Could it be true? Toriel had been lying to me? What was I supposed to do? If Flowey was right, then I had to get out of this place as fast as possible
...But why was Flowey leading me in the direction of... Toriel's house?
"Where's the exit?" I asked my flowery friend.
"Well, the devious caretaker decided to put her house just above the exit." He answered with a nod towards Toriel's house as we hunkered down in the leaves surrounding the coal-black tree.
"What do you mean?"
"The exit out of the Ruins… is in her basement"
"What."
"I know, I know. Boy is she crazy, I've been here quite a while. And I've heard so many rumors about how much she doesn't like other monsters being close to her prey. Like she doesn't want them to find out just how nice most monsters are. So that she has you all to herself."
"But why?" Why would Toriel want to kill me? She was a nice person… right?
"Heck if I know, maybe her kids were killed by a human? She does seem like the motherly kind doesn't she? And everyone knows what lengths a mother would go through for their children."
"But, don't worry! Your best friend Flowey is here to help. I'll get you through and out of her house in a jiffy." He declared with a Cheshire grin.
"I'll pop in and tell you when she isn't paying attention, then you can sneak in and make your grand escape. Just think of it as a little game!"
"What if she catches me?"
"Well, that would be a Game Over then, wouldn't it. So… try your best!" Flowey said, a radiant grin plastered on his face.
—
This was so much fun! The human believed everything he told them. Like dangling a treat in front of a dog, she would roll over as long as he told her to. Such a nice little toy. How kind of her to make his life so interesting.
Popping into Toriel's house, he heard her humming from the kitchen. Well, wasn't that convenient. She was always so self-absorbed when she was cooking and the banging of pots and pans would drown out whatever sounds the clumsy human could possibly make.
Well, no point in wasting time, there were so many adventures to be had after all.
—
I appreciated the strong front that Flowey put up for me… death was no laughing matter, but his constant grin made me feel like everything would be alright.
As I waited for Flowey to reappear I rested my back on the tough bark of the stocky tree. With its roots that broke into the ground regardless of the stone that blocked it. The grain of the wood looked like wrinkles where the bark had been worn away, creases that betrayed the effects of time on the inky tree… What was I supposed to do?
Ms. Toriel seemed so nice, but Flowey was right. Some things just didn't add up. Sure she made a killer pie, heh… but my life was probably more important than being able to eat more pies.
What would the rest of the Underground be like? More new monsters? More new friends? Puzzles? I wasn't quite sure what to expect—
"Wow, you're thinking really hard aren't you." Oh, Flowey was back! "Anything you want to share?"
"Yeah… has anyone ever told you that you have really strong roots?"
"Uhh… no?"
"Well, I just wanted to tell you that I was really impressed with how you can move around by going through the ground," I admitted, "You can just pop up here and there, it must be quite fun surprising people!"
"You betcha! I do quite like surprising people, it's always fun to see how they react." He smirked.
"But we really need to be going, Toriel won't be distracted for long. She seems to be in the kitchen right now, but who knows how long she'll stay in there"
"Oh right! Well, let's go then." I declared
—
Getting off the ground and swiping the leafy flakes on my jeans, I walked up to the door and opened it *Squeeak* Oh god, it wasn't this loud before. I was too young to die, I still had so many delicious foods to eat before I died, I didn't want to be turned into a pie.
"C'mon, let's go" Flowey motioned with a nod of his head.
Deliberately putting one foot in front of the other, I placed one foot in front of the other… I was a swan on water, graceful, peaceful, not panicked. Most definitely not a warthog rampaging through a china shop.
I was not thinking about tripping, tripping would be bad. I preferred good things!… like not dying! Dying was bad. Living was good.
With all my focus on the very exact placement of each foot. I barely noticed that I had already descended a flight of stairs.
Flowey watched my graceful sneaking, with an eyebrow raised. He didn't have to deal with creaking floor planks, which made me a tad bit jealous, but I still liked having legs, legs were good. I would rate my legs an eight out of ten. They were good legs, good at walking and getting me from place to place.
At the end of the flight of stairs, was a long hallway. Purple and pink hues draped the room. Worn bricks with chunks missing, empty of everything and anything. No dust, no bugs, no sound. Except for my own breathing and the thumping of my heart.
"You're at the home stretch now! Just go and you'll be home free! You got this."
I speed-walked down the hallway, continuing to keep any sounds I made to the bare minimum. Quite difficult when the sound of my T-shirt sounded like the leaves being blown about by a gust of wind... I did not feel the least bit sneaky.
I came to a stop at the end of the hallway. A towering double door stood in my way. I pushed the door and… it refused to budge. Well, that wasn't good.
"Uh, Flowey?—
"Don't worry, I'll unlock the door for you"
Vines burst through the ground, slithering into the keyhole, a few tugs and finagling later. The door creaked open.
"There you go, come on let's go!"
Wow, Flowey was incredible! I was free! My life expectancy couldn't be more thankful. With the bounce in my step returned I went forwards. Another hallway was laid out before me, boring, but boring could be good sometimes! Constant excitement wasn't good for the soul… probably!
*Click* "I'll lock the door for you, just in case Toriel is on our heels" Flowey answered when I gave him a confused look.
"Good thinking! I wouldn't have thought of that" I exclaimed as I continued.
With freedom from the grasp of the evil goat in sight. I was prepared for… heck if I knew! Something was out there and Beaming Bea was sure to be prepared for anything!
—
Barrier notes by ███
Barrier Resilience lll:
1000 monsters of varying maturity
99.97 lumens measured
Monster Population:
As of today, the total population of monsters residing within the Underground is 5*105 monsters by optimistic standards. Approximately 14% of the amount required to break the barrier. 3.5*106 or 3.5 million monsters would be required to break the barrier. There is not enough space within the barrier to sustain such a population.
Not enough monsters. Look into other methods.
—
Author here!
If you made it this far, I'm assuming that there were at least some parts of this story that isn't a burning wreck, woohoo! I have no idea though, these views and visitors might be bots. Darn.
If there were some parts you liked, tell me!
If there were parts you hate with a burning passion, also tell me!
Do you give the characters a voice in your head, what does Bea sound like? Toriel? Flowey! Do you give them their own individual voice, or do you just read?
Did I do the characters justice? Do they feel like people? Do you hate how I depicted a character? Yes, No? Tell me everything!
How do you feel about the image of the war in the book? Those excerpts about the Barrier at the end? The constantly changing viewpoints? The italicization, the dashes, the constant exclamation marks, the internal thoughts. Everything!
What could I do to improve?
I have no idea if you guys like anything that I write and my motivation is a hamster on a wheel. Sometimes a train on an unfortunate collision course, sometimes comatose in a bed. Do you guys want a train? Or do you want to add wings to the train and make a plane! Gimme reviews!
You could say, "nice" or "cringe" or create a 10-page long complaint about my entire story! Reviews are the lifeblood of every aspiring author! Why are there so many exclamation marks! Am I crazy!? Who knows, read the next issue to find out!