Chapter Twelve: Ghosts of the Past

Frisk thanked the Riverperson, and even offered some gold, but they politely said they had no need of it. Frisk returned to Alphys laboratory, and this time, the door wasn't locked. This made him happy, and he went inside. There was nothing out of place inside the lab, but it had a different feel. He looked around. "Alphys? You here?" he called out. No answer. He frowned and walked into the lab. He noticed a note on the floor. He stooped and picked it up. The handwriting was a bit hard to make out, but he managed:

Hey. Thanks for your help back there. You guys . . . your support means a lot to me. But, as difficult as it is for me to say this, you guys alone can't just make all my problems magically go away. I want to be a better person. I don't want to be afraid anymore. And for that to happen, I have to face my own mistakes. I'm going to start doing that right now. I want to be clear; this isn't anyone else's problem but my own. But, if you don't ever hear from me again, I want you all to know the truth. Enter the door to the north of this note. You all at least deserve to know what I did.

-Alphys

PS: Frisk, if you're reading this, the answer to your question is through the door.

Frisk looked up at the door, which swished open. He looked back down at the note, and set it down. He was worried, with how she phrased things. He entered the door, and found an elevator inside. He hit the button, and it began to hum. Frisk was startled when the elevator began to shake and rumble, warning alarms going off.

"Warning! Warning! Elevator losing power. EM tether stability lost. Altitude dropping." Frisk suddenly felt weightless as the elevator plummeted into the depths of the lab. He was thrown against the floor and blacked out.

"Manus amputauit!"

"Das sind keine duschen! Das sind gaskammern!"

"Erschieß sie! Erschießt sie alle!"

"No! Stop!"

"Get a rope!"

Frisk woke with a start. He sighed and rubbed his face. He got to his feet, and found the elevator didn't seem badly damaged. The doors were wide open. He pushed himself to his feet, and walked out into a new place. It was cold. Not like a meat locker, but still it was chill. He shivered a bit, but steeled himself as he ventured in. It was dim, and unlike the rest of the lab, had a grimy, old feeling to it. As he walked down the narrow hall, a monitor popped on in the wall. He blinked and read it.

Entry No. 1

This is it . . . time to get to work. The King has asked me to find a way to free us all, and that's what I'm going to do! Time to get studying that mirror . . .

Frisk was startled. The mirror! At last! He saw a second monitor, and hurried to read it.

Entry No. 2

The Barrier is locked by soul power. However, this power cannot be artificially created. But, the King thinks this mirror may hold the key. Without any human souls, this may be our only chance.

Frisk was excited as he moved on to the next monitor to read the next entry.

Entry No. 3

This mirror is incredibly powerful. The King doesn't really know where the mirror came from, but he said it was made by humans. That would explain my difficulties, as it has thus far, done nothing. Nothing, that is, except creep me out. There's something about that thing . . .

Before he moved on, he noticed that the entries were signed, but these were not signed by Dr. Alphys. They were signed by a "W.D Gaster". Frisk found that odd. Maybe this was Alphys' partner, or professor? He moved to read the next entry.

Entry No. 4

I had something of a breakthrough today, if you can call it that. I was frustrated, and said I wished I could find out the secrets of this mirror. I was shocked when it spoke! But, it said I "have not the right", and said no more. I couldn't get the reaction again, sadly. But what a discovery! The mirror is alive!

Frisk stared long and hard at the screen. Alive? That was something the legends never mentioned. Then again, almost nothing was known about it, so he wasn't too surprised, but it would certainly explain a lot. He hurried to read the next entry.

Entry No. 5

After my discovery, I told the King, who was pleased. I am now conducting experiments around the clock on the mirror. I know I can make another breakthrough on it! I have everything ready, and am going to try my greatest experiment yet. I'm going to try and talk to the mirror again. I hope this goes as well as I think.

Frisk was growing more and more excited with every entry he read. If the mirror really was down there in the lab, then his quest was finally at an end. His long, hard quest would finally end, after so long. He hurried down the hall, and found a locked room, labeled "Power Room", and it was locked with four, color-coded keys. He put this to the back of his mind, though, as finding out about the mirror was more important. He hurried down a hall, and found more monitors. They blinked on, and he excitedly read them.

Entry No. 6

This is it. Time to do what the King asked me to. After the accident in the lab, with the mirror, King Asgore asked me to try another approach to setting us free. He asked me to unleash the power of the soul.

Frisk stared. He noticed that this entry was signed by Alphys. Wait, what happened to the earlier one? He frowned and reread it. His eyes narrowed when he read about an "accident".

"So . . . something happened when this . . . Gaster was experimenting on the mirror," he mused. That would explain why Alphys was so upset. What kind of accident, though? Maybe the other entries would shed light on it? He moved and read the next one.

Entry No. 7

According to Gaster's notes, the Barrier is locked with soul power, which is what the human wizards used to make their spell. Since there were seven of them, the power of this spell is equal to seven human souls. According to Gaster, soul power cannot be made artificially, and only derive from what was once living. So, in order to create more, we'll have to use what we have, the souls of monsters . . .

Frisk stared at that. His eyes flicked to the other monitors. He felt an awful pit in his stomach, but continued to the next entry.

Entry No. 8

Extracting a soul from a living monster would require incredible power. Besides being highly impractical, it would instantly destroy the soul's host. And, unlike the persistent souls of humans, the souls of monsters disappear immediately upon death. If only I could make a monster's soul last.

Frisk was beginning to have a much better picture, not just of Alphys' research, but also why she was so hesitant for others to find out about it.

Entry No. 9

Oh. It's so horrible. What happened. I never knew. Oh, poor Asgore. His son, his only child . . . That horrible mirror! Now I know what happened to Gaster! That awful, awful thing! Oh, if only I had . . . If only I had found out what really happened. Then, the mirror wouldn't have. Oh, Asriel, Chara . . . Poor children . . .

Frisk was shocked, and stood staring at the screen. So, the mirror did something to the King's son, this "Asriel". That would explain a lot. Who, though, was Chara? He'd heard that name before, but he couldn't recall where. He moved to read the next entry.

Entry No. 10

I've done it. Using Gaster's blueprints, I was able to make a machine that will extract from human souls, what I believe is what gives them the strength to persist after death. I will call this power "Determination".

Frisk moved and read the next entry.

Entry No. 11

Asgore asked everyone for monsters that had "fallen down". Their bodies came in today. They're still comatose, and soon, they'll all turn to dust. But, what happens if I inject Determination into them? If their souls persist after death, then freedom may be within our grasp.

Frisk then came into a wider room. It looked a bit like a washing room. There were several sinks, mirrors, etc. It was dark, misty and gloomy. He investigated a room in the back, and found a slot for a key for the Power Room, but no key to be found. He did, though, find a note on the floor, mentioning something about the key dropped in a drain, but the handwriting was hard to make out. He went back out into the room, and looked at the sinks. He tested the faucets, and they seemed to work. When he turned on the third one, though, something that certainly wasn't water flowed out. He jumped back as the ooze took form, into something truly frightening, something like HR Giger would dream of.

They were like many faces melted together, with strange tails more like spinal columns than tails. He was shocked when his cell phone rang, and before he could pick it up, he heard static and then voices, all distorted and garbled, but he could make out enough to chill him to the bone:

"Come join us." He looked up at them. They didn't seem to be ghosts, as true ghosts had no bodies, and these clearly did. Frisk shook his head, backing away. "That's a shame . . ." They faded away. He sighed in relief.

"What . . . what was that? Where did that thing come from?" He sighed, and noticed a red key on the ground. He hurriedly scooped it up and put it on his keychain. He went back into the room, put the key in the slot and turned it, and hurried out of the room.

Frisk was even more unsettled. Not only by the revelations about the Mirror of Elde, but these things in the lab. Were they the product of the mirror, and the accident? What of this Gaster fellow? Were they somehow his creations, intentional or otherwise? There were so many questions that needed answers. Frisk returned to the main room, passed the Power Room, noting one of the four lights was one, and headed deeper into the labs. He found more monitors and entries on the walls.

Entry No. 12

Things aren't going well. None of the bodies have turned to dust, so I can't get the souls. I told the families I would give them the dust back for the funerals. People are calling me and asking what's going on. What do I do?

Entry No. 13

Oh my god! One of the bodies opened their eyes!

Frisk stared at that. Alphys . . . brought back the dead? That one genuinely shocked him. He kept moving, and found another large room, this one filled with beds, like a hospital. It was still misty and gloomy. He noticed a big bowl of dogfood in a corner. As Frisk walked through, his hand brushed a bed, and he felt something cold and metallic. He looked down, and found a yellow key. He carefully picked it up and put it on his keychain. It looked like it had been just left there. He went through a door into a long hallway, where there were mirrors, and, to his great surprise, flowers. Yellow flowers. The same kind he had seen elsewhere. There was a monitor with several entries.

Entry No. 14

We'll need a vessel to wield the monster souls when the time comes. After all, a monster cannot absorb the souls of other monsters, just as a human cannot absorb other human souls. So, then . . . what about something that is neither human, nor monster?

Entry No. 15

I've chosen a candidate. I haven't told Asgore yet, because I want it to be a surprise. In the center of his garden, there's something special. The first golden flower, that grew before all the others. A flower from the surface. It appeared just before the Queen left. I wonder . . . what happens when something without a soul gains the will to live?

Entry No. 16

Experiments on the vessel are a failure. It doesn't seem to be any different from the control cases. Whatever. It's a hassle, anyways. The seeds stick to you and won't let go.

Frisk looked at the golden flowers, and wondered, thinking back to a certain flower. Could it be? He glanced at the flowers in a bed of dirt. That would certainly make sense. Frisk walked down the hall, past the mirrors, not at all paying attention, until, much to his shock, something seemed to jump out of the mirror. He fell backwards out of surprise. Like the other thing, this one seemed to be a fusion of several monsters, and he could see a few of them, but it looked like an odd bird in overall form. He looked at him, it's large, single eye fixing on him. It took a few shaky steps forward. He stood up, trying to be slow and careful. He carefully raised his hand.

"Peace be with you," he said softly. It seemed to take notice of this, and stopped. It looked at him, blinked, and then seemed to vanish. With a soft sigh, he continued down the hall. He found the next keyhole, but this one was blue, not yellow. He headed back out, through the bedroom, and found more monitors.

Entry No. 17

At first, I thought nothing was happening. I injected everyone with Determination, but nothing happened. I want this to work. It has to work! Then, one of the bodies opened their eyes! I thought they were all goners, but now, they're up, walking around and talking like nothing's wrong.

While this should have sounded happy, Frisk felt something, a pinch in his gut at this.

Entry No. 18

Now that Mettaton's made it big, he never talks to me anymore. Except to ask when I'm going to finish his body. But I'm afraid that if I finish his body, he won't need me anymore, and we'll never be friends again. That aside, every time I work on it, I get all sweaty.

That made Frisk smile sadly. He had a much better understanding of Alphys. He looked at the next entry.

Entry No. 19

It looks like this research is a dead end. But, at least we got a happy ending out of it! The families are going to be so happy to have their loved ones back! While Asgore was a bit disappointed, he was so happy about the news! I returned the souls to him, and put the vessel back in his garden. I called all the families and told them everyone's alive. I'll send everyone home tomorrow.

Frisk sighed, and knew it likely didn't have as happy an ending as that. He still had plenty of the lab left to visit, and he was sure, more to discover. He turned right, and went down the hall. He found a huge wall of fans. He saw a switch, and smiled lightly. If it could clear some of the mist, and help him see, why not? He walked forward and flipped the switch. The wall of fans, each as big as he was, began to hum and whir, the air clearing up. He smiled, but it disappeared when he saw what was clinging to the ceiling.

A huge, white form dropped down. Frisk backed up against the wall as it came closer. With the narrow hall, there was no room to maneuver, no room to dodge. His only hope was to peacefully end the encounter. Frisk noticed many dog-like qualities. The ears of the creature perked up, and it made a whining sound. He very gently offered his hand for it to sniff, even though it had a hole where a face should be. It sniffed and whined. He gently petted it, and it wagged its tail. Frisk smiled sadly at the being before him. The legs all looked like they had been different dogs at one point. It nuzzled its head against him, but Frisk only smiled as he petted it. The poor thing didn't want to hurt him, that was clear. It curled into a large ball on the floor, and began to snore before vanishing. Frisk went back down the hall the other way, and found another entry in the journals of this bizarre place.

Entry No. 20

No. No, no, no, no, no! This can't be happening!

Frisk sighed and continued on. He saw an open doorway, and carefully went in. He saw movement behind a curtain in what seemed to be a shower room. "Hello? Anyone there?" he called out. There was no response. He came closer, and the movement stopped and faded. He pulled back the curtain, and found nothing but a green key laying in the bottom of the shower. He knelt, put it on the keychain, and headed back out. He next came into a large room with a huge, strange machine in the middle of the room. It looked like an odd skull, reminding him almost of a deer's skull in some ways. There was a door nearby, which he headed for. Frisk then found himself in a room with a large TV, and shelves of what looked like VHS tapes. There were a few next to the player. They were labeled with numbers. He glanced at the TV, then the player. The green power lights for both were on. He carefully took the tape numbered "One", and put it into the player. The player whirred and there was a tiny bit of static as the word "Play" was displayed on the screen.

"Pssst. Gorey, wake up." He snapped to attention. That was Toriel's voice! There was a moan, and a deep voice. The screen stayed black, however.

"Mmm? What is it, dear? And why do you have a camera?" The voice was very deep and masculine. There was a giggle from Toriel.

"Shush! I want to get your reaction. Gorey, dearest, what's my favorite vegetable?"

"Um, carrots, right?"

"No, no, no! My favorite vegetable is Eda-Mom-e! Get it?" she giggled. There was a tired groan.

"Go back to bed, dear. There were more giggles from Toriel.

"Not yet. If I were a dog, what breed would I be?" There was another tired groan.

"I don't know. What breed would you be?"

"I'd be a Momeranian!" This got a hearty, deep laugh.

"That's a good one! You sure are excited to have this child. Keep this up, and one day you could become a famous Momedian!" There was silence.

"Well, I'm going to bed."

"Come on, Tori! That one was funny!"

"I know. I was just teasing. Goodnight, dear."

"Goodnight, honey.

"Oh, maybe it's too dark for the video to come out . . ." The tape then ended. Frisk was surprised at all of it. He ejected the tape, put it back, and put in the next one. Again, like before, the screen was black, but he could hear birds singing. It sounded like a park, or forest.

"Okay, Chara, are you ready? Do your creepy face!" Frisk blinked. It was the voice of a child, a little boy. It sounded familiar, but from where? And Chara? He had heard the name before, he was sure. There was a scared yelp from the video. Then there was giggling, and he thought he heard the voice of a girl, somewhere. "Oh, wait a minute! I had the lens cap on!" There was something said, but it was barely heard. "What? You're not gonna do it again? Come on! Quit tricking me!" the boy giggled and the tape ended. Frisk ejected it and put in the next one.

"That must've been the King's son. Asriel," Frisk mused. As before, the screen was black, but he heard more birds singing, and a slight breeze.

"Howdy, Chara! Smile for the camera! Ha! This time, I got you! I left the lens cap on . . . on purpose! Now you're smiling for no reason!" Asriel giggled. He heard that soft, female child's voice again, but it was hard to make out, Frisk straining to hear, but the only word he could make out was "remember". "Huh? Yeah, I remember. Huh? Yeah, that big mirror? Yeah, I know about it. Dad says it's always been here. What? Turn off the camera? Ok . . ." The tape ended. This had Frisk's attention. He carefully replaced the tape and put in the next one.

The screen stayed black as before, but he could hear birds chirping, and guessed this was close to the previous tape in terms of when it was made. "I . . .I don't like this idea, Chara. Dad said the mirror could be . . .What? No, I . . .I'm not. Big kids don't cry." Frisk could hear distress in Asriel's voice. He once again heard that soft, female child's voice, but could hardly make out a word, other than the word "scared". "Yeah. You're right. No. I'd never doubt you, Chara! Never! Yeah, we'll be strong. We'll free everyone. I know where dad keeps the key. I'll go get it . . ." Frisk sighed as he ejected the tape and put it back. He looked at the fifth and final tape and put it into the machine. One last time, the screen was black, but this time, he could hear sounds like humming machinery.

"Chara, can you hear me? We want you to wake up. Please wake up . . ." That was Toriel's voice.

"Chara! You have to stay determined! You can't give up! Please! You're the future of humans and monsters!" That deep voice, it had to be Asgore.

"Chara. Please. Please wake up. I . . . I don't like this plan anymore. What? What's Plan B? What? But . . . no. I said I'd never doubt you. Six, right? We just need six. We'll get them together . . ." The final tape ended. Frisk sat back and thought, carefully putting all the pieces together, but the picture was still incomplete. He stood up and headed out of the AV room, but noted the keyhole in the wall. There was also another monitor with a data entry on it. He walked up and read it.

Entry No. 21

Monsters' physical forms can't handle Determination like humans' can. With too much Determination, our bodies begin to break down. Everyone's melted together.

Frisk sighed, now having a firm answer as to just what these creatures were. They were the results of Alphys experiments with Determination extracted from the captured human souls. It seemed, though, it was not at all intentional on her part, and all indications were, she was as surprised as he was. He spared the TV one last look, and headed out.

Frisk was deep in thought, so he didn't notice something forming a puddle near the large, skull-like machine. He came very close to stepping in it, but that was close enough for it to grab his leg with a viselike grip. He yelped as the creature formed, with large, angry eyes, big teeth, and a body that was heavily muscled.

"Welcome to my hell," it hissed. Frisk jerked his leg out of its grip, but it got in front of him, stopping him from escaping. "Do you think I'm pretty?" it hissed. Frisk tried to stay calm.

"Yes. Very much so."

"Liar!" it hissed and bared its large teeth more, storming after him. Frisk backed away. This wasn't good. This one wasn't going to back down or go peacefully. As it was about to pounce, a large ball of ice impacted it and shattered. It hissed and shrieked. Frisk looked up at it retreated, and he saw another one of these creatures. These Amalgamates. This one, though, was far more familiar. It was a Snowdrake, but this one had what looked like turnips for eyes, melted legs, and one true eye on the top of its head.

"Mean . . . go . . . away . . ." it moaned in a female voice. The other creature fled. Frisk got up and looked at it.

"Thank you," he said.

"Kind . . . child. Miss . . . my . . . son . . ." Frisk looked at her.

"Wait a minute. Your son. Does he tell jokes?" She perked up.

"Yesss . . . Sno . . .wy." Frisk could hardly believe it. He felt like he was stabbed in the chest.

"You're son's an . . . ice guy." She gave a soft chortle.

"Sno . . .wy." Frisk felt tears.

"They . . . they miss you." She looked sad. Frisk looked around. "Here, follow me, and I'll get you out of . . ." when he looked back, she was gone. He heaved a heavy sigh. He looked up at the huge machine and checked the console. It was the Determination Extraction machine. Frisk looked at it, then headed into the next room.

In the next room, there were several entries in the walls. Frisk walked up and read them.

Entry No. 22

The families keep calling to ask when everyone is coming home. What am I supposed to say? I don't even answer the phone anymore.

Entry No. 23

Asgore called and left five messages today, four about everyone being angry. One was about a cute teacup he found that looks like me. Thanks, Asgore. At least there's something good in this mess.

Entry No 24

I spend all my time at the garbage dump, now. It's my element.

Frisk frowned as he moved through the room, and found a key-holder, that had a blue key hanging from it. He took it, headed into the room, and put the green key in and turned it. He then headed back through the lab, carefully watching his steps, and unlocked the rest of the locks. He returned to the main room, and the door to the Power Room was finally unlocked. He entered, and found a large elevator with two doors. It was powered down at the moment, so he continued through. He found a couple more monitors in the next hall, but as the power was off, they were not on. He continued into the next room, and, sure enough, there was a huge circuit breaker. He gave a soft sigh as he stepped over, and flipped the massive lever up to turn the power back on. He frowned when he felt the temperature in the room drop. He could see his own breath. He heard a noise, and whirled. His eyes widened.

All of the Amalgamates were in the room, coming closer. He had seen most of them, but some he hadn't, and those didn't look friendly. He glanced around. This wasn't looking good. Calming and befriending them one at a time wasn't too hard, but all at once? This could be a problem. They cackled as they came closer.

"Hey! Stop!" called a familiar voice. He was surprised when Alphys came running in. "I got you guys some food, okay!" To his surprise, they left. "Sorry about that. They get kind of sassy if they don't get fed on time." He looked at her.

"They wanted to eat me?" She looked horrified.

"No! No, no, no! They probably thought you had something for them." Frisk sighed with relief. "The power went out, and I've been trying to get it back on! But, it seems like you were one step ahead of me. I know it was probably inconvenient for you, but thanks for coming to back me up." Frisk sighed and nodded his head.

"That's what friends do, Alphys. They help each other. When I read your note, about you not coming back . . ."

"Oh, it wasn't because of these guys or anything! I was . . ." She looked down at the floor. "Afraid, that I wouldn't have the courage to tell the truth. That I might run away or do something . . . cowardly." Frisk watched her for a few moments.

"True courage doesn't mean you're not scared, Alphys. It means doing what you're afraid to do." She looked up at him. She smiled softly, then looked back down at the floor.

"I suppose you deserve an explanation. You deserve to know. As you probably already know, King Asgore hired me to research the nature of souls, in order to find a way to break the Barrier."

"But, before that, they were researching the Mirror of Elde." She looked at him briefly, then back to the floor.

"Yes. That was Worman Derrick Gaster, my teacher. He was the most brilliant monster scientist who ever lived. He was a genius! He designed and built the Core!" She paced as she spoke, not looking at Frisk. "Then, Asgore asked him to research the mirror. At first, it confounded even him. Then, he made a breakthough. He was so excited. Then, something horrible happened." Frisk saw the anguish on her face. "Nobody knows what really happened, but there was a terrible explosion, and a good part of the lab was destroyed. They never found anything of Gaster, not even dust. The mirror, though, wasn't even scratched!" Frisk watched as she paced back and forth, recalling what had happened. "After that, Asgore had the mirror locked in the castle again, to keep it safe. We really thought, at that time, that it was an accident in the lab, that some machine or something had malfunctioned. But then . . . then . . . Oh," Alphys couldn't finish, her voice breaking.

"The mirror killed Chara, didn't it?" Alphys looked up at him, and nodded sadly.

"After that, Asgore was so angry, he grabbed the mirror and threw it at the Barrier. It passed right through, and it hasn't been seen since." Frisk sighed heavily at this. Alphys tugged and twisted the hem of her lab coat. "So, you see? The Mirror of Elde isn't even in the Underground anymore. You'd have to get past the Barrier. But, the only way you could do that . . . is with a monster's soul, as well as yours." Frisk stared at her. She looked up at Frisk, her eyes truly sad. "For you to leave, you'd have to kill Asgore, and take his soul." Frisk ran his hand through his hair. "After that, Asgore hired me to research human souls, and possibly find a way to break the Barrier. If we could gather enough monster souls, we would have enough to equal a human one. Or, make them more powerful. Then, we wouldn't need a seventh human soul." Frisk smiled sadly at her.

"But that didn't pan out well, did it?" She shook her head.

"Yes. And, as you already know, after my experiments with Determination failed, those were the result. It hurt, to know their families missed them, and to know how disappointed and sad they would be. I . . . I couldn't bear to do that to them." Frisk could hear the genuine heart and care in her voice.

"They deserve to know." Alphys nodded.

"You're right."

"Mrs. Snowdrake misses her son and husband, and I know they miss her a lot. At the very least, they can have one, final goodbye. And that's worth more than all the gold, jewels, wealth and power in all the world." She looked up at him, the power he said those words with, no matter how calm his voice. She smiled.

"You're right! That's why, I'm going to tell everyone the truth. It will be hard, but I'll do my best. I know I'll still struggle, and screw things up, but, at least I have friends to fall back on." She looked at him. "Friends like you." Frisk smiled and hugged her. She pulled back and gave a genuine smile. "Time to be honest. I'm going to go take them all home!" Frisk nodded. Alphys moved to leave.

"Alphys!" She stopped and looked back. Frisk sighed softly, looking conflicted. He looked up at her. "Can you get a message to the Ruins for me?" he asked. She looked surprised.

"The Ruins? They've been locked for years." Frisk smiled sadly.

"Someone precious to me is there. Can you get a message to her?" Alphys looked unsure.

"Um, well, I can try?" He nodded. It would have to suffice.

"Please tell Toriel . . . That I'll always love her, and I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise." Alphys stared at him as a single tear streamed down his face. "Do that, and we'll call it all even, okay?"

"Oh, Frisk . . ." He smiled half-heartedly and waved at her.

"Ah, get going, before you lose your nerve." She watched him for a moment. Mrs. Drake slowly walked in, looking at Alphys.

"Sno . . .wy?" Alphys looked at her, then to Frisk. The human boy nodded to her. Alphys smiled and gently led Mrs' Drake down the hall.

"Let's get you home." Frisk was left alone, in so many ways. His mind was whirling with thoughts and emotions. He sighed heavily and straightened his back. He turned and headed for the elevator. Frisk noticed that the monitors were back on, but one was cracked. The other though, had the final entry, and what it said confirmed his suspicions:

Entry No. 25

The flower's gone.

With all of it settled, Frisk stepped into the elevator. He was surprised when his cell phone rang. He answered it, and heard a voice he didn't recognize. It was the voice of a man. Not as deep as Asgore's, but certainly male.

"Chara? Are you there? It's been a long time, hasn't it? But you've done well. Thanks to you, everything has fallen into place. Chara . . . see you soon." The doors of the elevator shut, and it began to rise. The display near the buttons displayed the destination: New Home. Frisk took a deep breath. This was it, he was finally reaching the end of the quest. One way or another, it was going to end. He just wished that he could see Toriel, one last time. The elevator stopped, and the doors opened. Frisk faced the doors, and destiny, his Determination never wavering.

"Who wants to live forever?" he said as he walked into the light.