Thanks go to MysteriousNugget, Zack Frost, pettyofficer117, Wingah, Acoolnamme, Genowar, Zillowzest, Doctah Sawbones, and BonelessSkele.
10burgers, you mentioned in a review on original DoubleTale that you reread DoubleTale content all the time, and while I have no idea how anyone could read original DoubleTale even once, it's awesome to hear that you read through my work so often! As for your request for a smut chapter... Well, I get those kinds of jokes in the reviews semi-frequently, and I don't have any problem with them, they're usually funny. But uh, gonna be honest, I don't think y'all would know what to do if people started banging in this fic.
If three chapters from now - on chapter 69, appropriately - Chara's confession plan went WAY BETTER than anyone expected and there was a detailed scene of those two banging somewhere in the back at this wedding, I'm fully convinced you guys would LOSE YOUR MINDS. I'd get a hundred reviews in a day, and all of them would be people being like "heY WAIT HOLD ON A SECOND PAUSE-"
So yeah lol. While I have no problem with smut, whether it be writing it, or other people who write it, I definitely don't think it has too much of a place in DoubleTale. Also, ya write one smut chapter, and you're the smut guy for life. I don't wanna be the smut guy for life. I don't think any of us are ready for a canon sex scene anyway lol. Maybe some day, but not today.
... Knowing me, I'd probably make that shit a cliff hanger. End one chapter with the line "Fuck me like you still hate me" and then make you guys wait two weeks for the actual...-
... Why am I still talking about this? Enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Undertale.
In hindsight, performing a cannonball when he didn't know how to swim wasn't one of Anarchy's best ideas.
Arms crossed over his chest, The Anarchist stood at the bottom of the lake. His long hair floated and waved in the currents, even the hairs of his beard shifting some on his face. He stared up towards the surface, lips shut tight to keep any air from escaping while he silently pondered how to get back to air. He also wondered why he wasn't floating at least a little. How heavy was he? How dense was he?
As he stared up at the shimmering surface, he spotted one soggy skeleton swimming frantically down towards him. The corner of his mouth lifted into a little smirk, and when Mako finally managed to reach him, Anarchy tilted his head to the side, arching a brow at her. A silent question it was, he asked her what she was doing down here.
Mako just furrowed her brow bones at him, before aggressively gesturing out towards him. Specifically, the way he had just sunk to the bottom and now stood there so casually, defying some basic water physics laws. Anarchy lifted his hands in a shrug, frowning and shaking his head.
Mako grinned a little, clearly amused by the absurdity of the situation. Then, she pointed to Anthony before pointing back at herself. He figured she was asking him to watch her. After that was established, Mako brought her hands together over her head, before waving them outwards. At the same time she kicked her feet, and these motions together made her swim upwards some. After that, she looked back to Anarchy, like she was wondering whether or not he had understood.
Anarchy furrowed his brows, before nodding twice to confirm he got what she meant. Shrugging to say that this suggestion was worth a shot, Anarchy lifted his hands over his head and mimicked Mako's form, pressing the backs of his hands together. Then, with a level of strength he thought was appropriate, he swung his cupped palms downward.
Boom!
Anarchy's red eyes snapped open wide as he was suddenly rocketing towards the surface of the water. In just a second or two he had propelled himself through the water, and he blasted up back to the fresh air. The splash of him resurfacing was so violent that Max jumped, throwing his hands up to defend himself while the waves pushed him back some from The Anarchist, who casually turned his head to look over towards him. "Hey."
"... Hey?" Max repeated back to Anarchy, arching a brow at him. Then, he slowly turned his head, glancing around the surrounding waters. "... Where's Mako?"
Anarchy paused, his eyes going semi-wide as he thought about the point black shock wave she'd probably been struck by under water, and wherever the current could have taken her. Just as panic appeared in his scarlet orbs and he opened his mouth to talk, a familiar voice reached over the waters. "I'm okay!"
Anarchy and Max both looked out towards the deeper waters, where they could see Mako waving over her head at them. And while Anarchy exhaled a breath of relief, Max didn't look very relaxed. He cupped his hands over his mouth to increase the range of his voice, "Mako! How'd you get all the way out there?!"
"Big wave pushed me-!" As Mako spoke, a similarly big wave crashed into her small body, dragging her under water for a split second before she burst back up to the surface. She shook her head and blinked her sockets, before looking over the water in front of her, then the beach ahead of her. Dots connected in her skull, and she quickly realized she was getting further away from the shore. "Uhh, guys?! I think the tide's got me!"
Chapter 66: The Cooler Beach Episode
Or: The Worthless Metal: Part 1
That was all Max needed to hear. In an instant he was sweeping his arms through the water, swimming as fast as he could towards his sister without a second thought. He shouted over the shifting waves, "Don't worry! We're coming to get ya!"
After that, Max ducked his head into the water to swim faster, taking wide over hand strokes to propel himself over the water's surface. But, when he looked beneath him, his eyes widened and his pupils shrunk in shock at the sight of some long, pitch black... Creature!
His heart about stopped in his chest at the sight of this unnatural thing, and the realization that it was slithering at top speed through the water towards Mako. It was only when Max lifted his head back up to shout a warning to his sister that he was given some relief.
Lifting from the water, Anarchy crouched atop the head of one of his worms, which raced through the lake and towards Mako at top speed. He had hooked his fingers under it's top jaw to keep his grip, and the usually slippery and slimy flesh of his worm had become rough to help him stay on the back of the serpentine creature. Jaw dropping in bewilderment, Max just pointed one hand out to the now distant Anarchist, "And how long has he been able to call on those things?!"
Meanwhile, Anarchy sped through the waters on his worm's back. In the same way that the creature's flesh had become rigid and rough to help Anarchy keep his grip, the teeth that he grabbed onto in its mouth did not cut his hands. They molded around his fingers instead, providing the best grip they could. Anarchy didn't focus on that though, his eyes were set on the floundering skeleton ahead of him.
Mako angrily waved her arms against the powerful waves in an attempt to fight them, but really it was all she could do to keep her head above water. Sure, she could have let herself sink without fear of drowning, but it would be easy to get lost beneath the water's surface, and neither Anarchy nor her brother would see her. Besides, she refused to lose a battle of wills against some dumb water. So Mako flailed her arms and kicked her feet, and she refused to doubt even once that she could swim out of this current.
Anarchy's expression reflected focus more than any worry about Mako's situation or pride in her never say die attitude. It was hard to say whether he wasn't thinking much or purposefully masking his emotions, but either way, in less than a minute he had rushed to Mako's side. His worm raced past her, and he leaned over its side, effortlessly scooping the flailing skeleton up in his arm and pulling her out of the water.
"Huh?!" Mako took a few seconds to stop her limb swinging, and she rubbed her eyes before she opened her sockets, which she'd clenched shut to keep water out of her skull. By the time she'd started to understand what was happening, Anarchy's worm had come to a stop. It coiled like a spring, allowing Anarchy to stand above the water. He held Mako effortlessly in one of his arms, his other reaching back to rest upon this worm's head for support.
"Anthony..?" Mako blinked her wide sockets up at him a few times, hands resting on his shoulders to make sure she wouldn't slip out of his grip. It was so sudden that it jarred her; one second she's being shoved back and forth by waves twice her size and the next she's safe above the water, held like she was weightless in just one of Anarchy's arms. Her head was spinning so much that she asked an admittedly dumb question. "You're, here..?"
"Of course I'm here." Anarchy responded like it was obvious, furrowing his brows some. He didn't understand why Mako was confused, or what significance this moment may have had to her. His wet hair was slicked back, droplets of water still trickling down his bare, scarred chest. "You needed me."
". . ." Mako's sockets widened a little at those words, and Anarchy furrowed his brows some at the pink shade that crept over her cheeks. Her pupils shifted in her eyes, taking on the shapes of little magenta hearts. This confused Anthony more than anything, squinting at this strange new pupil shape and Mako's continued silence. But, before either of them could speak, the eyeless face of Anarchy's worm peaked over his shoulder, casting its sharp toothed grin to Mako. The sight of this creature released her from her trance, making her lean back in Anthony's arm and arch a browbone at the worm's grinning maw. "U-uhh... Who's your friend?"
"Huh? Oh, this is one'a my worms." Anarchy looked over his shoulder at the creature, eyebrows rising like he'd forgot the creature was even there. Then he looked back to Mako, frowning almost apologetically. "He, doesn't have a name though."
"..." Mako furrowed her brows like she was thinking, remaining quiet for another few moments while she examined this beast. Then, squinting inquisitively, she looked back to The Anarchist. "... Can I name him George?"
"Hmm..." Anarchy pursed his lips, glancing to the side for a moment before looking back to her. He mimicked her skeptical squint. "... Yyyes."
"Yayyy!" Mako happily threw her hands up over her head, grin shaping her face. The newly named George didn't stop its (his?) grinning, so maybe it (he?) liked the name. At least, that was Mako's thought process. Anarchy's lips curled upwards some at her enthusiasm; her lack of fear was astounding. A bloodthirsty, disgusting invertebrate loomed over her, and her first thought was what she should name it. She really must've been his counterpart; she was dumb in the exact opposite ways that Anarchy was dumb. Where he fearlessly gave out mayhem and doom, she casually handed out kindness and love.
"Hold on tight." Anarchy instructed, turning his gaze back towards the shore. He brought Mako closer to himself in the single arm he held her in, and her cheek bones tinted red again while she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. George shifted beneath the two of them, pointing his serpentine body back towards land and letting Anarchy crouch atop him in the same manner that he had earlier. Anarchy pointed ahead, "George, get us back to land!"
"Feed me the rock, Soggy!" I called across the waves to one Asriel Dreemurr, who I had in fact been calling Soggy ever since peer pressuring him into going completely underwater. Now his white fur was matted to his body with saltwater, making him look - you guessed it - soggy.
Me and him both just wore a pair of swimming trunks; mine were blue with a red stripe streaking across them while his were a tie-dye rainbow design. My red headband was still on my head, helping keep my soaked brown hair - which was currently slicked back - out of my face. Asriel was having a bit more trouble keeping his fur out of his face, but there was serious comedic value in that.
Though he did look disgruntled about my continued use of the nickname 'Soggy', Asriel did in fact toss the basketball that he'd had under his arm towards me. We stood, half submerged in water, with the same basketball I'd bought on a whim the other day. Speaking of things I had bought on a whim, across from us was a plastic basketball hoop. Strapped to a boulder's top - which Chara had sliced to be smooth - was the hoop, chained in place by my ink. It was a children's toy, not any taller than four feet. But, looming over us on that rock, it made an okay hoop for a game of H.O.R.S.E. Asriel warned while he passed, "If you send it into the deep end again, you're the one who's going to get it."
"Whatever you say, Soggy." I responded with a little grin, which grew when I heard Asriel groan. After I caught the ball that he had begrudgingly thrown my way, I turned on my heel and shot it towards the basket with minimal effort. It was a pretty easy basket I was attempting; this had been a very laid back game. The weather was nice, the water was warm, and we were all feeling relaxed.
I didn't notice until after I launched the ball, but there were two forms slithering beneath the water. To my left three pointed spines lifted from beneath the water, rising from the back of some draconic shape under the surface and racing towards the hoop. I recognized that shape as Monster Kid; the way he swam beneath the water looked beyond cool to me, and I'd been sure to say that as soon as I saw it. It reminded me of Godzilla, and there's nothing uncool about that King of the Monsters.
What rose alarm in me was the shape swimming towards the basket from my right. It wasn't hard to recognize the fin that lifted out of the water as a shark's fin, and seeing it on a direct collision course with Monster Kid made me panic almost instantly. That was a jarring change of emotion - one second I was completely relaxed and the next I was afraid my best friend was going to run face first into a shark in the shallows.
But just as I started to shout something incomprehensible and throw my hand up - a hand which was already forming ink on its finger tips, presumably to yank the two scaly creatures apart before any bites could be exchanged - both Monster Kid and this shark dove out of the waters. MK launched himself in the way of my shot, throwing his wings open to guarantee the illegal guarding of my shot.
And at the same time, Undyne launched up from the water with the same plan. Grinning wide was her sharp toothed maw as she threw her arms out to her sides to block my shot. It didn't look like either Monster Kid or Undyne had seen one another under the waters, or at least that neither of them had understood the other had the same plan that they did. Because as they both dove up to deny my shot, they collided with one another. Shoulder to shoulder, MK and Undyne went from grinning like morons to gasping in shock and pain. Their bodies crashed against one another, my basketball hit them in the face and bounced off them back into Asriel's hands, and they flopped into the water and sunk.
"Ah-!" My breath caught in my throat, ink stopping a few inches off my fingers while my eyes went wide, the left one twitching slightly. I'd went from relaxed, to terrified, to relieved, to amused in the course of about two seconds, and it was so jarring that it made my brain short circuit. I wasn't sure which one of these emotions that had rapidly been thrust upon me I was supposed to feel, so I just stood there, pointing and blinking while my head reset. Asriel did not have this problem though; he burst right into hysterical laughter at the sight of their collision, pointing at them while he laughed.
"Ngaahhhhh!" Undyne shouted furiously as she shot up from the water, holding Monster Kid in a headlock and grinding her teeth in a sharp toothed grin. She was wearing what I recognized as the swimsuit she wears in the end credits of Undertale, actually. A gold colored pair of shorts and bikini top. She shouted at MK while she shook his head around under her arm, "What do you think you're doin', punk?! You screwed up my guard!"
"Yo, me?!" Monster Kid fearlessly challenged, grin growing on his face. He spread out his wings again, shifting them to be beneath the shark woman grappling him and then lifting her up onto him, showcasing how much bigger than her he'd grown to be and how strong he was to effortlessly lift her onto his back. "You screwed up my guard!"
"Fuhuhuhu! So you're a tough guy now?!" Undyne fearlessly clung onto MK, keeping him in a headlock while she gave him a noogie. To the best of her ability at least, while avoiding his spikes. Seeing her out of water, I noticed that she did not only have a fin coming out of her back, but one from each forearm as well. There was also webbing connecting her fingers that had not been there when I'd last seen her on land. I wondered if these features only showed up when she was in water... "You better not think you're stronger than me just because you're tall now!"
Monster Kid didn't respond verbally, instead opting to throw his head back and breathe a stream of fire into the air while he began thrashing around with Undyne stuck to him. This just made her laugh harder, refusing to let go of him. While the two battled, I just stood there, shaking my head right with Asriel at their antics.
I'd learned last night while Kid and I were hanging out that he actually trains with Undyne. Apparently after getting whooped by Anarchy, he wanted to be stronger. Asriel had even taken up some battle training with Asgore, according to MK. This news had surprised me, but my reptilian best buddy had just laughed and shoved me, exclaiming "Well we gotta be able to look after you, don't we?"
This recent memory made me smile, and I silently watched those hyperactive dorks tussle right with Asriel. I was just about to look over to the goat prince and make a comment about how it looked like our game was either canceled or had a new competitor, when the water shifted beneath me. Suddenly, I was being hoisted up and out of the sapphire waves and onto a pair of shoulders, and when I looked down, stunned, I spotted a skull grinning back up at me. "Nyeh heh heh!"
"Papyrus!" I exclaimed, waving my arms some to keep balance on his shoulders. The tall skeleton below me appeared to be wearing his 'Cool dude' outfit, modified with water wings over his arms. Of course I was beyond glad to see him, I hadn't in years. And Papyrus was one of my most important friends, he'd played a pivotal role in me changing my ways. "How'd you know we were at the beach?"
"Frisk's many social media updates, of course!" Papyrus spoke like it was obvious, gesturing with one hand back towards the beach. I glanced back towards the shore, where I could clearly see Frisk posing in front of Chara and the sandcastle they were building, taking picture after picture with their cell phone. They were wearing a simple one piece bathing suit, a solid purple color dotted with light blues. Behind them, Chara wore green swim trunks and a black tank-crop top. The both of them were still dry, because they hadn't gotten in the water yet.
"Once we saw what you were all up to, Undyne, Sans and I thought we should meet you here!" As Papyrus spoke, my eyes drifted a few paces away from Frisk and Chara, where Sans laid on a beach towel in his usual basketball shorts and white T-shirt. His sweatshirt was gone, and his slippers had been replaced by sandals. Sansdals, I would call them if they were to come up in conversation. He held one of those tanning mirrors in his hands, grinning and wearing a pair of sunglasses. "A great surprise for our great friends!"
"Well ya definitely made quite the entrance!" I laughed while I slid off of Papyrus's shoulders, down his back and back into the water. At this point MK and Undyne were now a thrashing, splashing battle that Asriel was cheering on, so it looked like Papyrus and I had a moment to speak one on one. "I'm glad you guys came out, feels like I haven't seen you in forever!"
"Of course you'd be excited to see your friend and personal hero, The Great Papyrus!" Papyrus boasted in a way that was always endearing, grinning and placing a hand on his chest. He posed in a way that made me think, if he'd been wearing his scarf, it would have billowed majestically in the wind. "I'm certain you missed me every day you were away! Such tragedy must've been fantastic fuel for your training!"
"Heh, somethin' like that." I snickered a little at Papyrus's presumptions. He wasn't completely off base; I did miss him and everyone else, and the memory of my friends did push me to work harder. This home I had here was the reason I had to keep fighting, and all the people here were like my family in one way or another. Or, at least I thought that, until Papyrus reminded me of somebody.
"I tried to get Gaster to come too, but..." Papyrus smile dimmed on his face, and he looked to the side while a nervous sweat drop appeared on his skull. My expression immediately soured when I heard that name, an instant flow of unpleasant memories threatened my good mood. Papyrus scratched at his cheek bone awkwardly, "He, seemed pretty certain that you would not want to see him. I tried to assure him otherwise, as it has been over two years, but..."
"... No, it's... It's a good thing he didn't come." I spoke up, catching Papyrus's attention. Now frowning, I glanced to the side. I remembered the last time I'd seen Gaster; it was when I chewed him out in his lab, a few weeks before I first left for Future's timeline. I had shouted at him at the top of my lungs, almost squished him like the bug he was with the force of my soul. I told him we were done and that I never wanted to see him or hear from him again. That was over two years ago now, and I hadn't seen or heard from him since. "I don't wanna see him."
"Cter, it's been years..." Papyrus frowned, his head sinking some at this disappointing revelation. I'm sure he hated seeing his friends at odds, but this wasn't just some petty dispute to me. Gaster had played with my life and my friends lives, he had used me. That wasn't just gonna go away over time.
"You don't get it, Papyrus." My eyes darted back up to The Great One, and a red flare flickered in their green for only a moment. My frown dug deeper into my face, "Do you even know what he did to me? To everyone? I could have been killed! Chara, Monster Kid, Frisk, Asriel, we all could have been killed!"
"Angel." Papyrus spoke softly then, placing a hand on my shoulder. His kind and caring tone dulled my anger, made me feel almost a little ashamed for snapping at him. I glanced to the side while he spoke. "I know what Gaster did, and I do not expect you to forgive him. In fact, since this news came out, there have been several people who have expressed feelings similarly... Angry."
"Undyne did not take the news particularly well, nyeh heh..." Papyrus laughed almost nervously at what I had to guess was an unpleasant memory. I had never thought about it, but now that Papyrus mentioned it, I was certain my friends must have been furious with the doctor, too. "Toriel was very mad about it, too... It took him years to gain any kind of forgiveness. He was, sort of like an outcast for awhile..."
"... I don't care." I spoke harshly, eyes narrowing up at Papyrus. My jaw tightened with anger that I hadn't felt in quite some time, and my hands curled into fists. The cracks coating my left arm burned, and that familiar sensation made me wince some. "He made his bed, now he can lie in it."
"Far as I'm concerned, he's lucky I didn't push to get him exiled..." I mumbled irritably, my eyes darting to the side. Those spiteful words felt admittedly gross leaving my mouth though.
"You don't mean that." Papyrus pointed out with the shake of his head, frowning with concern. My expression softened up some, but I did not look back up at him just yet.
"... Yeah, that's true. I would never do something like that." My frown grew just a little less bitter, and my angry eyes lightened up. I looked back to Papyrus, "But, c'mon Papyrus, he really friggin' hurt me! How am I supposed to speak to him without screaming at him again? And why should I even talk to him? I don't have anything to say to that dirtbag!"
"It sounds to me like you have a whole bunch of things to say to him." Papyrus rose his browbones knowingly, and I rolled my eyes, suppressing a groan. He smiled a little at that, probably because he knew I knew he was right. He kept his hand on my shoulder, "You don't have to forgive him. In fact, I do not even know if you should!"
"But, I do believe that you both have many things to say to one another, and that until you do, you will both just be holding in anger." Papyrus pulled his hand from my shoulder, smiling and pointing straight up like he was having a great idea. "I believe the two of you should have a calm conversation in a safe place, with minimal explosions!"
"..." I sighed, shoulders sinking while I glanced out to the ocean. To be honest, I was personally hoping I would not see Gaster at all on this trip. I was hoping he wouldn't come up at all. But, I couldn't deny the truth in Papyrus's words. There were things him and I needed to say to each other. "I'll... I'll think about it, Papyrus."
"Great!" Papyrus exclaimed, before suddenly reaching out and grabbing me. Before I had time to object, he had pulled me back onto his shoulders. He spun right back around towards the thrashing mess that was Monster Kid and Undyne, and he shouted across the water, "Chicken fight!"
That got both of those scaly dorks' attention. As if it was on command, their thrashing stopped, and Undyne rose from the water on Monster Kid's shoulders. She pointed at Papyrus and I like we were some great common enemy her and MK shared, and the both of them grinned with a mouthful of sharp teeth. They repeated Papyrus's words in unison, "Chicken fight!"
"Chicken fight?!" Asriel repeated, taking a few skeptical steps back while he watched Undyne and I lumber towards one another on our respective monster pals. The goat prince was only able to take a few steps back before he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders, and he gasped and stumbled, nearly being shoved face first into the water as Frisk yanked themself up onto his shoulders. "Agh-! What the-?!"
"Chicken fight!" Frisk exclaimed, one hand wrapping around one of Asriel's horns while the other pointed out towards the beginning battle. They pulled on his head, leading him towards the battle of the ages, flailing and stumbling all the way.
"Hey-! I didn't agree to this!" Asriel shouted out frantically while Frisk steered him by the horns, but the human's response was just loud, maniacal laughter.
Chara stood on the shore, arms crossed over their chest while they watched their friends clash in weird, goofy looking grappling. Cter, Frisk, and Undyne all trying to shove each other around while simultaneously trying to keep their balance on someone's shoulders.
Watching those six laugh and shove and be idiots, Chara almost felt a little left out. But, then thinking about their competitive nature, they thought it might be better that they weren't involved. The best partner they could have in this battle would be Angel, and that might have rigged the game some, considering he and they were the two strongest people in the group.
It, also meant, considering how much taller he was than them, that Chara would have to sit on Cter's shoulders. Imagining that would probably lead them down a whole train of thought that they didn't want to ponder right now, so instead they just stood on the shore and watched. They even smiled some, seeing the way Cter laughed. he looked carefree in this moment, at peace and enjoying himself. That was good, Chara thought, he was usually troubled in one way or another.
They had been admittedly worried that Cter's negative thinking would get the better of him on this vacation, but so far he seemed to be loving his time back. That was good; nobody knew better than Chara how much Cter deserved a break. But, at that thought, Chara felt a small spike of anxiety. They glanced absentmindedly to the side, and thought to themself. I hope this dumb confession plan doesn't screw up his vacation...
For a brief moment they thought about backing out. Putting off their confession even longer, waiting until this vacation had passed so that Angel could enjoy himself. But, then they shook their head and scolded themself. This was just their anxiety trying to make them put this off, there would be no better time than the wedding. They'd never think up another plan, they would just keep putting it off until the end of time. Besides, Frisk wouldn't let them bale on this plan even if they wanted to. They had to go through with this thing now, they'd already ordered the stupid dress...
"They look like they're havin' fun." A familiar voice shook Chara from their contemplation, and they welcomed it. They hardly wanted to think about the near future and just how brave they'd have to be in a little over a week, so instead Chara glanced over to see Sans standing beside them. The short skeleton had his hands in his shorts' pockets, staring out towards the ocean with that permanent grin. His white dot pupils darted up to them, "Long time no see."
"Hey, Sans." Chara greeted with a small smirk, uncrossing their arms to wave down at him. Another person that was a little weird to be friends with nowadays; once upon a time this goofy skeleton had been Chara's nemesis. But, Sans was a lot more easy going than Frisk had been. From the moment Cter spared Chara, Sans hadn't objected at all. He'd never had any doubts, or at least he'd never voiced any. There had been a silent acknowledgement that the two of them were cool years ago, and Chara appreciated the lack of complexity there was in their friendship. Sans just wasn't a guy who held grudges. "... You're not about to try to hop up onto my shoulders, are you?"
"Heh, you n' me teamin' up?" Sans arched a brow bone up at them, turning his head to face them. Then, his grin widened a little, and his eyes darted to the side with his punchline. "What is this, Underverse?"
"... Well, you're definitely references something." Chara said after a moment of confused squinting. After deciding they had no idea what he was talking about though, Chara rolled their eyes and looked back out to their friends in the water. "I've got no idea what, though."
"Cter woulda got the joke." Sans assured, turning his grin out towards the ocean. More specifically, The Angel on his brother's shoulders, who was currently yelping fearfully while Undyne nearly shoved him right off Papyrus. "To answer your question, I'm more of a guy who gambles on chicken fights than I am a participant in the chicken fighting."
"Oh yeah?" Chara scoffed with some amusement, looking back to Sans from the corner of their eye. "And who've you got in this particular fight?"
"Can't bet against my bro." Sans answered with ease, winking an eye shut while he looked back up at Chara. But, just after looking to them, his attention was drawn back to the fight. It appeared that Frisk had fallen backwards, but due to their grip on Asriel's horns, they just dragged him underwater with them. "Whaddabout you?"
"My brother's actually pretty easy to bet against." Chara stated, chuckling some at the sight of Asriel exploding back up from the water. The goat prince gasped for air, shaking his upper body rapidly. Whether this was to get some water off his fur or an attempt at throwing Frisk off his shoulders, Chara wasn't sure. Either way it didn't work, he was still soaking wet and Frisk was still clinging onto his head. "And Monster Kid doesn't have any arms to help keep Undyne on his shoulders, so yeah, I think Angel and Papyrus are a pretty safe bet."
"Heh. Dang, guess I won't be able to con ya outta any G." Sans winked an eye shut, continuing to watch the fumbling and bumbling in the water for another few moments. Then, his eyes glossed down to the skillfully crafted towers of the sand castle Chara had sculpted on the beach. "Ay, that's pretty good. You do requests?"
"What do you have in mind?" Chara glanced over to Sans with a curious raise of their brow.
"I have a really dumb joke that only me n' Cter are gonna understand, but I need you to bury me under a sand sculpture for it." Sans turned his grin over towards Chara, pupils glowing in his skull. "You game?"
"Hmm..." Chara took a thoughtful hold of their chin, rolling their eyes around in their head while they contemplated. Then, they shrugged, looking back to Sans. "Eh, sure. I'm not doing anything else."
After who knows how long of shoving one another, splashing, plummeting into water and climbing back up shoulders, we all lost track of who had what points and what the exact rules of our game were. After that, we fought for awhile longer, until enough of us were tired and cold enough to wanna wander back up onto land.
"Well that was fun!" Frisk exclaimed while they pushed hair back out of their face. They turned their bright grin towards Asriel, who was slouched forward and panting, soggy fur matted down all over his body.
"Never again." Was Asriel's only response, eyes darting over to shoot Frisk a glare. This sour glare just made Frisk cackle, though.
"Don't worry Asriel." I reached over, patting him on the shoulder to reassure him. "Next time, you get to be on their shoulders."
"And you can pull my hair as hard as ya want!" Frisk assured with the snap of their fingers, smirking confidently and winking an eye shut at Asriel.
"Stop it!" He snapped at them, succeeding in making them laugh even harder. Monster Kid and I chuckled some too, while Undyne shook her head and Papyrus appeared confused.
"Yo, guys! Look at that!" MK piped up suddenly, drawing everyone's attention away from Frisk and to where he was pointing with the talon of his left wing. We all looked ahead to see what appeared to be a massive sand sculpture, it looked like a whale. With sea shells as its eyes and a few bones giving it a cartoony smile, the sand whale was built right on top of Sans, who shrugged as he looked over to us.
"Hey, guys." The comedian waved to us, getting our attention from the fantastically crafted sculpture. Then, he winked an eye shut, shrugging again. "It's me, sand underwhale."
". . ." There was a heavily confused silence following that line. Monster Kid, Asriel, Frisk, Papyrus, and Undyne all exchanged glances while they tried to figure out that punchline. Not me, though. I just stared in awe at this sight, more and more joy creeping into my expression until finally, all the dots connected in my brain, I remembered a thousand and one brainless memes that I hadn't seen since my time back in my reality, and I burst into hysterical laughter.
That just made everyone more confused. Chara, who was just as bewildered, stepped out from around the whale I'd later learn they had put together. They crossed their arms, jaw slightly ajar while they shook their head, like they couldn't believe I had actually understood and thought that Sans' joke was funny.
"Ha! Haha! Hah..!" I pointed out towards Sans, not yet hearing just how quiet everyone else was. My cackling began slowing, gradually. "Sand! Underwhale..! Like, haha, like Sans, Undertale..! Ha... Haha..."
"Ahhh... Good times." I wiped a tear out of my eye, still giggling a little when I looked around to see if anyone else had gotten a kick out of that. When I spotted their confused and incredulous stares, I frowned some. "Wha? C'mon, sand underwhale! Nobody got that?"
"... Alright, we're done." Asriel spoke up, shaking his head and walking by me. I threw my hands up in disbelief while everyone else walked after him. "No more beach episode."
"Aw, c'mon guys! Don't be like that!" Chara chimed in while our mass of friends walked by them, looking similarly half upset half amused by their departure. "It wasn't that bad!"
"This is a fantastically crafted sculpture!" Papyrus complimented while he walked past Chara's creation and off the beach with everyone else. He looked over his shoulder, shaking his head at the three of us. "But I cannot reward this behavior!"
"Yup, beach episode over." Frisk agreed, nodding their head as they got further away. "You guys killed it."
"I'm unappreciated in my time." Sans grinned a little wider, shutting his eyes and relaxing beneath his sand whale. Meanwhile, Frisk and the rest of our monster friends made their way off the beach and out of ear shot.
"Fuck do they mean, no more beach episode?" I questioned while I walked up beside Sans and Chara. I glanced over at the latter, crossing my arms over my chest while they shrugged, like they couldn't believe this either. "What could possibly be more important than our beach episode?"
Boots clunking on the metal floors of her ship, Predator stomped down the halls. She was on edge; today was the day. A full week of healing, plotting, pacing, waiting. Now was the day that her pirates would rain down upon the ruins of Jevil's Circus, and she had to make sure they were ready for that.
She passed by the kitchen, and glanced briefly inside to spot the kitchen crew in full. Melanie smiled at the counter where she sat, swinging her feet on her bar stool while she spoke with Swap!Muffet. Behind her, Fell!Grillby swept the floor absentmindedly. He had recovered from his injuries about two days after their battle for the Broken Spear. His molten core had resealed, and he had emerged from his healing pod as good as new. Melanie, who'd healed her own injuries much easier with a healing item, was beyond relieved. So was Muffet.
Clover's leg was healed by Ralsei's magic, GB!Sans had awoken from the long nap he usually takes after his transformation, Susie's few cuts and gashes had been sealed by Melanie's KINDNESS. Yes, all the pirates had made a full recovery. Or, almost everyone, Predator would correct with a deep frown engraved in her face.
Making her way past the kitchen, Lexi made her way down another hallway towards two large doors. Imposing as the doors were, they were made of something light, and did not have handles. It was likely that they were purely for shoving open, one way or another. That was good, as these were the doors to the gym. And after a workout, herself and her crewmates were expected to not be able to feel their arms. If the doors were heavy or if nobs were involved, a pirate might get trapped in the gym until their body began cooperating again. So instead the doors were barely doors at all, just plastic flaps that open both ways.
She shoved those doors open and stepped onto the padded floor of the weight room. Straight ahead of her Susie sat at the foot of a bench, her back to the doors Predator had just entered through. Predator frowned some more at the sight of her, her brows furrowing with worry while she watched the purple dino curl a heavy dumbbell in one hand.
"... Hey, Susie." Lexi greeted a little less than giddily as she approached her monster comrade. Susie didn't turn around to look at her, instead focusing on the weight she was curling. "How're ya holdin' up?"
"I'm fine." Susie was quick to answer, before her maw curled in the beginning signs of a snarl. Her long hair shadowed her eyes, and she felt it necessary to add another sentence. "Excited to chop Gatherer's fuckin' head off today."
"You n' me both." Predator smirked a little, relieved by Susie's fury. It was good to see her acting like herself, but after a moment or two of silence, Predator knew she had to ask another question. "... How's Kris?"
Susie didn't speak for a moment. Her eye appearing out from the shadow of her hair, she glanced down to read from the black box that had appeared in her line of vision. She watched it fill with white letters,
*Monster bodies are weird.
"Yeah well don't get comfortable!" Susie snapped at her text box, cheeks turning a bright pink. This made Predator start to chuckle; hearing only Susie's end of the conversations she had with Kris had been one of the funnier parts about Kris's predicament. "After we thrash Gatherer, we're gonna find a way to fix this, and then I'm kickin' you to the curb!"
*lmao.
Susie spoke like this whole soul absorbing thing hadn't been her idea in the first place. After the horrible injuries Gatherer and his goons had inflicted upon Kris, their body had died in Susie's arms. Panicking and hysterical, Susie had been so afraid that she was going to lose her best friend that she'd done all she could to assure Kris didn't die. Before anyone could stop her, she'd absorbed Kris's soul into her own to preserve their life.
Predator didn't know if she objected to that or not. She didn't know if they would have been able to revive Kris's body, if there was a better way than what Susie had done. But, if the options were those two sharing a body or Kris being dead, she certainly would pick the former. The dilemma was not how she might feel about it, but how the two of them might've felt about being in the same body.
Kris, like always, was pretty laid back about the situation. If they had any real feelings on the topic, Predator guessed they'd only shared them with Susie in private. And that was fine, Lexi wouldn't pry. It seemed like a pretty personal problem for the two of them to sort out, all she could do was assure them that they would at some point find a way to separate the two of them if they so desired.
Susie spoke like she hated every second of it. She spoke like she didn't know it was her idea, or like she simply had to do it. And, maybe she did. After Disbelief!Papyrus had died, Predator understood that she would do anything to keep from losing another friend. After all, Papyrus had not just been another crewmate to the Delta Heroes. In fact, once upon a time, he had lead the three of them through the multiverse as a band of heroes, before the four of them joined up with Predator. But that was another story for another day.
Of course Kris, Ralsei, and Susie had taken Disbelief's death the hardest out of the crew, but really it had broken everyone's heart. Some days it felt like he was the glue that held them all together. But, he was gone now, and they were all closer than ever. Literally, in the case of Kris and Susie. So Predator understood why Susie did what she did; she thought she might have done the same thing in her position. She didn't want to lose any more friends, either.
Whatever the case, Susie was technically a demi-god now, and Predator figured she had to be excited to flex that power in Gatherer's face at the circus. She grinned some at the sight of those two so lively, "Glad to see you two are pumped! We're gonna need you to knock Gatherer's teeth down his throat tonight!"
"Damn right!" Susie assured, grinning over her shoulder to Predator. Her right hand snapped up in a way that looked involuntary, and it gave a thumbs up that seemed distinctly Kris-like. After a moment's pause, Susie noticed this, and she growled. "Hey! Stop movin' my body, creep!"
*It's my body now, too.
"Your body?!" Susie snapped, grabbing her own right arm in her left and shaking it like she was throttling someone. "Whose name is on the mortgage?!"
*The what?
"Shut up I'm angry!" Susie snarled, only growing more aggravated at the "*Ha." that appeared in her text box. Predator just threw up her hands, chuckling some while she slowly backpedaled away from the arguing roommates.
Predator spent the trip pacing her ship, checking in on whatever crew members she bumped into along the way. It'd been a shitty, long, anxious week. All she could hope was that this Worthless Metal would be the last item Nightmare would ask for, or at least that he wouldn't bother making her wait around for a week again after she got the stupid thing.
But, while she had no way of knowing Nightmare's plans, with CORE!Alphys at her side, she knew full well what Xander was up to. Or, at least, she should have. Unfortunately, that son of a wealthy bitch must've been on to her. He never discussed any plans, at least not in great detail. There had been one meeting in his inner circle, they had gathered in one of Xander's boardrooms, and for forty five seconds he had blasted music at full volume and spoke with his hand over his mouth. No one else appeared to say a word, and when Gatherer must've finished speaking, he shut off the music, and everyone silently left the room.
So, that'd pissed Predator off. He'd accounted for Alphys' vision and hidden his plan from her and her pirates. The only lead she had was how short the meeting was. His plan must not've been supremely complex. Regardless, Predator's plan had to be even more simple: Prepare for anything. But that was fine. Her quick thinking and chaotic ability to maneuver through problems as they happen is what had put her on an even playing field with Gatherer's way of planning four steps ahead. She might not have been able to think up more convoluted plans than he could, but she could react perfectly to any convoluted plan he threw her way. Today, she would have to hope to beat him in the moment.
"Attention all crewmates, attention all crewmates. We are approaching the circus, tra la la~"
That lifted the heads of most everyone sitting in the hangar. Clover reached up, pushing up the rim of his hat to show his golden eye while he glanced between the faces of his only friends. It was tense in the hangar, it always was. Everyone here understood that they might not return to the ship again after they leave it. Missions that went head to head against The Gatherer were considered suicide missions, almost always. For all they knew, they'd be meeting with the full force of his army when they landed at the circus.
They had written up wills, each of them. They always did before any operation that was considered a suicide mission. It was a rule that was made after the passing of Disbelief Papyrus, and the bitter feeling that came with never knowing for certain how he truly felt about all of them. So, they each wrote up a letter of final thoughts and wishes, and dropped it into a box. Whoever lived had their note incinerated, and whenever there was next a suicide mission they would have to write up a new one. If anyone died, the note would be given to whomever seemed the most special to that person first, and would eventually circulate through the ship. It was grim, and it was tense, and it was never a pleasant experience. But not every experience is supposed to be pleasant. Sometimes being alive is about the ache.
"... Everybody ready?" Grillby was the one who finally spoke up. It was fitting, as he was one of the ones who nearly died on their last mission, that he was the least tense for this one. The crackling fires of his eyes glossed from friend to friend, checking on everyone's nerve.
"Ready as I reckon I'll ever be." Clover smirked just a little anxiously over at Grillby, and a few people scoffed or chuckled in agreement to his response. They all sat on the benches lining the walls of the hangar, and not one of them looked comfortable until people started speaking.
"I'm gonna kill Gatherer so hard today." Susie assured with a sharp toothed grin. A textbox appeared in her line of vision, and she rolled her eyes, even though her smile did not diminish. "I mean, we're gonna kill Gatherer so hard today."
"There's no team I'd rather fight beside." Ralsei assured with a soft smile, shrinking a little timidly beneath his hat at all the caring smiles his words earned him.
"You said it!" Melanie agreed with her brightest smile. As much as it lightened the room, it also forced a few people to reckon with how heart broken they'd be if they lost her. "You guys are the best friends a gal could ask for!"
The friendly talks kept going. Jokes were made, compliments were given. But Predator didn't talk. For once, she kept to herself. folded her hands between her knees, leaned forward and rested her elbows on her thighs. She frowned at the floor, and thought briefly back to the note she'd left in the box. It said what all the notes she'd ever written for this purpose said.
"I don't want to die."
Simple, and not a very good final statement for her closest friends to read. It didn't showcase any of her personality, or any of her thoughts. Or, maybe it showed all of them, in a weird and raw sorta way. Either way, it would be a terrible thing for them to have to read, if she ever were to get killed out there. She almost felt guilty whenever she left those notes in the box, because the last testament note had been her idea in the first place. But, if leaving them with just that five word note would be a terrible crime, then it served as motivation. She couldn't die out there, if something like that was all the pirates would have left of Lexi The Predator.
"Hangar opening, tra la la~"
Lexi lifted her head and narrowed her eyes as the strange dim lighting of the void began to filter into the ship, and sound roared over their conversations in the form of whipping winds and the mechanical screech of the ten ton door folding open. The Predator stood fearlessly from her seat, and she opened her hand out to her side. Instantly her scythe appeared in her grasp, and frost crackled up its handle and to its blade the moment her fingers gripped it.
As she walked through the middle of the hangar, her crewmates stood from her left and her right in the order that she walked by them. First, Clover stood at her right and Melanie at her left. Then, after them, Muffet and Grillby. Sans and Ralsei, and then finally, Susie and Kris in one body. They all lined behind The Predator as she marched, all the way to the violent winds of the wide open hangar door.
Once there, The Predator stamped her foot, and ice fired down from her ship in three slide-like waves. It raced at high speeds down to the ground, each slide twisting and twirling some before inevitably connecting to the charred dirt below. With a simple order, Lexi jumped onto the middle slide. "Move in!"
Eagerly her pirates followed, each of them taking either the left or right slide depending on what line they had been in. Honestly, it was a surprising showcase of order, choreography, and discipline. Not one of them took the middle slide, other than Predator. They all jumped on and skidded down on their heels, moving their bodies and keeping their balance on the ice while they picked up speed in a way that showed they'd all clearly done this before. It was a form reminiscent of a skateboarder grinding down a rail, minus the board.
Predator hit the dirt of the abandoned stage and skidded forward a few more paces on her heels, bending her knees some and eventually sliding to a stop. After her, her teammates landed in pairs. Most of them skidded as she had, and the moment they came to a stop, they would fan out around their boss. Once everyone had landed, they'd formed a perfect circle around The Predator, and there was a pair of eyes watching every direction.
What a strange monument to history this circus was. In shambles, the tent had long since collapsed over a lot of the stands, and the rotted remains of dead worms littered both the stands and the arena. A massive scorpion pincer had grown greyish and cracked, looking more like a molted shell than the remains of a dead arachnid. But, regardless of its crumbling state, the pincer still reached high into the sky from the dirt that it had shot out of, and Lexi guessed it would still take quite a hit to bring the thing down.
The sands were burned and blood stained. She hadn't really taken it in when she'd been here all those years ago, as she'd been focused on self preservation, but a lot of important people had died a gruesome death in this place. This was where Anarchy had truly made his mark, and crowned himself the one thing that everyone in this multiverse should be afraid of him. This was where he'd truly earned the name Chaos Incarnate.
"Keep an eye out! If Gatherer got here before us, he probably set traps. And if he gets here after us, he's gonna ambush us." Predator ordered while her circle widened skeptically, every pirate watching another's back. Lexi's own aquamarine orbs darted to and fro, examining the dimly lit and abandoned arena in search of any sign of Xander or any Worthless Metal. "Be ready for anything, and don't let your guard down for a second!"
"Oh come now, Lexi! Do you really think I'm that sneaky?" An unfortunately familiar voice chimed in, and the pirates all winced when the long burnt out torches strewn about all suddenly ignited, illuminating the dark circus in orange and red lights. Predator growled, looking straight across the length of the arena and spotting Xander The Gatherer. Standing completely alone, like any other mortal man, a few dozen yards away from the pirates. "You should know I prefer a grand entrance over a well laid trap!"
"I know you prefer both at once, actually!" Predator shouted back, quickly stomping forward and to the head of her group. She stepped past Clover and Melanie and out of her protective circle, jaw tightening. "So where's the trap, asswipe?"
"... Sigh." Gatherer's shoulders sunk while he sighed, and he rolled his eyes. Then, he unfolded his hands from behind his back, lifting one hand up over his head and waving it in a circular 'move along' motion. "Always in such a hurry. You never let me have my fun anymore."
On the command of this hand motion, a red flash struck the earth. It was at the center of the arena, between The Gatherer and The Predator. And it struck the sands with such force that it sent a shock wave exploding out around its point of impact, kicking up the sands of the circus and creating a brutal cloud of dust, which swept out across the circus and engulfed the pirates.
"You see, after the casualties sustained in our last battle, I decided I was wasting too much manpower on you. I was risking lives unnecessarily." Gatherer's voice reached through the smoke that Lexi winced in. Behind her, Clover's golden eye burned brightly, peering through the shifting dust in search of potential danger. "I've played around with you too much, Lexi. But now it's finally time to lay down my trump card and put you - as well as your filthy space dogs - down."
As each pirate winced and coughed in the smog, another blast of wind exploded by. Red gusts that sent that cloud blasting out of sight and that originated from the cloud's epicenter, the winds whipped by at speeds high enough to force Predator to wince and Melanie to throw a hand up to protect her eyes. Gatherer's voice shouted out once more, "Lexi The Predator!"
"What now?!" Predator shouted back irritably, stomping forward in the hot winds and challenging them with her chilled aura. Her cold disrupted the heat, forcing it to swirl and dispel instead of continuing to blast her and her comrades in the face. Finally able to see clearly, Predator watched Gatherer walk forward and stand just behind a looming figure. One that, when shrouded in that fiery red aura, looked eerily familiar.
"I want you to meet one of the only beings in this multiverse with a Triple S Danger Rating! My personal associate and secret weapon," As Gatherer spoke, he slapped his hand onto their back. They wore a blue and red striped hoodie that Predator recognized, its sleeves rolled up to the elbow. Over their chest, a gold, heart shaped locket hung. And they lifted their head, flashing a sinister sneer while scarlet murder flamed to life in both their left and right eye. "Character!"
"Sup?" Character asked casually, grin only growing on their face as they held their left hand out to their side. A machete manifested in their grip, before they pointed it out towards The Predator. Ink dripped down its blade.
"Ah fuck, that's why he keeps a Hacker and a Chara around." Predator mumbled, face sinking in a frown while her shoulders sunk. But then, instantly she popped back up, snarling and tightening her grip on her scythe. "Fight me like a man, Xander!"
"No thanks!" Gatherer called back without any hesitation, before patting the twisted fusion twice on the back. "Don't waste too much time playing with them. You two are to kill whoever you can."
"So all of 'em." Character took a menacing step forward, red steam rising from their flesh while their eyes widened. Blackness flooded the whites of their eyes, making the burning red of their irises pop even more. "Perfect."
"Damn it!" Predator shouted, before suddenly and thoughtlessly bursting off into a sprint. Her eyes never unfocused from Gatherer, never paying any mind to the apparently SSS Dangerous fusion that stood between her and her foe. She rushed at top speed, frost remaining on the sand after her every step. "Everyone, your objective is to handle this stupid fusion! Gatherer's mine!"
In an instant the earth exploded apart beneath Character's feet, and they rapidly closed the distance between themself and Predator. Suddenly they were right in front of her, yanking back one steaming fist to blast a punch into her nose. Their doubled voice shouted out, "Not so fast!"
Shit-! Predator thought, eyes going wide as she lifted her arms up. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as she crossed her arms in front of her face to block the oncoming haymaker, shock reflecting in Lexi's expression. They're fast!
But, before Character's fist could connect with Lexi's guard, their weight shifted unnaturally. Those scarlet eyes widened with shock and confusion as Character's legs lifted out from under them, gravity shifting before they were launched to the right and away from Predator, who was bewildered by the sight of them being shitwhipped so suddenly.
Predator turned her heels and skidded across the sands, shifting to watch Character launch through the air and towards an orange arrow that had appeared over the arena floor. The moment they were shot over this arrow, they accelerated even faster to the right, and Predator guessed it had been one of those magic vectors to launch the fusion in the first place. They hit another arrow and blasted even faster, hitting just one more vector right in front of the wall of the stands and being sent exploding into the wood and rusted metal with a shrieking choir of snapping wood and crunching metal. "What in the-?!"
Another sudden appearance came when a man Lexi did not immediately recognize jumped down between her and the wall Character had smashed into. His back was to her, and he was tall. He wore blue jeans and a black tank top that came up around his neck like a turtleneck, and upon his head of black hair was a golden crown. He threw his muscular arms out to his sides, one holding an ink black spear and the other braced at the wrist by a circle of multicolored pens. he looked quickly over his shoulder to her, caught her gaze in his stern green eyes, and spoke. "Predator! Kick Gatherer's ass and get the metal! I'll help hold this asshole off!"
"Uhh..." Predator had to blink away her surprise at this rapid changing of events, shaking her head some while she stood up straight. She let her scythe drop absentmindedly to her side for a brief moment, "Yeah, sure, whatever you say King DILF."
"You can call me Future." The king assured her, scoffing with a little amusement at her words. He hadn't seen a Lexi face to face in almost two decades, and still her sense of humor never failed to make him chuckle, even in the face of creeping doom. But, there wasn't time to think about that. He had an old score to settle.
"Ha! Yeah, okay your DILFness." Predator laughed and nodded, before turning her ice cold gaze towards The Gatherer, who was preoccupied climbing the scorpion pincer that protruded from the dirt. Her madwoman grin split her face, and she gave one more line before sprinting off after Gatherer. "And you can call me any time."
Future rolled his eyes, smiling just a little at Predator's pick up line as she ran off. He was glad at least one of them was in the mood to be making jokes, but his attention was quickly drawn back to the creaking and thumping in the stands. He watched as one wretched fusion sauntered from the darkness of the destroyed under-stands, placing one steaming hand on the ring of the hole their body had made in the wood. Their glare settled on Future, "You must have some real low swingin' balls, gramps."
"Just a part'a gettin' older." Future answered with a slight smirk, his confidence in this situation growing some as Melanie jumped down to his right and Susie to his left. Melanie gripped her frying pan like a baseball bat, green electricity crackling in her eyes. Meanwhile, Susie pointed the vicious curve of her ax at Character, her free hand pushing her bangs back out of her face and revealing the black lines that now detailed her face. Two curling up over her cheeks from under her chin and two running down from her scarlet right and left eyes respectively. And as she grinned, red steam rose from her right eye.
"You don't really fit in with Predator's group..." Character mumbled, crimson eyes glossing from Future to Melanie and Susie at his sides, to Ralsei, Sans, Grillby, and Muffet forming a wider half circle around them. The cowboy had disappeared, probably found a place to snipe from... Character looked back to Future, and they squinted at him thoughtfully for another few seconds, before their eyes snapped open wide, and a smile curled their features wickedly again. "Hey, wait! We know you!"
"Yeah, you're that king Angel from a few years back! You've beefed up so much, we almost didn't recognize ya!" Character laughed like they were reuniting with an old friend, placing their hands on their hips and shaking their head. But, then, spikes of ink rose from the shadowy hole that they'd just climbed out of, and their jaw tightened into a snarl. "Yeah, we remember you! And we really don't like you!"
"It's been a busy few years for everybody." Future explained bitterly, lifting his spear and pointing it out towards the wretched fusion before him. His own teeth clenched, wrath seeping into his usually tired expression while he spoke. "And I don't give a damn how you feel about me."
The shoulders of Future's shirt tore open suddenly, and each of the pirates reeled in some surprise as they watched wings of ink spread wide behind the king. A gust of DETERMINED winds exploded out around him, kicking up sands and causing an updraft. A scarlet fire ignited over his left eye, and his knuckles went white around his spear.
"You killed my Chara."
Please Favorite, Follow, and Review.
XWolf26, out