Waterfall soaked skin and penetrated leather as Chara's boots sunk into mud and moss. They pushed a flower into the gurgling water, completing the line of blossoms and forging a new way as they brought the bridge to life. A tentative foot revealed that it was sturdy, even if it did sink a few inches into the running river. They walked across.
When they were halfway to the other side they realized they were missing their traveling companion, and turned to see Temmie struggling to make it to them. The white of her chest was thick with brown as she struggled to lift herself above the muck, her stripped sweater long ago discolored to match Chara's boots. Their own knees and elbows suffered a similar fate; so many stumbles in the damp cavern left a telltale mark.
Temmie's back foot was deep in the mud, each yank barely making progress. Chara crossed back over and lifted her into their arms.
"Thank," Temmie managed to mutter. They didn't expect her to say much more.
Before they could even cross safely, they took a tumble at the end of the bridge, landing on the rocky edge of the other side. They put their free hand out, a frantic attempt not to squish Temmie beneath them. Thankfully, their palm and their left knee took the brunt of the damage, leaving fresh scrapes in their already growing and infected collection.
The Underground was going to kill them
"Human tired," Temmie pointed out as Chara safely set her on the ground.
It'd only been a few hours since they'd last slept, but the combination of malnutrition and rugged hiking left them with very little energy. Their progress had slowed since entering Waterfall, worse than even Snowdin's toils. At least they no longer froze to death anymore.
"Okay," they nodded. Temmie always seemed to know best, helping them figure out battle strategies and solve puzzles before they turned deadly. She knew Chara's limits better than they did.
Temmie shook herself, briefly turning into a muddy poofball before hopping down the path. "This way! Tem see grass, make nice bed."
Sure enough, as Chara followed the perked marker of Temmie's tail, she guided them to a field of the olive colored grass that sprung up in tufts around Waterfall. There were even a pair of echo flowers bent over a spot on the ground, perfect for protecting against the drizzle that came continuously from the ceiling above. Drywas a rare luxury here.
"I'm already so sleepy…" Chara told Temmie as they grabbed handfuls of grass and patted them beneath the echo flowers. "I think I need something to eat soon…"
They felt bad mentioning it. It wasn't like Temmie could do anything about it, and if she could she was already doing her best.
"Do you know if echo flowers are edible?" they asked her instead.
Temmie cocked her head to the side. "Tem don't know. Tem only eat Temmie Flakes."
The two of them curled up on their homemade bead, like they had so many times on their journey so far. If there was one thing Chara was grateful for it was Temmie; least of all because she was so warm. Every time they slept, she would snuggle up into a little ball, becoming Chara's own personal furnace.
"I don't have good memories of this grass," Chara mumbled, the exhaustion already hitting them. "Last time we were hiding in it, Alphys almost got us."
Temmie shivered. "She hurt you lots. If she grab us."
Chara reached out and rubbed one of Temmie's rounded ears. They were so much softer than the pointed ones, and just the right scritches made Temmie melt into their hand.
"It'll be okay Temmie. If we meet her, I'll talk to her, and I'll tell her than I don't wanna hurt anybody."
Temmie shivered again. "Scary monster. She always yells, chase Tem when she talk to Sans. Best to stay far away."
"That's what I thought about Asgore too," Chara pointed out. "But he was…nice in the end?" It was true, he'd even gave Chara a small purse full of gold, and wiped away tears he thought they couldn't see. But that didn't change the numerous times he'd killed them in his attempts to protect them. "I think he just didn't know how to be a good Dad."
Temmie didn't have a reply to that, but pressed the tip of her nose into Chara's jumpsuit. Vaguely, Chara wondered if Temmie was a kid like them. She wore a striped shirt, which Chara had spent enough time among monsters to know was indicative of pre-adolescence, but she always seemed so wise to Chara. They wondered where her parents were. If she had parents.
Chara didn't get a chance to ask. One of the echo flowers sheltering them tipped suddenly, showering them both with the water that had collected in its pistil. Chara squeaked in surprise, and Temmie yelped, but the worst of the damage was already done. Miserably, they crawled out of their now ruined bed.
As the two of them started patting down grass to make another one, Chara thought to themself that it didn't matter who or what Temmie was. All they knew was she was their friend; the only thing in the whole Underground that had been kind since the beginning. As she settled down on their chest again, they combed their finger through her damp hair, wishing they could do something half as nice for her as she'd done for them.
Chara peered around the corner, Temmie clutching tightly to their shoulder as they gazed in upon the turtle monster. "Gerson" if sign outside the shop was anything to go by.
No other shopkeeper had attacked Chara yet—too intent on swiping their gold—but you could never bee to careful when the whole Undergound hated you more than they hated each other. Chara clutched their stick with muddy hands.
"Go on human!" Temmie whisper-shouted. "Be brave!"
Chara puffed their chest, a convincing display. Now if only they could actuallysteel their nerves.
They stepped into the shop, the suspicious of its owner flicking to them immediately. But Gerson didn't attack, so far so good. "A human and a Temmie," he grunted. "Now I've seen everything."
When the immediate danger didn't show itself, Temmie hopped of Chara's shoulder, her paws not designed for clinging to things for long. Instead she bounced around the shop, finding a pair of spectacles displayed in a case. She put her paws against the glass, and giggled when the glasses wrapped around her reflection's face.
"You going to be buying anything, kid?" Gerson warned. "'Cuz I'll let you know I still have my old hammer in the back, and I've squashed loiterers before."
Chara nodded to show him that they were very seriousabout buying something and were not any sort of troublemaker, no siree. They began a walk through the small inlet in the cave, touring the few wares on display until they happened upon a few oddly shaped fruits labeled "crab apples." Their stomach rumbled. They'd burned through the last of their cinnamon bunnies a day ago, and now every battle left them battered and unable to heal; if they did have to fight Alphys, they'd certainly need those to recover.
Just as they were about to point at the apples and ask for a bag, they spied another item above Gerson's head. An obnoxious purple cereal box, plastered with the soppy attempts of amateur graphic design and lovingly labeled Temmie Flakes.
Chara's heart jumped- and then promptly fell down when they saw the price. The gold Asgore had given them was long spent, and the money gathered in Waterfall was only enough to buy the box and maybe one or two apples…
A discrete glance in Temmie's direction. She was still busy making faces into the glasses. Chara motioned Gerson over, and stood on their tiptoes to whisper in his ear.
"Human better now! Tem happy," Temmie declared as they walked through the glowing mushrooms.
Chara nodded, their face full of apple and their stomach less pained. The cuts and scrapes—plus a bruise Aaron had given them—were now faded, and soon they'd be able to walk without passing out after only a few hours.
They smiled, and reached into their inventory. "I have something that'll make you even happier."
Temmie halted her bouncing walk through the darkness to face Chara. Her face flew right off her head when Chara presented the box to her.
"TEM FLAKES!" she shouted, and Chara had to shush her just so she wouldn't wake the whole Underground. "Tem Flakes!" she repeated.
Chara scooped Temmie onto their shoulder so they could pour out a handful of the colorful cereal(?) into their hand. The held it up for her, and she nibbled happily as the two of them walked. Half a box (and three mushroom puzzles solved) later, Temmie blinked suddenly.
"Where did human find Tem Flakes?"
Chara stopped themself from shrugging just in time. "In Waterfall." But it still felt like a lie, because Temmie was nuzzling their face in concern. "…At Gerson's shop."
Temmie whined, so much like the dog Chara hand when they were a kid. Well, more of a kid. They tried hand more of the Temmie Flakes up to her, bush she pulled her snout away.
"Human should buy more food! Tem don't need. Tem full."
"Well it's too late to go back," Chara insisted. "I never see you eat anything, so you should have some more. You mustbe hungry too."
"Tem not hungry," Temmie complained, her unchanging expression quivering on her head. "Humanhungry."
"I'm fine, I had some crab apples." Even if they weren't exactly full. "Come on Temmie please, just a little more."
"No!"
"Don't let food go to waste!"
"Tem won't-"
But what exactly Temmie wouldn't do was lost as Chara's foot caught a root and they went into the double digits of daily falls. Temmie went rolling, and Chara belly flopped into a puddle, the handful of flakes sinking in the cyan waters.
They struggled for a second, doing their best to keep the box from falling into the stream, when a voice behind them chirped, "well gee! You two sure look like you could use some help!"
Just to be sure what they were seeing, Chara pushed their damp bangs out of their eyes. No, that was definitely real. An honest to goodness talking flower was staring at the jostled adventuring party.
"Well where are my manners?" the flower said. His voice was incredibly cheerful, something Chara couldn't help but cling to down here where insults were the standard greeting. "Howdy! I'm Flowey."
"I'm Chara," Chara replied softly. They pulled their knees to their chest, feeling like sitting was the best way to get on their new friend's level.
"Hoi! I'm Temmie!" Temmie added. With a wag of her tail, she scrambled over and sniffed Flowey. "Flower smell good!"
(Was it Chara's imagination, or did Flowey's smile briefly flicker? No, no that was silly, the monster seemed just as delighted as ever.) "Well good to meet 'cha! Though I do feel selfish keeping all these new friends to myself. You should come over to my village, meet the other Floweys!"
"Wow!" Not only had Chara made their second friend ever, they were also about to be introduced to more. "We'd love too!"
Temmie yipped her ascent, and Chara was so excited they picked her up into their arms, planning on carrying her the whole way. Maybe they'd even have food there. And somewhere to sleep! As they followed Flowey around the bend in the cave, they didn't even notice the root that had tripped them was nowhere to be found.
"Tem used to have village," Temmie said sadly as they walked. "Lots of other Temmie. Tem miss them."
Flowey didn't hear her, his head in the dirt at the moment as he prepared to pop up further down the path.
"Where are they now?" Chara asked. They'd never heard her mention them before.
Temmie's ears drooped further. "Gone. During human war. Temmies are good fighters…humans squash them first."
Chara had never seen any indication that Temmie was a good fighter—in fact, as long as they'd known her she'd been a complete pacifist, always telling Chara that there were ways out of the Undergound that didn't involve hurting anyone else. Maybe the war had left such scars that she just didn't want to fight anymore?
"I'm sorry Temmie," Chara said, pressing a nose to the top of her head. "It makes you feel better, I'm the last of my kind in the Undergound too." Six other human souls, all fallen and stolen. Chara didn't know much about the Queen but…from the stories they'd, they didn't much want to meet her.
Temmie's whimper of sympathy was cut short as Flowey stuck his head out again. "Aaand we're here! Welcome to Flowey village."
It was an open cave, a mural tucked against the wall and plenty of blooms nestled in the edges. A giant statue of a Flowey smiled brightly in the center, surrounded by even more living plants. Chara opened their mouth to comment on the cuteness of Flowey's home, but a wave of cheerful smiles filled the clearing before they got the chance.
"Golly! What strange strangers!"
"Howdy there!"
"You fellas look like you could use some help!"
"Wowee."
There were Floweys everywhere, smiling all with that same silly expression, crowding around Chara with all the charm of a well-rehearsed school play. Something about the comparison made Chara's stomach crawl.
"Hello," they greeted shyly. "It's nice to meet you all."
"Back 'atcha!" Flowey—the first Flowey—said. "It's been soooo long since we've had anyone to play with."
Usually the word play would fill Chara's heart with delight, but suddenly all the smiling faces had an odd twinge about them. Like they were bearing their teeth a little too sharply.
Chara hugged Temmie closer. "T-that actually sounds like a lot of fun, b-but Temmie and I can't stay for long. Do you have any monster food we could trade for?"
Flowey tsked, and wound closer to where the pair stood at the center of the village. "Food before introductions? Now you don't mean to be rude do you?"
"Of course not!" Chara said, "We just-"
"And you two shouldn't be running off so soon. Why, you only just got here!" He beamed. "The fun hasn't even started."
"Human," Temmie muttered as softly as she was able. "Tem think we should go."
Chara opened their mouth, to try and say goodbye to the Floweys once again, but suddenly the Flowey in front of them lunged forward with incredible speed. They took a step back, only for something to tighten around their leg. This time they did look down, eyes widening as they saw the green tendril ensnaring their boot.
"Didn't your motherever teach you any manners?!" On each word the vine constricted tighter, just like the circle of malevolent flowers around them. The village's eyes were nothing but wild now, and a few of them even cackled at Chara's predicament.
"Hey! Let me go!" Chara said, kicking their leg. Not that begging had helped any other time they'd fought a monster. Of course this was an ambush! They were silly to think anything nice happened in the Undergound.
"Oh but you're hungry ain't ya?" a Flowey on the left called. "Why don't you stay for dinner?"
Another vine burst from the ground. Temmie leaped from Chara's arms as they fell, disappearing into the bouquet of evil laughs. Chara gasped as they felt their SOUL yanked from their body, the wind of the battle tearing through the village, screaming in their ears along with their own voice. Was this it? Another death, forcing them back to their last save point? Another day of trekking through the grass and mud lost and forced to repeat?
A tendril wrapped around their chest as they squirmed, powerless as the first of the magic attacks pounded them. Would they strangle Chara until they were blue in the face? Drag them further into the dirt, filling their mouth and lungs with dirt as they screamed for MERCY? There were so many awful ways to die, and the flowers just kept cackling-
A rumble turned the nearest Flowey's head.
Chara kept struggling, even as their attacker's attention turned to what could only be-
The giant flower statue was falling. Floweys shrieked, scrambling out of the way and releasing Chara's restraints. The human rolled, only inches away from the murderous statue as it came crashing down, scattering the shrieking plants.
"Run!" Temmie shouted, scampering atop the defeated statue. "Run human!"
Chara didn't need to be told twice. They pushed themself to their knees, then feet, then bolted, ignoring the Floweys that recovered too slowly. Temmie was hot on their heels as they rounded the corner into the darkness beyond.
"Hey!" one Flowey shrieked. "Get back here you little brat!"
Chara ran. Chara ran until their lungs burned and their knees hurt, and then they ran until they noticed Temmie lagging behind. Then, they only stopped long enough to pick her into a football carry before they were running once again.
A Flowey or two may have chased them for a while, but they obviously weren't built for speed, and Chara lost them as they scampered through the Waterfall's tunnels. It wasn't until their heart was pounding and their legs were ready to give out that they finally stopped, collapsing by the side of a river.
"I think," they huffed, "we lost them."
Temmie panted, her little tongue lolling out of her mouth. She took a few tentative steps to the river before dipping her snout into the running water.
Chara joined her, scooping up mouthfuls of refreshing (yet still garbage filled) water, and tried to get their breath back. Once the two of them were done gasping for air, Chara lunged at her, scooping her into a hug.
"Thank you so much Temmie," they whimpered. "I was so scared…"
Temmie curled into their shoulder. "Tem wanted to chase them away. Tem sorry. Almost squash human."
"It's fine," Chara said, setting her back down and rubbing their eyes. "You saved my life, and that's what counts." But those words didn't feel right enough, didn't fill the whole yawning in Chara's chest. "And I…I just want you to know, that you're my best friend in the whole world. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Temmie cocked her head to the side. "Human would be OK. Would make it. Human strong."
"But I-" More tears sprung up in Chara's eyes. "But I don't want to make it! I want the two of us to get out of here, to spend the rest of our lives together."
Although Temmie's face never strayed from her cheerful little smile, Chara could see the way her ears drooped, deflating before their very eyes. "Human…Tem can't go."
"What do you mean you can't go?" Chara scrubbed their face, trying to stop the spread of their perpetually reddened cheeks. "Just…when it's time for me to leave, come with me OK?"
"No." Their distressed little whimper broke something in Chara's heart. "Tem can't. Tem get human out, human safe but…barrier. Tem can't go with."
"Then I'll break the barrier!" Chara yelled, their voice bouncing until it became a boom in the endless tunnel. "I'll break it and then you can come with."
"No!" Now Temmie was yelling too, spinning in circles as she chased her own tail. "Barrier stays, monsters stay. Monsters on surface, hurt even more humans!"
Chara didn't think they'd ever seen Temmie so distressed; the normally cheerful monster dug at the dirt with her paws, as though she tunnel them out of this mess all on her own. Chara's shoulders sagged, wishing they knew what to do. "Temmie…I don't want to go back. Up there…people can be just as bad, and I have no friends and…I can't go back without you."
Temmie stopped, finally, her tail drooping so low in drew patterns in the dirt. She crawled forward, stepping onto Chara's lap and placing a paw on their face. "Human have to. Can't stay here. Have to."
Chara felt snot drip down the back of their throat, sickening their already damp body. They blew their nose in their hand, washing it in the river as an excuse not to look at Temmie.
She was right. They couldn't stay down here. But abandoning her…they couldn't think of anything worse.
"I don't know what to do," they admitted softly. Temmie didn't say anything, just curled up tighter to their chest.
The two of them eventually found they couldn't walk anymore, not after their exhausting run through the caverns. Instead, they found a patch of dirt that wasn't damp enough to be mud yet and laid down for the night.
"I love you Temmie," Chara whispered as the dog monster laid down beside them.
"Tem love human," Temmie whispered back. Which was why she was doing this for them, but that part remained unsaid. The two laid in the glow of a near by echo flower, pretending everything would be better in the morning.
Chara died and Temmie died and Chara died and Chara died and Chara died-
Ad infinitum.
The streets of the capitol were bleached white, like shoes left out in the sun, like the bits of bone that stuck out of Chara's snapped arm every time the trident came down a second too fast. Arches of marble clawed and grabbed at them, architecture that encased them in its streets and wouldn't let them go until they breathed their last.
And not even then.
Every time the Queen's fire or lighting ore endless strength wore them down to where their feet clambered over to kick each other, they'd eventually make that slipup. And after one hit would come another, and another, and they wouldn't stop coming until Chara was back in save below the elevator, the world so hot that they could still see the light when they closed their eyes.
No one had killed them as much as Toriel had. Alphys hadn't even come close, even with her hell of blue and DETERMINATION to rival a human's. But Toriel was just so powerful, a reminder that you don't become Queen of all monsters by sitting in your throne room and letting your enemies go unpunished.
Or maybe that was exactly what she was doing. She'd never come to fight Chara, after all; they were always coming to her.
They blinked away the light of the save point, their DETERMINATION more like a net than a life vest, no matter which one saved them from drowning. They absently touched the spot in their chest—the point where the middle prong had shattered their sternum and left them splitting blood for a few seconds before death. It was one of the more grisly kinds of death they'd had the luck to experience; ones where they clung on for a bit while longer always were. The three holes were gone now, erased along with the rest of the world and its memories, rewound to this crossroad that was so much like hell someone up there must be having a laugh.
Up There meaning heaven, not the world Chara had come from. Although, now that they thought about it, the humans would probably get a real kick out of this detestable metaphor they'd found themself in.
They really weren't looking forward to another trek though that soulless, haunted city, only to reach the well-intentioned road paved by two dead children. They didn't want to hear the story anymore, (didn't want to feel Temmie shiver in their arms every time they did.)
Instead, they took a detour. A brief reprieve. Dusting off a few pebbles that fell into the lava below, they sat on one of the jutting cliffs and swung their legs over the side.
"…Human OK?"
Temmie cautiously padded over to the stone beside them. Although the lava was far below, convection was still an ugly reality in the monster world, and Chara could feel the heat of the stone through the bottoms of their pants. On their journey through Hotland, sometimes it would become unbearable, leaving burns on the bottom of Temmie's paws.
"Yeah…I'm fine. Just need to rest." Not a real rest though. The save stole their ability to experience sleep or hunger, or any semblance of normalcy.
"…OK."
Temmie rested her head against Chara's leg, watching as they tossed another stone into the magma below. It reminded them painfully of the puzzle they'd failed on the way, slipping off a spinning platform and losing their grip on Temmie's sweater. They'd only wanted to help by carrying her—give her a brief break from frying her own skin—but had paid for their kindness tenfold as worst screams they'd ever heard echoed throughout the cavern. They'd thrown themself in afterwards to cause a reset, but it didn't matter—unlike the others, Temmie remembered. She was like Chara, trapped by an uncaring god.
Her cold nose pressed against Chara's palm.
"Do you think that if I just didn't go up…Toriel would come and find me?" Chara asked as they kicked their shoes. "She wants my SOUL badly enough." She'd said as much. Every single time Chara entered the barrier room she'd done them the service of displaying those who'd fallen before.
"Maybe. Tem doesn't know," Temmie admitted. "…Is human going to?"
Chara looked at their palms, then flicked the Worn Dagger out of their inventory. As long as they lived, died, and lived again, neither they nor Temmie would ever leave. Maybe escaping wouldn't set them free, but giving up was the worst kind of certainty.
They lowered a hand to stroke Temmie's raven hair. "No. I'm not done Temmie. Not yet."
Again and again and again and again-
Chara hurt and Temmie hurt to watch them. They weren't sure how many times it was by now but it seemed like the temporal equivalent of a few weeks. Longer than the rest of the time they'd spent in the Undergound combined. They never gave, up but they could see in the way Temmie shook after every LOAD that the resets were wearing her down. If Chara were better, stronger, they wouldn't let her know how every step in that white city made them want to die.
But they weren't strong. They were weak and useless, and every time Toriel killed them they screamed their pathetic heart out. And Temmie had to watch.
(And Temmie grew to hate.)
Chara didn't believe in evil. Temmie hadn't either, had taught Chara that there were ways to impress upon even the worst of people, but Chara could recognize the beginnings of detestation in growing in earth that had been salted too many times. Chara couldn't stop it anymore than they could stop the Queen. No dagger would pierce Toriel's guard, no word would break her conviction. They were here, stuck, forever.
Until they weren't.
Chara didn't realize what they'd done until Toriel was knelt before them, her head bowed and weapon pointed at the ground, her HP flicking into nonexistence. The familiar dance had finally paid off, beaten into their ankles and wrists, pulling them at exactly the right time. They'd finally, finally, brought the Queen of monsters to her knees.
"…Of course." Toriel's voice was soft. "I could not stop humanity the first time, and now they have bested me again. All of this…for nothing."
The human SOULS stared down at her from their glass jars. They surrounded the fight like centurions, like a grand jury.
And they certainly weren't judging Chara.
"You did stop me," Chara said. Their voice wasn't even tangible anymore—more like a memory of what they used to be. A different person that existed before the first bolt of fire scorched their skin. "You killed before."
"And yet you are here." Toriel's eyes were red. Asgore's had been too. Red and full of love and just like Chara's.
"I've told you that before too," Chara said. "But you kept fighting. You never stop."
They could see Temmie as she carefully slinked out of the shadows to stand near the human souls. It was over. It had to be. Toriel was defeated now and they could go and Temmie would-
Temmie would-
Pebbles of hard bone calcified in Chara's throat.
"Go on then," Toriel said. Even on the floor she towered over the human. "Finish it. I have nothing more to give the Underground."
* MERCY
Toriel scoffed. "Do not try that on me, child. If you do not strike me down, I will simply get up and do the same to unto you."
Chara didn't believe that. Their eyes flicked, briefly, to Temmie as she watched the scene with her unchanging expression. She was safe enough, for now, not in danger of any wayward bolts that might send her careening into that pulsating barrier as she had so many times when Chara had still let her into this fight. But now another dagger was between them, another step, an uncertain decision-
*MERCY
"Do it!" Toriel's voice hiked up and out, reverberating off the grey-white walls. "Finish me!" She lurched, a miserable attempt to rise and force a confrontation. "If I cannot set my people free then I will die before rolling over for you."
Eyes locked behind Toriel, Temmie's unblinking expression, but Chara knew they were just as scared. Unsure. If this was really it…
*MER-
Toriel lunged.
Her trident wasn't nearly as discarded as it appeared, leaping into her hand-
Going through Chara's stomach in a flash of white.
"Human!" was all Chara heard, the surprise attack throwing them to ground even as Toriel readied another one.
The world titled, and they only saw Temmie briefly as she panicked, pressing her paws against the cylinder before her-
SHTTTTSHHHHHHHhhhhhh!
Glass flew, lacerating Toriel's face as she whipped around just in time to scream, "NO!" The green soul was free, and it wasn't the last. The containers fell one after another in a horrifying domino effect that crashed louder than Toriel roar as the last hope of monsterkind splintered into glittering shards.
Chara clutched their insides, nothing in them but pain and a distant worry that Temmie might be hurt in all the spinning glass-
Only for their fear to fade a moment later. Their fear and everything else.
They were standing in black.
Toriel was still in front of them, but everything else—Temmie, the souls, the barrier—was been wiped away, sentencing them to this stillness. Their wounds, which a moment ago had threatened to send them through another load, were gone, leaving them hugging themself as they stared at the Queen's back.
There was no light here, yet they could see their opponent of just fine, a pair alone in a sea of blackness-
A sea that started to swirl.
Something splashed in the dark, the solid floor mounting into ripples then waves then entire tides, crashing as a gigantic monster spiraled closer to its end. A huge column of water burst before them, finally revealing the giant serpent as it rose, ink rolling off its back and steaming snout.
YOU.
The voice echoed, and Chara couldn't tell if it was everywhere or just in their head. The serpent's eyes were a voided black, staring down at the mortals below them with an infinity behind them.
"…Temmie?" Chara's voice came out meek in the presence of the monster before them. But the color of the scales, the way the snout was slightly curved…
YOU HAVE HARMED THE HUMAN MORE THAN ANYONE HAS EVER TORMENTED ANOTHER BEING.
It took a moment to realize Temmie was talking to Toriel. The Queen was on the ground again, her wounds from the fight not as mercifully tended to as Chara's own. She spat, blood landing in the black emptiness. "I don't doubt it."
EVEN WHEN EXTENDED COMPASION AGAIN AND AGAIN YOU STRIKE THEM DOWN IN YOUR NEED FOR REVENGE.
Toriel remained silent.
WHEN SHOWN MERCY YOU ABUSE. WHEN GIVEN A SECOND CHANCE YOU BETRAY. IF YOU ARE EVER TO BE STOPPED, DEATH IS YOUR ONLY FATE.
"Temmie…" Chara said, the edges of their voice fraying like the air itself was tearing them apart.
"Then that is the way it is," Toriel mumbled. "I welcome it. I am nothing now, let us see if you can do what your friend would not."
YOUR ACCEPTANCE DOES CHANGE YOUR CRIMES. I CHARGE YOU WITH OBLIVION.
"Temmie stop! She isn't attacking anymore!"
Toriel dropped her head. There were the faintest tracks of tears dripping through her fur. The serpent reared back-
Chara thrust themself in-between the injured Queen and the vengeful god. "STOP!"
The forward movement of the endless neck lurched, slowing the mass of inertia until Temmie's face stopped inches from Chara's own. They heaved, their ribcage expanding with terror they'd never felt from their friend before.
STAND ASIDE, HUMAN. I WILL HANDLE THIS.
"This isn't what we do Temmie," Chara pleaded, gazing up at Temmie. "We don't have to hurt people. You taught me that."
SHE BETRAYED YOU.
"That doesn't matter! She's just scared! Just like me, like you. Like everyone is down here!"
SHE WILL NOT STOP. FORGIVNESS WILL NOT CHANGE HER.
"It might!" Chara choked out. "We never get the chance to find out, not with the resets and now you turning into a giant snake monster!"
Temmie was silent. It seemed within that infinite lake there should be rushing or the sound of water, but instead the only thing Chara heard was their own heartbeat and the labored breathing behind them.
Then-
SHE KILLED YOU FOR JUST TRYING TO GO HOME.
"Maybe I don't want to go home." They felt that terrible aching in their throat that let them know they were about to start crying like a big baby. But they had keep going. Had to make Temmie see. "I never wantedto go home I just wanted…I wanted a friend. And my friend wanted me to be safe." They wiped their nose on their sleeve.
…HUMAN….
"I meant what I said before. I don't want to leave if I can't break the barrier."
Their was a soft draw of breath, and Chara turned for the first time to see the defeated Queen. She was looking at them, her eyes alive with wariness.
"I've always tried to tell you," they said. "You never believe me."
A grumble ruminates from the serpent's unceasing body. More water falls from her scales, shattering the surface below.
…I MAY…BE ABLE TO…
She hesitated, searching her memory, wondering for the extent of her power.
TO DESTROY IT. WITH YOUR HELP.
When Chara looked at the monster above them, massive, limitless, stitching herself together with six stolen souls, they trust that she could do whatever she wanted.
BUT OTHER MONSTERS WOULD COME. ANOTHER WAR PRESENTS ITSELF BEFORE US.
Chara lowered their chin to the their chest, but only briefly. Because when they turned they saw Toriel, her mouth slightly open as she witnessed an avatar of pure power offering her a way out. She noticed Chara's gaze, and flicked red eyes to red eyes.
"…She is not wrong," she admitted. "We are not a forgiving people."
"But you can be," Chara told, no, demandedof her. "You can be whatever you want."
Toriel did not look away.
"If we set monsters free," they started again, "would you promise to be nice?"
"Nice." Toriel repeated the word. If there was any humor that life and loss had not stripped away from her, it was slanted in that one statement. But she faced Chara with every ounce of conviction remaining and said, "you have my word that we will not wage war against those who chained us. For our freedom, I would do anything."
MORE LIKE YOU WOULD PROMISE ANYTHING.
"Temmie," Chara warned, but their friend was contented to silence. "Thank you, your majesty."
"…Any time."
And that was it. Over. Now, for real this time. Chara turned to face their best friend, their Temmie, the one person who'd been with them through it all.
Sure she was a god now, but every relationship has its bumps and bruises.
"Are you ready Temmie?" They thought of raven black hair, and small warm balls of fur.
YES.
"Tell me what you need to do."
…PRESS YOUR HAND TO ME. I WILL NEED…SOMETHING TO HOLD ON TO.
So they did and she asked, and when Chara spread their fingers against plates as strong as diamonds, they thought of the brave little Temmie who brought them all the way hear. If anyone was deserving of those human souls, it was her.
Toriel was gone now, pearls of light rippling off Temmie in waves, and not just coming off but drawing in. Chara saw what they realized were monsters souls flying past, sinking in to join each other as one beating heart-
That flared so hot their hand burned-
But they didn't care because Temmie was going to save them all. And as the last of the little dash of grey bundled past, slowing as the event horizon brings them all together, they touched their forehead to Temmie, ready for their adventure to end.
