The rest of the ride up was long and quiet. Knowing what had to be done, the Warners were still in denial. They would have to face the monster king and from what they were told, it could be impossible to get through to him. That meant the pressure was on. The elevator doors opened, revealing a familiar area. It looked like the ruins, but in complete grayscale. In addition to them staying silent, no background music could be heard. The kids found it awful and dreadful, only prolonging what was to come. Eventually, they reached the entrance to the castle, and a soft guitar filled the background. The entrance was nearly identical to Toriel's house but not as welcoming, instead appearing gray and melancholy. The Warners would soon find out the inside was identical as well. In the front room, a pot with a golden flower provided the only color in the room other than the toons. The stairs were locked with a note written on it.

Howdy! I'm in the garden.

If you have anything you need to get off your chest, please don't hesitate to come.

The keys are in the kitchen and the hallway.

They decided to look at the kitchen first and entered the living room.

"This is just like Toriel's house," said Wakko, breaking the silence.

Suddenly, an encounter was initiated by two Froggits. But they didn't attack.

"A long time ago, a human fell into the RUINS."

"Injured by its fall, the human called out for help."

The encounter ended; the kids didn't respond, but instead nodded. For the time being, it felt more appropriate to listen instead of talk. They entered the kitchen and found a green key; Yakko put it in his belt. Next to the key was a note.

Howdy! Help yourself to anything you want!

They weren't hungry. Leaving to go to the living room, another encounter was initiated by two Whimsums. They continued the story.

"ASRIEL, the king's son, heard the human's call."

"He brought the human back to the castle."

The Warners walked down the hallway, entering what appeared to look like Asriel and the aforementioned human's bedroom. Inside were two white presents neatly tied with a red bow. Yakko opened the box on the left, revealing a worn dagger. Feeling nauseous, he closed the box and refused to take it. Dot opened the other box, finding a heart-shaped locket reading "best friends forever". She thought it looked nice, but also left it behind. They exited the room, not wanting to look around. The next room in the hallway had a sign attached to it, reading "room under renovations". Another encounter was started by three Moldsmals.

"Over time, ASRIEL and the human became like siblings."

"The King and Queen treated the child as their own."

"The underground was full of hope."

They found another green key on the countertop next to the third door. Yakko put it in his belt next to the other, and they walked away. As much as they wanted to prolong meeting Asgore, they also felt reluctant to look around his home due to being similar to Toriel's. When they reached the stairs again, Yakko took the key and unlocked the chains. He held Wakko and Dot's hands as they walked down the stairs. The hallway was identical to the one Toriel kept them away from before they wanted to go home, albeit colored gray instead of purple. Two Migosps approached them.

"Then...One day…"

"The human became very ill."

Every few steps initiated another encounter from monsters. Three Vegetoids were next.

"The sick human had only one request."

"To see the flowers from their village."

"But there was nothing we could do."

Two Looxes.

"The next day."

"The next day."

"..."

"The human died."

The Warners bowed their heads to pay their respects. This only increased their somber moods as two Snowdrakes continued the story.

"ASRIEL, wracked with grief, absorbed the human's SOUL. He transformed into a being with incredible power."

Three Icecaps.

"With the human SOUL, ASRIEL crossed through the barrier."

"He carried the human's body into the sunset."

"Back to the village of the humans."

Three Woshuas.

"ASRIEL reached the center village."

"There, he found a bed of golden flowers."

"He carried the human onto it."

Three Shyrens continued as the Warners got a view of the city again.

"Suddenly, screams ran out."

"The villagers saw ASRIEL holding the human's body."

"They thought that he had killed the child."

The story would not have a happy ending. The Warners didn't know what it would mean for them.

"The humans attacked him with everything they had," said a dummy.

"He was struck with blow after blow."

"ASRIEL had the power to destroy them all."

"But…" said Knight Knight.

"ASRIEL did not fight back," said Madjick.

"Clutching the human…"

"ASRIEL smiled, and walked away."

Three different Froggits approached, but they looked different. Their skin was spikier than the normal ones. They must have been Final Froggits.

"Wounded, ASRIEL stumbled home."

"He entered the castle and collapsed."

"His dust spread across the garden."

Three knightly Whimsums called Whimsalots arrived.

"The kingdom fell into despair."

"The king and queen had lost two children in one night."

"The humans had once again taken everything away from us."

The Warners nodded, sharing sympathetic looks with the Whimsalots. The Astigmatisms were next.

"The king decided it was time to end our suffering."

"Every human who falls down here must die."

"With enough souls, we can shatter the barrier forever."

A Moldsmal, a Loox, and a Migosp approached. The Loox spoke up first this time.

"It's not long now."

"King ASGORE will let us go," said Moldsmal.

"King ASGORE will give us hope," said Loox.

"King ASGORE will save us all," said Migosp.

Pyrope and two Vulkins consoled the Warners.

"You should be smiling, too."

"Aren't you excited?"

"Aren't you happy?"

The first Froggit hopped toward the kids and gave them a reassuring look.

"You're going to be free."

Those uplifting words gave them hope.

"Ya know what, sibs?" said Yakko. "Maybe we can get through to him."

At the end of the hallway, they found an elevator that would take them back to the beginning. They chose to keep moving forward and stay on the path, turning to their right and walking through the last corridor. It was shining gold and looked like the inside of a church with stained glass windows; Dot recognized this as the hallway in her nightmare and tensed up when she saw a familiar big-boned figure approach her and her brothers.

"...Sans?" said Wakko.

A bell rang three times, echoing through the walls. The Warners held each other's hands a little tighter. The way Sans spoke to them felt foreign.

"So you finally made it. The end of your journey is at hand. In a few moments, you will meet the king. Together...You will determine the future of this world. That's then. Now. You will be judged."

They felt lumps of anxiety form in their stomachs. Yakko opened his mouth to say something, but Sans cut him off.

"No. Don't talk. I need you listen very carefully."

They nodded.

"You will be judged for your every action. You will be judged for every EXP you've earned. What's EXP? It's an acronym. It stands for 'execution points.' A way of quantifying the pain you have inflicted on others. When you kill someone, your EXP increases. When you have enough EXP, your LOVE increases. LOVE, too, is an acronym. It stands for 'Level of Violence.' A way of measuring someone's capacity to hurt. The more you kill, the easier it becomes to distance yourself. The more you distance yourself, the less you will hurt. The more easily you can bring yourself to hurt others."

He paused.

"...but you. you never gained any LOVE. 'course, that doesn't mean you're completely innocent or naive. just that you kept a certain tenderness in your heart. no matter the struggles or hardships you faced...you strived to do the right thing. you refused to hurt anyone. even when you ran away, you did it with a smile. you never gained LOVE, but you gained love."

The Warners smiled.

"does that make sense?"

They nodded.

"good. now. you're about to face the greatest challenge of your entire journey. your actions here...will determine the fate of the entire world. i know it's putting a lotta pressure on you, but don't let it crush you. you didn't get this far by giving up, did you? that's right. you toons have something called 'determination.' so as long as you hold on...so as long as you do what's in your heart...i believe you can do the right thing."

"Thanks Sans," said Yakko, "we really needed to hear that."

"anytime, yakko. we're all counting on you, kids."

He winked at them.

"good luck."

And just like that, he vanished. The Warners passed through the last corridor, feeling less nervous than before. The golden colors faded back to gray, and as they turned down the corner, they found the throne room. But instead of going in, they were curious about where the path would take them if they kept moving forward. They found a stairway and walked down, finding a room full of coffins. Each one had a different colored heart. The one closest to them had a red heart with the name "Chara" engraved on it. It was empty. Yakko took out all the weapons and armor they found earlier on their journey. It took a little more persuasion from Dot to get the ribbon and ballet outfit from her, but she handed them over. Yakko put the tough gloves and manly bandana on the orange coffin, the cowboy hat and empty gun on the yellow coffin, the frying pan and the apron on the green coffin, the faded ribbon and the toy knife on the light blue coffin, the old tutu and the ballet slippers on the dark blue coffin, and the cloudy glasses on the purple coffin. He didn't put the torn notebook back, however, because of Wakko having already written in it.

"This is where they belong."

Wakko and Dot nodded in agreement. The three of them walked back up the stairs and approached the entrance of the throne room. They each took a deep breath before walking in. They were greeted by a beautiful garden filled with healthy green grass and golden flowers. In the center stood a large goat, the same size as Toriel, with long blonde hair and long pointy horns. He wore a magnificent purple cape with yellow shoulderpads.

"Dum dee dum…" his deep voice hummed.

Wakko instantly recognized the voice. It was the same one that told him to wake up from his nightmare after accidentally killing Toriel.

"Oh? Is someone there? Just a moment! I have almost finished watering these flowers."

Yakko quickly became uncomfortable. His deep, jolly voice sounded like his own father's.

"...Here we are!"

Asgore turned around.

"Howdy! How can I…"

His voice trailed off as he set his eyes on the Warners. He instantly took a few steps back, knowing they were from the surface.

"Hi," said Yakko, with a small wave of his hand. "You're the king, right? We've heard a lot about ya."

"Oh…"

"I'm Yakko."

"Wakko."

"Dot."

"Out of all the children that fell down here...I would have never expected your kind to arrive."

He hesitantly looked to his side after confirming he knew what they were.

"I so badly want to say, 'would you like a cup of tea?' But...You know how it is."

The nervousness kicked in again. An awkward silence surrounded the Warners and Asgore, none of them quite knowing what to say. Eventually, Asgore broke the silence.

"Nice day today, huh? Birds are singing, flowers are blooming...Perfect weather for a game of catch."

"Listen," said Yakko, "you seem like a nice guy. Even if you did kill six kids before us. But I don't think you really wanted to, did you?"

He shook his head grievously.

"I only did so because of what the humans did to us."

"Look, I'm just gonna give it to you straight; no jokes, puns, visual gags, none of that. The thing is, we can't kill you. We can't kill anyone! There's gotta be a way around this."

"Truthfully," said Asgore, "I do not want to kill you either. I do not want to hurt anyone. On the contrary, I wish we could be friends. However, there is nothing else we can do. If you want to go home, you have to kill me. If I want to free my people, I have to kill you."

Wakko stepped forward, helping his brother convince Asgore not to fight them.

"What if we told you…we wanna break the barrier ourselves?"

Asgore looked at them in disbelief.

"Is this true?"

Wakko nodded.

"We don't wanna leave until we do," said Dot.

"...That is very kind of you. Unfortunately, it is impossible without at least one of you sacrificing your souls. I also cannot let you stay here and join us in our suffering. The Underground is a terrible prison, not fit at all for three cartoon children like yourselves."

"Come on!" Yakko pleaded. "Don't do this to us! There has to be some other way!"

"I am sorry, Yakko."

"Please…"

Asgore refused to look at them.

"We have no choice. You know what we must do."

They walked into the next room. The hallway looked similar to when they first fell down the mountain, but without the golden flowers.

"Are you ready? If you are not, I understand. I am not ready either. I believe none of us could ever be ready…"

At the end of the hallway, they entered a gate. Inside was a shining black and white space.

"This is the barrier. This is what keeps us all trapped underground...If by any chance you have some unfinished business...Please do what you must."

Luckily, Wakko had the perfect diversion.

"Yakko," Wakko whispered, "it's a potty emergency!"

"What, really?"

Wakko rapidly nodded his head.

"Oh thank god," Yakko sighed with relief. "Can we come back later, Asgore? Wakko really needs to use the bathroom."

"Of course. Please take your time."

"Thanks, Goat Dad!" Yakko shouted as he ran away with Wakko and Dot.

Asgore perked up in surprise at Yakko's nickname for him.

"Did he just call me...'dad'?"

The Warners ran as fast as they could. They took the elevator outside the last corridor, which took them back to the elevator that would take them to the Core. Wakko tiptoed in place, barely able to hold it in.

"Potty potty potty potty…"

"You can do it, Wakko!" said Yakko. "We're almost there!"

"I gotta say," said Dot, "that was a good excuse."

The elevator opened. They bolted past the corner, through the stage where they fought Mettaton, and entered the previously broken elevator taking them back to the beginning of the Core. Before they could re-enter the hotel, however, Yakko's phone rang.

"Keep goin', I gotta take this."

Dot grabbed Wakko's wrist and took him inside the hotel to find the bathroom. Yakko answered his phone.

"Y'ello?"

"Hey Yakko…!"

Yakko instantly recognized the voice.

"Helloooooooo Undyne! What can I do ya for, Fish Stick?"

Yakko wiggled his eyebrows at the innuendo he made. Undyne, on the other hand, didn't catch it, only focusing on his nickname for her.

"Don't call me that."

"No promises."

He could briefly hear her voice become muffled.

"Shut up, Papyrus! This was YOUR idea!"

She spoke back to Yakko.

"TOON! You have to deliver something for me! Uh, please?"

"Anything for you, doll~"

He could feel her rolling her eyes on the other side of the line.

"I'm at Snowdin in front of Papyrus'. And you can bring your siblings too. See ya, punk!"

Yakko hung up and went inside the hotel, seeing them in front of the fountain waiting for him.

"Good news, sibs: we can postpone our fight with Asgore a little longer. Undyne wants us to do a favor for her."

"Faboo!" said Wakko.

"She's waiting for us at Papyrus'."

As expected, Dot's heart skipped a beat.

"Well what are we waiting for?!" she shouted. "Let's go! And we're takin' a shortcut this time."

Before they could say anything, she grabbed their wrists and pulled them through the wall. Within a split second, they arrived in Snowdin, right in front of Grillby's.

"Nice one," said Yakko.

They skipped through the snow and arrived at Papyrus' house.

"Helloooooooo Papyrus!"

Dot jumped into his arms.

"NYEH!" he exclaimed, catching her. "HELLO, DOT!"

She caressed his cheek.

"I missed ya~"

Papyrus blushed.

"ME TOO."

Meanwhile, Yakko and Wakko conversed with Undyne.

"Um, so, I have a favor to ask you. Uuuuh, I...I need you to deliver this letter. To Dr. Alphys."

She handed them the letter.

"Why can't ya do it yourself?" Wakko asked.

She blushed.

"Huh!? ...um, w-well…"

"Isn't it obvious?" said Yakko. "If she did it herself she'd fry to death. I mean, she passed out last time she chased us there!"

"Y-yeah, that's it! Hotland SUUUUCKS! I don't wanna have to go over there! So you're doing it for me. Oh, and if you read it...I'll KILL you. Thanks so much! You're the best!"

Papyrus, still carrying Dot, put in his two cents.

"UNDYNE WRITES A LOT OF LETTERS. BUT, SHE CAN NEVER SEEM TO FIND THE RIGHT WORDS. SO WHEN SHE GOES TO DELIVER THEM HERSELF...SHE ALWAYS QUITS SO SHE CAN GO BACK AND REWRITE. THAT'S WHY SHE ASKED YOU! BECAUSE YOU HAVE NO STANDARDS!"

The Warners chuckled.

"I mean," said Wakko, "he's not wrong."

"Come on, Dot!" said Yakko. "We gotta go."

"But we just got here!" she whined.

Yakko crossed his arms and tapped his foot impatiently. Dot rolled her eyes.

"Oh, alright."

She put her hands on Papyrus' cheeks and kissed him rather passionately, then jumped back to the ground.

"Buh-bye!"

Papyrus and Undyne waved as the Warners left. They turned to the path that took them to the conveyor belt carrying the ice and found a hooded riverperson with a cat-like boat sitting in the water at the dead end.

"Tra la la. Care for a ride?"

"Yeah," said Wakko, "thanks!"

The Warners hopped onto the boat.

"Where will we go today?"

"Hotland, please!" said Dot.

"Then we're off."

The cat-boat sprouted legs and ran off, leaving splashes behind as it took them to their destination.

"Tra la la," said the riverperson. "The angel is coming...Tra la la. Beware of the man who speaks in hands."

The cat-boat sunk its paws back into the water as they arrived in Hotland. The Warners got off the boat.

"Come again some time. Tra la la."

"Goodbyeeeeeeee riverperson!" said the Warners as they headed to Alphys' lab. Finding ways to avoid their fight with Asgore filled them with determination.