. He thanks her for the support, before moving forward, eyes slowly opening. "You're one of the ones who help seal the monsters of Ebott away..."
"I did play a part in that whole business, yes. The war as well." Revan said with a roll of his eyes. He didn't mind answering the last questions of someone he has marked for death.
"They suffered a lot down there. In the darkness of the mountain, having not seen the light or the sun nor knowing the comfort of it's warmth. Never knowing the beauty of the outside world, and never knowing just how much the world left them behind..." Frisk said, his magic surging to the surface, his soul empowering him somewhat.
"Is there a point to you mentioning all that drivel to me?"
Frisk raised his head, eyes narrowed. "You don't feel any regret about causing that?"
"Many have called what happened back then a war. I called it a necessary culling." Revan's expression twisted into one of warped hatred. "One that your mother helped undo, so I'm here to eradicate her living legacy."
"...I see." Frisk nodded. He understood quite well. "You're not someone I can reason with...are you?"
"You're not talking your way out of your death, filth." Revans simple response told Frisk what he needed to know. "I ask again, is there a point to this useless drivel?"
Frisk's eyes glowed slightly, a frown gracing his expression as he grabbed his Golden Heart Locket briefly. The response was a circle of flames gathering around Frisk, the colors and brightness reflecting his Bright Soul of Determination. It also reflected his eyes, which burned with anger. Not like Faryn's rampaging, roaring anger before. This was much more tranquil...and focused. All thoughts of trying to talk down and befriend this mage were burned to ash.
He felt it in his soul. The very moment he locked eyes with this man, he knew that they would always be enemies. Until one of them dies. It wasn't something he could dissuade, even if he clearly wanted to.
"No...I guess there isn't."
Asgore had to agree with Sans on something being seriously wrong. Keter didn't give off a vibe of him not meaning what he says. But it was clear that something about his words and actions, and perhaps even his very soul, was twisted into something not quite accurate, but also not false. He fully believed what he was saying and would stick to his belief, but gave off the feeling that he wasn't completely there in it.
The man felt like a walking contradiction, and Asgore sensed that it wasn't entirely of his own doing.
"Keter...you don't have to do this. Please, rethink what you're doing. We can talk about this..." Rebecca says gently with her hands clasped. Efreet and Papyrus didn't leave her side, in case she was directly attacked.
"We have already stated our declarations. We won't be changing anything about them." Keter replied. He then glowed slightly as a circular rune surrounded his feet. Then three other runes surrounded him in a triangular fashion. One after another, several monsters appeared into the fray. Efreet narrowed his eyes as his flames slowly grew in intensity.
"...So that's where they've been..." Efreet muttered with great, if restrained, fury.
"whaddya mean?" Sans asked, not taking his eyes off them. The three monsters were surrounded in auras of wind, water, and earth respectively. The first was male with bronze armor, a circular whirlwind forming his lower body. The second was female with a flowing teal dress surrounding her. And the third was wearing black and red armor.
"Jinn, Marid, and Shaitan..." Efreet listed quietly. "I sense no consciousness within any of them...what have you done to them?"
"It was someone else's work. I simply took them on when they were done." Keter declared as a sword was pulled from a rune behind him. It took Jinn's elemental attribute, becoming a sword of wind. "Attack."
The three elemental monsters struck, each of them sending an admittedly powerful blast of each of their elements, caring not for possible collateral and environmental damage.
Gerson, Sans and Asgore acted quickly.
Gerson pushed his hammer forward and smashed the blast of earth sent by Shaitan, the blast of water sent by Marid was split apart by a beam from Sans' Gaster Blaster, and Asgore dispersed the whirlwind sent by Jinn with a swing of his flaming trident.
Asgore grunted as Keter appeared before him and sliced him across his shoulder. A brief move to the side kept the cut from going across his chest. He retaliated with a burst of flames surrounding his body and briefly burning Keter's hand. The man seemed unbothered by this, and continued with another slash of his wind sword. The elements briefly clashed, flames and wind shooting upwards in a circular intensity.
"Stop this, Keter! Rebecca would rather not see us battle, and I'd prefer if we avoided that route entirely!" Asgore pleaded with Keter, hoping he would see reason. It was a futile hope, but he needed to try. Keter has been faced with great injustice and is lashing out against the kingdom responsible for it. That in of itself, he couldn't blame Keter for. But what he intends to will bring untold harm to many people who haven't wronged him at all, and to Rebecca, who obviously feels sympathy for what happened and wants to make up for her family's sins. It honestly pained Asgore to hear that Rebecca was suffering and being targeted for things her family did in the past and not her.
He could at least somewhat understand that it was a questionable decision to allow outsiders into the Kingdom, but she thought very hard on it and took a risk that she hoped would reap a helpful outcome. She did not want to be restrained and locked down by the sins of her parents. She wanted to tie hearts and souls together, because that was their next step towards true growth.
Another clashed sent then far away from one another, Asgore stopping himself with his trident digging into the ground. Keter didn't have the luxury, but made up for it by a gust of wind supported by the sword, having him land on his feet.
Asgore pulled his trident out of the ground, brilliant flames circling around it. "Keter. I say once more, I have no desire to do battle with you, as Rebecca seems to recall you with warm familiarity, and wants to resolve this in peace. But I shall not compromise her wellbeing to try reasoning with you further."
"Defending her, even when you have no prior connection to her whatsoever?" Keter responded, the wind vanishing into nothingness, and was replaced by water with a change of runes.
"She is not someone who deserves your type of scorn." Asgore narrowed his eyes. "If you have no desire to resolve this peacefully, I will not bother wasting my breath."
Nor did he, as he swing his trident and sends a wave of intense flames towards Keter. The man counters with a wall of water generated by his sword.
Asgore kept his eyes trained on Keter, as he gripped tightly onto his trident, with the flames growing hotter in his paws. He pulled back, before slashing at Keter horizontally. The former defends with yet another wall of water, resulting in a blast of steam from the clash. Several slashes from the former served as retaliation, and Asgore parried each of them with a glare in his eye.
How could he allow himself to fall in such a way? Was there truly no way to recover from the betrayal...? Asgore thought silently as Keter slashed at him with a much larger wave of water. Asgore slashed upwards, splitting the wave in half and allowing the two halves to pass him by. But then again, he had no one trying to pull him up from the deep end...only being surrounded by those who served to bring him lower. Perhaps that is it? Maybe there's more to it...?
Asgore paused a bit, then his eyes shifted upwards another rune forming above his head. They narrowed as a swirling spiral of water crashed down on him, managing to make a large, splintering crater into the ground. The last second before impact was used to barely defend against it with his trident.
No. It doesn't matter right now. What matters is that I defeat him quickly, before more damage is done
Sans and Papyrus, in the meantime, fired Gaster Blasters towards the one known as Jinn. as for the other guys...it's like efreet said. i can barely sense a consciousness within them at all. He was admittedly impressed that Jinn's wind magic managed to disperse the blasts sent their way. seriously? how powerful is that wind?!
"SANS!" Papyrus called out as he fired yet another blast towards Jinn. "THESE MONSTERS SEEMS TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO AWARENESS OF WHAT THEY'RE DOING!"
"i've noticed, bro. reasonin' with them ain't gonna happen if that's the case." Sans said while keeping a blaster on standby. "it's like their minds have been completely wiped and the only thing left behind is obedience. ya think people couldn't sink lower..."
Rebecca could hear them speaking about their current opponents, and felt the need to intervene somewhat. She briefly called upon her magic, Binding. Briefly, she manages to 'Bind' her soul to Papyrus. The skeleton briefly feels the connection made, and turns towards her in confusion as he felt a surplus of magic surge through him, and a share of his own return to Rebecca in exchange.
"Queen Rebecca, I must advise against this." Darkness tried to reason with her.
She heard him, but proceeded anyway. She was in the middle of making a hardened bone bridge from a building to her right. It formed slowly, gradually descending to the ground. The bridge also shifted to stairs for them to climb down safely. Civilians trapped on the top of said building looked on in surprise.
"Everyone, descend down this bone platform and seek shelter! I will defend you!" Rebecca ordered them while keeping her eyes on Jinn. The citizens seemed hesitant to leave her on her own, but decided to trust in her and leave as ordered. She kept her word, as Jinn attempted to blast a spiral of wind towards them, only for Rebecca to raise a wall of bones to protect them.
"EXCELLENT DEFENSE, REBECCA! THOUGH IT'S VERY EXPECTED, AS I'M SHARING MY MAGIC WITH YOU!" Papyrus declared as his Gaster Blaster fired off another beam towards Jinn. In spite of this, Papyrus was worried. There seemed to be absolutely no chance of talking them out of this, because they're literally unable to comprehend anything but what they've been ordered to do anymore. Why would anyone do such a thing to them...?
Concern brewing, he turned to look for Gerson and Efreet, curious about their own battles.
Gerson smashed through a blacked earth spear with his hammer, wincing as several sharps managed to shoot past and cut him in several places. He briefly raised his head, seeing Shaitan quickly descend down and attempt to smash him with her bare fists. He barely blocked with his hammer, and the ground around them ended up rupturing as a result. The tortoise smiled, even as he felt pain shooting up his arms from the sheer intensity of the heavy blow.
"Easy there, lass. There's no need to be so intense." Gerson grunted as he fell to one knee, his hammer holding up against the monster before him. There isn't anything restraining her from using all of her strength, not even the enviroment around us. Which is troublesome, as there's still civilians around despite our best efforts. Gerson's eye widened as he was unprepared for the ground to turn on him; he was unceremoniously launched across the field by the very ground tossing him quickly enough for him not to notice until he was already in the air. He definitely noticed by the time he hit the ground and then a wall, his shell reducing the damage to his back both times. Though given his age, it still hurt quite a bit.
Shaitan attempted to crush him once more, while he was vulnerable on his back like normal turtles and tortoise, sharpening an earth spear and looking to run him through.
Efreet put a stop to that, showing up in a flash of fire and smashing his fist into her face. What made this doubly baffling was that he was holding the back of Marid's head, and that was the one he punched Shaitan with. It ended up sending both of them crashing along the ground in a heap. Efreet landed right next to Gerson, gently helping him up.
"Are you alright, honored elder?" Efreet asked politely, concerned.
"Hey hey, no need for the 'honored' part." Gerson grunted while getting back to his feet. "Though you were certainly rough on those two."
"I can't afford to hold myself back against them, Sir Gerson. The threat must be dealt with quickly, with minimum casualty." Efreet retorted as he stood back up, making sure Gerson was alright. When be was focused, he turned towards the one known as Marid. He clenched his fist tightly, as she recovered and made to smash him down with a large wave of water. With a punch, a majority of it was vaporized into steam from the intensity of his flames. "Which also means I can't hesitate to use the full intensity of my fire."
Gerson found that reasonable enough, though he could have done with a brief warning before he did that.
In the meantime, Rebecca was sitting back, away from most of the commotion, with Darkness by her side. Efreet's battle was still relatively close, so she can call him back if need be. And so was Papyrus, but he was a bit farther away.
Sans, however, appeared back to her side, taking a breather. He appeared just a few feet behind them.
"Oh, this is awful..." Rebecca hummed, shaking her head. "There must be some way for Keter to come to his senses. But it appears he truly needs to be defeated first."
"That's usually how it goes, sometimes." Darkness continued anxiously, keeping an eye out for stray attacks...and a certain someone. I know Toxin's here somewhere. Where is he? He's likely to come straight for me.
Rebecca was still worried, as she watched Sans fire multiple blasts from the Blasters. Though at some point, she felt that something as terribly wrong. An unbearable wrongness tainted the air, and it made threatened to make her sick. That's when she noticed a smog cloud hovering in the air...and descending behind Sans. What is that smog...? She had no idea.
Darkness, on the other hand...
"SANS!"
"h-"
Sans was only able to get out the first level of confusion, before he barely moves to the side. It wasn't enough to completely dodge the sharped tail that impaled him from behind. His eye sockets went dark as the appendage pierced through him, and lifted him a few feet upwards. He struggled to reached his hands towards it, only to flinch back when he felt a burning sensation on his fingers.
what the hell, this thing is burnin' me! wait...poison? that can only mean...
"I watched a human film once. Where dangerous creatures were engineered to be dangerous killers. They tended to sneak up on their prey and impale them...just like this." The smog solidified, slowly taking shape into something more solid and recognizable. The figure took form, and was smiling demonically. "Personally, I wish they were victorious more often. The audience usually comes to see them in action, anyway."
"It's you...!" Darkness exclaimed, pushing Rebecca behind him with horrified eyes.
Toxin grinned. "Hello, Darkness. My old...I used that already." The poison dragon realized with a facepalm, acting as if he didn't have someone currently impaled on his tail. "I should haved saved that for when I actually reunited with you. It would have been WAY more impactful and fitting! My eagerness ruined the poetic timing! Wasted opportunities!"
Darkness grit his teeth, while Rebecca was still reeling from seeing Sans brutally sneak attacked. To her credit, she recovered quickly, shaking her head and glaring. "Let him go!"
Papyrus heard and sensed his brother's peril, turning towards Sans and exclaiming: "THAT'S MY BROTHER! RELEASE HIM AT ONCE!"
"Hmm...I'll consider it." Toxin tilted his head. "I'm mostly here to deal with my backstabbing partner."
"...says...the dragon...stabbing people...through the back...with his tail..." Sans weakly grunted out.
Toxin raised a finger to protest, then lowered it while rubbing his chin. "...I see what you did there. Well-played." He says while casually tossing Sans to the side, hearing him land on his back with a agonized shout of pain.
"BROTHER! I'LL-" Papyrus attempted to help, but was cut off by Jinn sweeping him away with a whirlwind sending him across the street, crashing through a long since evacuated building.
"Anyway, Darkness. Won't you give me a friendly welcome hug?" Toxin smiles as he opened his arms, poison magic emitting ominously off of his body, making his old partner step back fearfully.
This reaction only made the poison dragon smile wider.
"Come now, Darkness. That's not how you greet an old friend.~"
I finally got this out. Good grief, I really, really, REALLY need to get my groove back. It frustrates me to not have it back by now.
I'm gonna do it, though. Eventually, I WILL. My determination will shine through! Even with all the pain going through everyone. Physically, emotionally, and perhaps mentally.
Until next time...