"5000. 5001. 5002. 5003..."
He waited. One minute. Many hours. An eternity? Frisk had no way of knowing that. Here, there was nothing to clearly define the passage of time. The child remained there, trapped in this unfathomable void.
"6050. 6051. 6052. 6053..."
The light that his Soul emitted gave color to this place. His narrowed eyes remained stubbornly fixed on it, contemplating its beats as Frisk counted them to occupy himself, only by moving his mouth. Resting chin on his crossed arms, Frisk continued.
"7900. 7901. 7902. 7903..."
This... it was starting to take a long time. He had enough. Why didn't anyone come get him?
"8500 *sniff. 8501. 8502. 8503... *cry"
He was so alone.
Afraid.
Lost.
Someone...anyone. Please, come.
"9996. 9997. 9998..."
And...
"9999"
A pulsation, stronger than the previous ones, shook the Red Soul. Frisk stopped counting and suddenly raised his head, spying on the darkness. He felt like... a presence, and it made react the Soul.
His throat tightened, hoping he would see a familiar face appear.
Was it Asgore? Papyrus? Undyne? Or Sans?
The beats grew faster, more powerful, and the glow of the Soul intensified. Frisk grabbed it, pulling closer to him as he got onto his legs. At first relieved, a feeling of fear rose in the child by his failure to recognize what was coming.
"Hey oh? Who is here ?"
There was no response, but two luminous circles appeared in front of him; then, a purplish light sparkled, followed by a shrill, bestial and intimidating noise.
GWOOO-
Danger signals echoed in Frisk's mind, awakening in him a visceral fear that told him to |FLEE| ❤ immediately. But his legs refused to obey: his Soul could not trigger the action.
Failed. Failed. Failed.
The beam grew larger than him, almost charged. This thing was going to attack!
"No, no, no," panicked Frisk, looking for a way out. He was still paralyzed: what should he do?
Give me control, partner. I can get us out of this.
"Wh-Who spoke?" exclaimed the child, frightened to hear this childish voice coming out of his head.
We don't have time anymore. Do what I tell you, or we die here together. No way to RESET in this kind of place.
Even though he didn't trust this stranger, his warning made his blood run cold. He... couldn't be resurrected here?
Exact. This thing is going to blast you any second. You can't negotiate with that. Nor its owner, who will arrive soon.
"Owner ?" Frisk repeated, more lost.
ZAAAP!
Suddenly, a ray of energy crossed the space between them. It illuminated a gigantic floating crimson skull, which looked exactly like the True Laboratory's DT Extractor, whose mouth full of small, sharp fangs had fired this terrible attack. Just in time, the Soul succeeds in forcing the previously impossible option.
|FLEE| ❤
He dove to the side: the line passed a finger of his shoe. Not wasting precious seconds, Frisk fled the scene as he heard the creature roar in anger. When he glanced, it followed him through the air and charged again.
Flee ? Useless. You won't last forever, and it will never get tired.
"Never mind ! I have to find a solution." Frisk said before shouting, as he narrowly avoided another ray that razed his sweater.
The solution ? You already know it, partner: give me your place, and I'll get rid of this nuisance.
In his mind, an evil and cruel smile, abnormally wide, completed this statement. Continuing to run, Frisk rejected this image with all his might and refused to hurt anyone. He just had to avoid this thing, and find a way to resolve this problem peacefully. He had always managed to do the right thing, just like what his friends had taught him. He would not fail.
A mocking and distorted laugh followed his thought, and the voice faded.
Good luck, then. Let's see how long you can last before begging me to save us.
-oOo-
King Asgore lingered in the halls, after he left the reception room following his discussion with Senator Jordan. The Boss Monster had left the scene, just when this man had revealed his knowledge. He thought about what the human had said about this famous village. Did he know about his son, Asriel? The king ignored it. He had preferred not to expose himself any further, but the fear that the unscrupulous politician would discover that his child and the monster from fifty years ago were one and the same terrified him.
I have to warn Tori, and report this conversation to her when we get back, Asgore decided as he arrived where he would find everyone. However, what he saw there quickly brought him out of his dark preoccupations.
His thick eyebrows reached the top of his head, and his mouth dropped at the unrealistic scene happening under his muzzle.
"What by the Angel...?"
"Ngaaah! I'm going to tear down this door of doom!"
In front of him, a completely crazy and unleashed Undyne brandished a spear, with the obvious intention of driving it into the wood after her multiple failures to open it. Papyrus and the cleaning lady who came earlier were holding her tightly to prevent her from carrying out her threat, and they were clearly struggling to hold her back.
"UNDYNE, CALM DOWN! WE CAN'T BREAK DOORS HERE!
"Madam, please calm down! I'll have a locksmith come as soon as possible!"
"Let me go, dammit ! I'm going...Asgore!" exclaimed Undyne who saw her sovereign, and she strode towards him, dragging her jailers. "Please let me force it: the door is blocked and Frisk doesn't answer, no matter how many times we call him."
"NONE OF US CAN OPEN IT! IT'S COMPLETELY BLOCKED." Papyrus added, as the monarch became devastated at this news.
They all moved aside to let the big monster pass, who stood facing the door and in turn tried to open it by the handle, more or less intact after the captain had worked hard on it.
Nothing. The lock did not give way as with previous attempts.
On the other hand, Asgore thought as he pressed a velvet paw to the wood. He closed his eyes, eyelids furrowing and his breathing becoming harsh as he focused on the sensation tickling his pads. The three spectators behind him, Papyrus, Undyne and the human, remained silent so as not to disturb him.
When he withdrew, his face had become serious. "The door has been bewitched," he declared to everyone's amazement, eliciting a more pronounced reaction from the cleaning lady. "Frisk is still inside: destroying the passage could be risky. So I'll undo the spell myself.
"HOW ?" Papyrus asked him, not knowing how the king could achieve this.
In response, Asgore placed both hands on the door, as if pushing. Growling softly, the king let his magic flow from his being from the contact with the object. A vibration was heard, and a glow appeared around the large goat.
Under his abundant fur, he was sweating profusely. Unlike his ex-wife, Toriel, Asgore was not an expert in spells. To undo it, he would have to saturate it with his own magic to successfully break it. The cost of energy was very high; his breathing became heavy, and fatigue overwhelmed him.
But he would hold on: for Frisk's safety, Asgore would not weaken!
-oOo-
"Please stop attacking! Let's talk instead!" Frisk begged the angry skull that relentlessly persecuted him.
Several devastating rays of light had been on the verge of pulverizing him, getting closer to succeeding with each try. The voice in his mind had gone silent, as if it had never existed.
The child no longer knew what to do: he was less and less alert, and this killing machine was completely insensitive to his calls. What should he do?
"Asgore, Papyrus, Undyne! Please come and help me!" he screamed in despair as his phone crackled in his ear.
GWOOO-
Not yet ! Frisk turned around, just as the bloodthirsty creature projected its burst of purple light.
ZAAAP!
Unable to avoid it entirely, the child was engulfed by the projection, and his Soul struck by the ray that struck his side. Unbearable, excruciating pain followed, and then the explosion sent Frisk flying far back.
*Fall
Loss to 12/20 HP
Frisk panted as he held his throbbing, injured and fractured Soul towards the edge as the number flashed in his vision.
His health bar had hurt that much after this single attack that had grazed him?!
His body had not recovered from the attack; the child tried to get up, but the pain was too strong and he fell again. Above, the skull coldly watched its prey drag itself pitifully along the ground in an attempt to escape. Frisk saw the creature approaching slowly, like a predator toying with its cornered victim. His growl, like a sadistic and victorious laugh, pierced his ears.
I lost. I can't run away anymore. I am scared.
Certainty that he was going to die overwhelmed him. Never before in the Underground, no matter how many times the monsters defeated him, this had happened. From the depths of his being, he knew that the voice had spoken the truth. He wouldn't get a second chance. His eyes grew wide, and terrified tears fell down his cheeks at the realization.
No, I don't want ! Not now ! Not after all this!
Faces appeared: those of his family and friends. Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, Mettaton, MK, Asgore, Toriel, Asriel. So many others... as well as three human silhouettes who looked at him smiling behind a halo of light. What...what are they doing here? Frisk wondered, as their appearance at this unexpected moment brought back old memories from before his fall. His true heart sank painfully.
GWOOO-
Suddenly, the bodyless crimson skull appeared behind this vision, now towering over him and the energy charge almost complete, ready to deliver the final blow.
"Please, stop !" Frisk begged, refusing the dire fate that was about to befall him.
|FLEE| ❤
|FLEE| ❤
|FLEE| ❤
|F-| ❤
ZAA-
No ! "STOP IT NOW!"
|FIGHT|🔪
️
Slash !
-oOo-
"Hold on, I'm almost there," Asgore warned Papyrus and Undyne, still behind as the king finally managed to make the spell wear off.
In the end, Asgore backed away from the door after turning the handle, staggering as Undyne caught him before he fell. The exhausted goat thanked his former student, as she helped him stand upright.
"Easy, you're on your knees."
"It's nothing, don't worry. I'll get over it quickly," he smiled humorously, while his muscles screamed with exhaustion.
He preferred not to worry about it, even though the room where Frisk was located was accessible. It was dark, the lights being out; however, this did not bother any of the monsters, accustomed to the lack of light underground. When his vision quickly adjusted, Asgore entered first, followed by his loyal guards, and inspected the furnished room. Immediately, his eyes spotted a small form on the ground, lying on its back and inert. He thought his Soul was going to shatter, and those of the others as well, while the monsters ran to the human, crying with one voice:
"FRISK!" First, the king of the Underground collapsed next to the inanimate child and took him in his arms ; he called him again, but the little human didn't react to his name, his head rolling to the side and his chest motionless.
Panic, Asgore did not pay attention to the commotion of the others around them, just as horrified as he was, and he leaned down to perceiv the slightest sign of life. Please, no. Not this, not again. Please, Angel, let him breathe !
After several agonizing seconds, he heard it: a faint breath coming from him. Tears of immense relief fell from his eyelids, many of them getting lost in his beard because he was so grateful. For a long time, he rocked the young human child, stroking one of his round cheeks with an inch. He prayed to the Angel and paid homage to their mercy, while his large snout delicately brushed against Frisk's forehead.
While the king was looking after him, no one dared to disturb them. After a while, however, having respectfully allowed it to do so for a reasonable period, Undyne caught the attention of her king. She was also impacted by the sequence of events, although the fish monster quickly took charge and, without taking her eye off Frisk, said to Asgore:
"I asked Papyrus to call Alphys. He went to start the car so we could leave straight away. We better get going."
Asgore nodded, only now noticing that the skeleton had left the scene and appreciating their initiative. Delicately, he carefully placed Frisk against him, not knowing if he was injured, so that the child rested entirely on his arm comfortably. The king gave the signal, then he and Undyne left the embassy without further delay with the unconscious young child.
-oOo-
From the window, Senator Jordan watched the monsters' car speed away from the building, down the road toward the mountains where they lived.
"Judging their expressions, they seemed to be on an emergency," he noted mockingly, his sharp lips stretching into a satisfied expression. "So I guess your plan failed, didn't it?" He was speaking to the other person, lurking in the shadows.
Leaning towards the object that the individual in the blouse held preciously in his hands, he shook his head casually, waving his triangular ears.
"The king was quicker than expected to break the enchantment. The child managed to buy enough time to escape the Void Dimension, and the Destructor lost track of him while holding him." His smile, hidden in the shadows, stretched a little further as his claws caressed his face-like property. "But that doesn't change anything. Our project continues to move forward, and all the pieces are ready; shortly we will be able to take the next step."
The senator nodded silently, pinning the mysterious creature with his calculating gaze.
"I expect you to keep all your other commitments to me. In exchange for revealing the involvement of this arrogant monster's son in the attack on the village, I kept this creature here to while the ambassador was trapped in this room. Now I want you to give me the means necessary to rid the Surface of these loathsome vermin."
"Don't worry, your invaluable help will not be forgotten. Our master is very grateful to you, and will make sure to repay his debt to you" promised the being, bending excessively before retreating into the darkness, then disappeared.
The politician remained the last occupant of the office, greatly relieved that he was gone. Associating with a monster repelled him; however, he recognized that it was a very useful tool. Today, Senator Jordan had exposed a certain weakness in the monsters, which could be exploited at the opportune moment.
He exulted.