Howdy! I know I'm a few days late, but the holidays are a busy time and I've been kind of dealing with a lot of things lately. In light of that, I'd like to make an announcement.
For the month of January, I will be taking a brief break from writing. The next DoubleTale update, chapter 36, will be posted February first. I'm sure you can all understand (You guys are always incredibly understanding and it warms my heart-) that I've been running myself pretty thin lately and really just need some time to relax. Don't worry, I'll still be brainstorming plenty for this story, and the chapter will be ready on the 1st of February.
Now, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and I really hope you're kind enough to leave your thoughts below because I'm very excited to see what you all think of this chapter!
Thanks go to Zack Frost, Wingah, CrystalGamer82, WhoWritesThisCrap, saltythebear, Genowar, Jack54311, Skele, and Linki.
(Rip in peace my mans 10burgers who didn't get the chance to review. I remember them saying they wanted to be in every beginning author's note though, so I'll mention them anyway to keep their dream alive. :) )
Disclaimer: I do not own Undertale.
"... Ow."
I leaned back instinctively, feeling cold sweat start to leak from my forehead. Character was less hesitant, however, stomping right towards me.
"So what was that about intricate plans, tough guy?" Their lips curled upwards, murder shining in those ruby peepers. "You got a fail safe for us to thwart or should we just start breaking your bones now?"
"Uhh..." I gulped, my eyes narrowing while my hands slowly clenched to fists. "Didn't really have time to plan more than one step ahead."
"Right. Figured." They didn't look the least bit worried. In fact, they were at ease, strolling towards me leisurely while my legs struggled to move. "See, Angel, we know just as much about you as you do."
"Flattering." I responded bitterly, teeth grinding as I lowered into a fighting stance. My calculating emerald orbs watched their every movement, waiting for an opening that was less than predictable. My brain ran a mile a minute, rapidly formulating plans and ideas that always ended with "No, fuck, that won't work".
"We know you're an 'intricate plan' kinda guy." Smirking with all the confidence in the world to fuel their ego, Character tilted their head to the side, resting their hands in their pockets. "We know you like to have the first move."
I snarled suddenly, my wings beating and launching me forward. There had only been about eight feet between me n' them, the lack of distance hopefully stealing their reaction time. I cocked back my left fist, which red smoke began to steam from just as I whipped my knuckles forward, crimson flames igniting around my left eye.
SLAP.
It was a deafening noise, but pathetic all the same. The force behind my punch, all that power it packed, added up to just a meaty slap when my fist connected with the palm of Character's hand.
"Erg-!" I growled, eyes wincing when their fingers wrapped shut around my fist, locking me into their grasp with iron force. I was staring Character in the face now, up close and personal. I watched their smile curl even further, and that inspired both wrath and anxiety in my DETERMINED soul.
"And we know you like to punch."
Chapter 35: Dear Doppelganger
"I'm like... Really strong n'stuff."
Hello World by SharaX began playing.
On that note, Character yanked me forward by the fist, smashing their knee into my stomach and making me double over, my eyes snapping open wide. They kept a vice grip on my hand, using it to yank me back up straight before tossing me down chin first into their knee, static pain running through my teeth to my brain as they released me, and I stumbled back a step or two, eyes clenching shut tight.
With my eyes shut, I didn't see Character jump up, spin, and slam a kick into my abdomen. As the force knocked me off my feet and the wind out of my lungs, my stunned orbs snapped back open while I launched back through the air.
Clenching my teeth, I flipped in air, landing on all fours and skidding back over the tar of the road I had been sailing over. As I slipped backwards, my fingertips traced ink along the pavement, which immediately spiraled up and raced to skewer Character. The unholy fusion didn't seem the least bit worried however, extending one arm to the wave of black death that approached and letting an arch of three Beat Blasters appear over their head.
White fire exploded free with the blaring of the blasters, and I was quick to wave my wings and launch myself into the sky. My ink-based assault was wiped away by Character's blast in an instant, and the beam exploded past where I'd been standing previously.
Character bent at the knees to jump into the sky after me, when an orange arrow appeared on the earth beneath them, pointing behind them. A sudden blast of force sent the fusion firing backwards, their feet skidding over the earth while their expression tightened with irritation.
Swiftly they reached out, ink lashing from their fingertips and clawing into the earth. This quickly slowed them to a stop, but just as they managed to plant their feet they were ducking under a sweeping kick at their head.
Chara spun through the kick, landing with bent knees face to face with Character. Their face contorted in a snarl, and they lunged forward, slashing diagonally up at Character, who was quick to lean back out of the way. As they did, they bent their elbow and clenched their fist tight to their side before jabbing with bone crushing force out at Chara, who swiftly tilted their head to the side, the force of the punch sailing over their shoulder sending their hair whipping back. They didn't seem to notice however, entirely focused on the task at hand. Chara were quick to stab over Character's still extended arm and at their head, but the fusion was faster, throwing their extended arm up and slapping Chara's stab off it's mark while simultaneously knocking them off their balance.
A Tough Glove appeared on Character's free hand, and they jabbed directly into Chara's abdomen with enough force to send them hunching over and the air exploding out of their lungs.
Their knees threatening to buckle, Chara remained doubled over, slowly stumbling back while they wrapped their arms around their screaming abdomen. Character wasted none of the time Chara gave them, stamping their foot and making the earth split open, an eraser blasting from under them at an angle and smashing into Chara. The force crashed through them, sending them flinging up into the air.
"Chara!" I shouted with surprise, my wings flapping and launching me into their arch. They crashed into me back first, and I winced, pinion's flexing and catching wind, slowing us to a stop while I wrapped my arms around their diaphragm to keep them from falling to the ground below.
"You okay?" I asked, looking at them over their shoulder. Growling, they used the back of their fist to wipe away the blood that trickled from the corner of their mouth down their chin.
"I'm fine!" Chara snarled defensively, struggling out of my grasp and dropping down to the ground below.
They hit the ground running, immediately sprinting back towards Character and yanking back their blade. As they stabbed forward however, Character deflected their knife with their own sharpened steel, dinging Chara's stab off base and knocking their arm to the right. They spun through, however, dropping down and sweeping their leg at Character's ankles, only for the fusion to jump high into the air.
Chara growled with frustration as Character left their range, before swiftly pushing from their hands when they felt a rumble in the ground beneath them. Just as they sprung from where they'd been, pens erupted, jabbing into the empty air.
Character's eyes narrowed with some aggravation at their failed attack, before a "Ping!" resounded, and they felt gravity yank them by the now blue soul towards the concrete below. Teeth grinding they landed on their feet, but had to bend and crouch while they fought back against the invisible power shoving them downward.
Character's head turned so ominously slowly that Future thought their neck was gonna creak. Those crimson eyes settled on him, but he refused to hesitate, whipping his arm to the left and throwing Character off their feet, sending them blasting through the front window of the hardly standing storefront at their side. The already cracked glass shattered to razor sharp shards, and Character disappeared into the shadows of the abandoned building.
Quickly Future's bracer changed from a blue glow to a gold one, and as he reached out towards the building, the sky began to fill with glowing yellow orbs. Soon, the area was illuminated in a blond hue, and JUST bolts clouded the sky around the husk of a building Character had been whipped into.
Future clenched his fist then, and the blasts rained from above. They exploded through the stone, sent the structure crumbling down around Character with Future's vicious barrage. Soon, the gold hue left the sky, and the king watched with anxious eyes for any movement in the now smoking pile of rubble.
As the dust settled, and the pebbles that tumbled from the downed walls they once stood proud with trickled to a stop, our anxieties were confirmed. Streams of red light beamed from within at first, before a flash of blinding power blasted out from the depths of the destruction. The wave of force sent gale winds washing over the empty city and the heavy piles of shattered stone flinging high into the sky.
Mayhem raining in shattered concrete and woodwork around them, Character sauntered from an unrecognizably leveled plot of land scorched grey. Fists were clenched tight at their sides, and Future thought lasers might fire from their eyes from the intensity of the glare that landed on him.
"Get out of my kingdom!" Future demanded sternly and in spite of the sweat that was beading down his forehead. He threw his open palm forward, a golden glow swirling to life in his grasp.
There was another blast of wind, and suddenly Future was recoiling in what felt like slow motion. His haggard emerald orbs were wide, spotting Character standing under his extended arm, their left hand wrapped tight around his wrist and their right shoulder directly under his elbow.
"You aren't getting it." Character spoke, before yanking his arm down on their shoulder and snapping it the wrong way. The crack echoed painfully out over the ghost town, followed immediately by Future's agonized howling.
The king dropped to his knees, grinding his teeth as he clenched his shattered arm close to himself. His body was trembling, hot and cold flashing through him while pain threatened to overload his nervous system. His arm had been put at something close to a ninety degree angle. A ninety degree Angel he would have joked, if he weren't fighting for his own consciousness. It'd been at least a decade since he'd felt physical pain like this, and he was sure now his tolerance was about half of what it had been once upon a time.
"From now on, wherever we go?" Future lifted his head to look Character in the eye as they spoke. His vision was less than reliable, black spots appearing in his line of sight like burns in the film of an old movie. The wretched fusion grinned like this was hilarious, extending the point of their blade to the tip of Future's nose. "We're the only royalty that matters."
A loud bang, followed by a ding. A red bolt had launched at Character from the side, and they'd deflected it on the edge of their blade without effort, sending the bolt twanging off somewhere into the distance.
Character swiftly lifted their forearm, catching a diving kick from F Chara on it and not budging an inch. The fusion and the disgraced heir locked eyes for a moment, before F Chara back flipped off from Character's arm, landing crouched and lunging forward with a vicious stab.
Character ducked and dodged around stabs, slashes, and everything in between with ease that made F Chara clench their jaw with frustration. Then, they stamped their foot, and ink fired up in mindless lashes, whipping and swiping at F Chara, who was quick to jump back out of the ink's range. When they landed right in the path of an eraser and felt it slam like a freight train into the entire right side of their body however, they figured they may have dived head first into a trap.
The disgraced heir was sent sailing through the air, before crashing into a brick wall. They blasted straight through, hitting the ground on the other end. They flipped and skid on their side, knocking through several tables in the diner before finally smacking against the back end of the eating area. There they lay, in a crumpled mess, surrounded by shattered plates, cups and tables.
"Pathetic." Character narrowed their eyes with lethal cold as they outstretched one hand, Beat Blasters blinking into existence in the sky behind them and taking aim on the structure F Chara had been knocked halfway through. "You future versions are like cardboard."
STAB.
It was a quick jolt, made Character arch their back and widen their eyes. Irritably they creaked their neck to look over their shoulder, a red stream trickling from the corner of their mouth down their chin.
Future winced one eye shut, down on one knee behind Character. In his one working hand he grasped his spear tight, the point of said spear having went through Character's back and was now protruding from their chest.
"If you're gonna hit the king, you better kill the king..." Future managed to speak, chest heaving with his panting. Character just smiled furiously, baring their teeth.
"I couldn't agree MORE!" They punctuated their sentence by spinning, smashing the back of their hand upside Future's head and sending him firing through the air, only to be caught by the pile of rubble he crashed into.
Character wasted no time grabbing the bit of spear handle that stuck through their front and yanking the whole thing through themself, sending blood pouring to the pavement below. Then, as red misted from what would be a mortal wound had they been mortal, they spun on their heel, whipping the javelin overhand towards Future.
The king sat hunched forward, eyes barely remaining open, before his exhausted ears caught the rising volume of that sudden whistling. But just as Future lifted his head, his own weapon jabbed directly through the shoulder of his good arm, pinning him to the rubbled wall he leaned against and making him cry out in pain. He threw his head back, gritting his teeth and clenching his eyes shut tight while he growled and snarled in his suffering.
With one of their enemies immobilized, Character was quick to turn, throwing up both arms in an X and catching one ballet shoe covered kick from Chara. Instinctively they lifted their eyes to the reformed killer bent on killing them, so that's probably why they didn't see me duck under their guarding arms until I smashed their chin with red misting knuckles.
They recoiled from the impact as Chara flipped back off from their arms, which split from their X and left Character defenseless. They caught the next blow on the bridge of their nose, Chara flipping back through air and bashing their knee into Character's face.
Stumbling back and scrunching their expression while blood trickled from their nostril, Character snarled furiously. They couldn't see through the stinging tears in their eyes, leaving them open once more. Chara landed at my side, and we both cocked back one fist, sending two punches side by side into Character's now resealed chest with enough force to make wind gust out around us, before they were sent launching back, skidding on their heels.
Relentlessly I extended an open palm while Chara drew their gun, and just as Character gathered their wits they were met with a barrage of red bullets and the wave of heat from a Beat Blaster's speaker. The energy's collision with the fusion caused an uproar of dust and smoke, engulfing Character for the moment.
"Chara, we don't have much time!" I urgently turned my head to them, extending an open palm. "Gimme your soul!"
"What?!" Chara recoiled, putting a protective hand on their chest and grabbing a fistful of their shirt.
"They're gonna eat us alive separately!" I explained quickly, shooting nervous glances towards the dust periodically. "We have to form Character if we wanna win!"
Chara remained silent, semi-wide rubies darting from my open hand, to me, to the clearing smoke. I could see the anxiety bubbling in their eyes, and I understood. Being Character had made us cruel. Vicious. Cold. When I thought of Character, I saw Error's terrified face on the inside of my eyelids. I heard his bones crunch in my ears.
But for Chara, the fusion was something more. It had been the goal of their evil plan, half a year ago. An unfeeling devastation machine that culminated both of our strength's into one. Forming Character for them might seem like going back on everything they worked for, but we didn't have time to consider. In my eyes at least, it seemed we either become a better fusion or die to the one before us. I quickly learned we didn't see eye to eye on this however when Chara smacked my extended hand aside, making me recoil.
"I can beat them on my own!" Chara snarled defensively, pointing a finger in my face.
"What-?!" I was halfway through reeling from that ludicrous statement, when several familiar bangs hit my eardrums, and my eyes snapped open wide with realization. Without hesitation I planted a hand on Chara's chest, shoving them back while my wings curled defensively around me. "MOVE!"
Bolts of led pierced the ink of my wings, two getting trapped in the black while the third broke through, stabbing into my shoulder and making me stumble back from the force of the impact.
Growling and wincing with pain I reached up, wrapping my knuckles around the graphite that protruded from my flesh while my wings uncurled from the protective shield they'd formed around me. The ink in them shifted, letting the bolts my liquid feathers had trapped clatter to the ground while I snapped the end from the black arrow that buried itself in my shoulder.
Just as I tossed the graphite chunk to my left, my eyes narrowed at the massive pencil eraser that launched from the dust that had enveloped Character, heading for me straight on. My wings were quick flap, launching me up and out of the freight train's path.
Floating in air, I was quick to spin around, spotting the fleet of paper airplanes racing towards me and reaching out one arm. Hundreds of ink tendrils lashed out from my sleeve, slashing and weaving through the airplanes, sending shredded paper raining down to the wasted avenue below. With this distraction, however, I didn't spot the black whip that fired up from Character's grasp.
"Agh-!" I choked as the ink lash wrapped around my throat, just before it yanked me out of the air and sent me rocketing back towards Character.
Chara snarled, diving and slashing from the side at the fusion, who easily stepped back out of the way, never losing their grip on the ink they were dragging me through the sky with. Chara didn't seem to notice the tendril however, spinning on their heel and stabbing at Character once more, only for them to effortlessly and mockingly hop to the side to evade.
Furiously Chara growled as they spun to face Character once more. But, as they prepared to lunge, Character's ink whip sent me smashing right into them, the both of us flinging and flipping across the unforgiving concrete before eventually rolling to a stop.
"Eugh..." I groaned, rubbing the top of my head while I managed to peek an eye open. When I looked into the hand I'd been been caressing my cranium with, I found my palm had been given a half-assed red paint job. Great.
"Get... Up..!" Chara snarled as they shoved up from under my arm, climbing to one knee and snatching their blade from the pavement. I didn't know if they were talking to me or themself.
"Chara..!" I reached out to them as they pushed to their feet, but they weren't listening. Character gave them a smile, and furiously they rushed right back into the heat of battle. "Damn it!"
Chara ran low to the ground, before jumping into the air, spinning and sending one shoe blade at Character's head from their ballet shoe. Character lifted their forearm however, blocking Chara's shin on it and stopping the blade inches from the side of their head.
Chara frothed, summoning that revolver in hand and pointing it's barrel at Character's face. The fusion didn't flinch however, simply letting two ink tendrils slash up from behind their back and swing in an X at Chara's throat, looking to decapitate them. Instinctively Chara threw their head back, the ink slicing just over their head.
They landed on their hands, quickly straightening their core and shifting on their palms, swinging their legs and slashing rapidly at Character with those ballet shoes. The fusion jumped back, and Chara performed a hand spring, launching right after them and flipping upright in air. They threw both hands over their shoulder, and as they plummeted down to meet Character, a frying pan appeared in their grasp.
A bang resounded when that pan smacked Character upside the head, making them turn their cheek and stumble back a step. Chara landed in front of them, and that frying pan switched out for a real knife, which they then plunged towards Character's heart. Character shifted their footing however, snatching Chara by the wrist and spinning around, throwing them full force across the street.
Chara smashed spine first into what remained of a cinderblock wall, their head whiplashing back while the wind shot up out of their lungs, spilling over their chin along with some saliva. They dropped down onto their hands and knees then, coughing and sputtering between gasps for breath.
Character took a moment to admire their handiwork, and I was quick to take advantage, diving from behind and wrapping my arms around them, trapping them in my grasp and locking both of their forelimbs at their sides. I wrapped my left hand around my right wrist and my right hand around my left wrist, pulling them tight to my chest while my wings cocked high into the air.
"Buckle up, assholes." Was the only response I gave Character when they glared over their shoulder at me before my wings slammed downward, throwing Character and I high into the sky at a rapidly increasing velocity. They struggled in my grip as we ascended, but I grit my teeth, holding on with all my might as we suddenly curved back down.
My wings flapped violently, and with gravity's help we were racing even faster back towards the earth below. This wasn't like with Chara, I had to spike Character right on their head. And that meant holding on for as long as possible. But, while I was calculating just how quickly I could pull up against this kind of force, Character leaned their head forward and threw it back, smashing their skull into my face.
I recoiled, pupils dilating while a shock wave vibrated the ridges of my brain. This left me defenseless to the second cranium strike to my face, this one splitting my bottom lip. I was too busy getting my nose broken by the third headbutt to notice my grip on them was loosening, and by the forth I had let them go, both my arms and my wings flailing limply in the racing winds.
Arms now free, Character reached over their shoulders and grabbed me by mine before spinning forward vertically twice to gather momentum. On the third spin through they released me, sending my unresponsive body sailing through the sky while they flipped to be heading towards the ground foot first.
I was flinging through the air on a downward arch before the first story of a three story building caught me. I crashed through it's walls and disappeared into its depths like a human cannon ball, the force of my impact sending tremors through the infrastructure and making the support beams that my body hadn't already rag-dolled through crack and crumble. The building collapsed within itself, crashing down onto me and raining stone over my less than responsive body.
The music faded out.
Chara sat on their knees, staring wide-eyed at the crumbling establishment that their friend had disappeared into. Their arms were limp at their sides, knife laying in their open palm while hopelessness swam in their ruby orbs.
No... Black tears built in their eyes, one spilling over in a stream down their cheek. It happened again...
A hundred and one times they'd seen this outcome. On the surface before they dropped into the mountain. When they got Asriel killed. When Frisk first turned on the Underground. When Hacker tricked Cter. They were trembling, lowering their head and staring into their wavering hands with shrunken pupils.
It's the same..! I'm the same! Thoughts growing even louder, Chara's vision began to blur. Whether it was from the black fluid trickling down their face or the panic chasing their heart, they weren't sure. I haven't changed! Not at all!
Idiot! Idiot! They bit their lower lip to stifle a sob, curling their fingers into tight fists. Their hair fell around their face as they hung their head low. Cter's gotten hurt because of you! He could be dead because of you! Again!
You can't protect anyone! Chara shouted at themself, slamming their clenched fist into the side of their leg. Repeatedly. You couldn't do something worthwhile to save your life or anyone else's!
Worthless! Sniveling! Screw up!
"... This is just sad." Character commented as they watched Chara's mental breakdown with empty eyes. Their footsteps echoed over the pavement, crashing through Chara's ears over and over. "What kind of good guy sits there crying in the middle of a fight?"
"Come on tough guy, I thought you were a big time hero now!" Character mocked, lips curling upwards while they threw their arms out to the sides. "That's funny, 'cause to us you look a lot more like a sniveling little girl!"
Chara ground their teeth, slowly lifting their tear stained face to glare daggers at the malevolent fusion that loomed over them. "S-shut up..."
"Or what?!" Character leaned forward, shaking their head as that shit eating grin grew on their cheeks. "You gonna hulk up? Grow some wings? Rip our arms off?"
Chara sniffled, wrapping shaky fingers around their blade as the enemy berated them. They wanted to say something back, but nothing witty manifested in their brain. They were defenseless to these brutal words.
"Oh wait, that's not you! That's the other guy who does that!" Character gestured haphazardly to the wreck of rubble they'd buried Cter in, before pointing furiously to Chara. "You're just the second fiddle! The sidekick that he has to rescue!"
"Stop it..!" Chara demanded, indignation burning in their soul. But there they remained, black tears streaming down their face while insecurity paralyzed them.
"But he's outta the picture now." Dead eyes wide, Character lowered their arms back to their side. Their smile faded away, leaving an expression mercilessly deadpan. "And you don't have the strength to stop this. Just look around."
Skeptically Chara turned their head from side to side, letting their semi-blurry vision scout the destroyed landscape.
"Broken bodies."
F Chara laid flat on their face, eyes clenched shut tight. Strands of hair dropped over their face, and their hand twitched some, not able to so much as clench against the tile floor.
"Crumpled corpses."
Future leaned his head back on the rubble behind him, breathing shallow and face pale. Blood trickled down his arm from the spear head buried in his shoulder, and his broken arm still bent awkwardly at his side.
"You can't save anyone. The only thing you've ever been good at is killing." Character tilted their head to the side, scarlet orbs squinting accusingly.
"THEN I'LL KILL YOU!" Chara screamed furiously, suddenly finding the rage to shove themself to their feet. They stabbed at Character's head, but the fusion stepped to the side, cocking their fist back and smashing it into Chara's side.
Chara's eyes widened, pupils shrinking with agony as they felt several cracks reverberate painfully through their abdomen. They stumbled to the side, gasping sharply and grabbing their ribs in some attempt to dull the suffering.
"Ooh, were those your ribs?" Character made a mocking 'ouch' face, shaking their head. "That sounded like your ribs!"
"Shut! Up!" Wincing, Chara jumped into the air and spun, swinging a hail mary kick at the side of Character's head.
Effortlessly Character reached up, grabbing Chara's ankle in a vice grip and stopping their kick dead. Then, before Chara even had time to realize what was what, they spun on their heel, yanked Chara high over their head, and swung them like a hammer down at the unforgiving concrete. They smashed to the pavement face first with enough force to bounce back up, streams of blood flinging from their now busted lip and snapped nose.
Character didn't let go of Chara's ankle, spinning back around and whipping them with even more force at the earth, this time back first. They released Chara from their grip, let them slam into the ground with enough power to send cracks blasting out in a spiderweb under the two bodies. Once more the force made them ragdoll back upwards, where the vicious fusion cocked back their fist, sending a downward punch smashing into Chara's cheek and carrying them on Character's knuckles right back to the floor.
They smashed down with unbelievable force, hardened tar shattering up around the two figures as they were planted brutally by Character's punch. A shock wave blasted out, gusts of wind swirling around the impact for a moment. Then, the gusts faded, and the road shards clattered pathetically around the two.
Chara laid flat on their back, head limp at their side and their limbs sprawled out lifelessly around them. Their eyes were only half open, lusterless rubies staring a thousand yards. From the corner of their mouth and both of their nostrils blood streamed down their face, and their knife laid in their open palm.
"... That's it?" Character asked after a pause. Shockingly, Chara was unresponsive. This made the fusion frown impatiently. "C'mon, no more empty threats? No more demands for us to be quiet?"
All Chara managed to do was blink, and even that was at a labored pace. This made Character roll their eyes impatiently, before lifting their foot and planting it on Chara's broken ribs.
"Come on!" The fusion smiled wickedly as they started applying pressure, glad to see a little bit of life start to bleed into Chara's face, their eyes starting to widen. "Get more expressive!"
Chara's eyes twitched with agony, and their jaw clenched momentarily, before snapping open with the sound of their scream. They howled at the top of their lungs as their aching ribs were put under even more crushing force, body beginning to writhe pathetically. They threw their head from side to side, but couldn't find the strength to lift their arms and try to push Character's foot off of them. They were defenseless now, entirely at Character's mercy. Or lack thereof.
"That's it! Louder!" With a berserk grin Character listened to Chara's screams, enjoying the occasional snap or pop they felt under their shoe. "Sing for us!"
"HEY!"
Character's brows furrowed as a shout reached over Chara's tortured howls, and they let up the pressure to get them to quiet down while they searched for the voice's source. Chara's screams became sharp gasps and silent whimpers, and Character's eyes locked on to their new target.
Chest lifting up and down with each furious breath, I stood before the mound of rubble I'd crawled from. Red steamed from from between my bared teeth, several streams of blood trickling from my hairline over my face and giving me a crimson mask. My clothes were in tatters, one of my pant legs missing from the knee down. My hoodie was missing, along with the right sleeve, shoulder and half the chest of my T shirt. Wherever skin was exposed one would find cuts that ranged from scrapes to gashes, each one smoking DETERMINATION and coating me in scarlet mist.
"Get the fuck off my Chara." I ordered first, pointing to them before pointing to the ground at my feet. "Then get the fuck over here so I can rip your arms off and beat you to death with them."
"..." Character's lips slowly curled into an amused, open mouth smile. Silently they stepped off Chara's abdomen, leaving them to lay there and quietly suck air. I judged from the pulsating soul on their chest and the red steam trickling out of their open mouth that their DETERMINATION was doing what it could to keep them stable. That'd have to be enough for now.
"You've got spunk, Angel." Character arrogantly made their way across the concrete, hands clenching and unclenching from fists. "A lot more than most've our kind."
"Yeah you're mom told me the same thing." I responded dryly as I threw my arm out to the side, ink spiraling out from under my torn shirt and wrapping up my arm before pulling together in my palm, morphing into my trademark spear.
"Wow." Character's eyes darted to the side, smile growing to grin. Their murderous crimson eyes landed back on me after a second or two. "You wanna take a sec to think about that one?"
"No." I answered with the same lack of mirth, glaring through Character as computer keys began manifesting in the air behind me.
"Have it your way!" Character snarled joyously, the ground shattering under them as they lunged forward, yanking their blade back to their side. They slashed upwards when one of the keys gravitating around me flung at them, their knife carving through it and sending the plastic clunking to the ground.
Ink slipped from the bottoms of my shoes, and as Character reached me I skated back out of their range. Their vicious stab punctured nothing but air, and immediately after they lifted their head, squinting at the swarm of keys now circling them. Fs and Ls, mostly.
As the plastic suddenly raced towards the fusion, they quickly leaned forward and planted an open palm on the earth. In the next instant a hundred and one spires of ink blasted out around Character, forming a defensive pin cushion and skewering each of the keys that had threatened to encase them. Then the threatening structure swirled like some beautiful ebony ichor, throwing the destroyed keys aside like worthless garbage and gradually splashing back to the earth under Character's feet.
"Now, where did he-?" Character inspected the area to see just where I might've disappeared to during my distraction, before turning around at the last second to see my ink spear racing towards the back of their head. They ducked back, letting the spear sail over their forehead. Just after it passed, they spotted me plummeting from above feet first. They also spotted the cleats of ink that had formed beneath my shoes, and scowled irritably.
The fusion reached up just before I smashed into them, grabbing me by both of my ankles and spinning. They smashed me face first into the ink covered concrete, but didn't pause there, continuing to swing and dragging me across the unforgiving pavement before whipping me by the ankles across the street and towards the front wall of an apartment complex, which I crashed right through, disappearing into dry wall dust and shadows.
"... Yeah?" Character leaned forward some after a moment or two, raising their brows curiously and tilting their head some at the unresponsive smoke. "What was that about de-arming us?"
The only response they received was the quick light of my Beat Blasters appearing in the darkness and grey mist I'd been shit whipped into, to which they swiftly threw their arms up in an X to defend against. With a boom, searing energy poured over them, scorching the skin on their arms and making them grit their teeth furiously.
"Cute!" They shouted with anger that made me think they didn't think my laser beam was all that cute and that they were being sarcastic. Then Character threw their arms out to the sides, and a shock wave of force exploded out around them, disrupting the beam of my blaster and dispersing the white energy in a discharge across the earth.
I launched out from the storefront I'd been put through, cocking back one fist and firing a punch at Character's cheek. The fusion leaned back with stunning speed, my eyes widening as I sailed right over, and they shifted their weight onto their hands. As I was flinging over them, they pulled their knees to their chest and shotgunned an organ shaking kick into my abdomen, making my pupils shrink with agony before my jaws snapped open and blood spewed past my lips. The force of their kick launched me up into the air, and Character sprung off their hands, back flipping and landing right back on their feet.
I sailed up through the sky, flipping and flailing as my wings unfolded from my shoulders in an attempt to catch against the whipping winds. After a rough and unconventional ascension, I managed to catch myself in the air. My wide eyes were blood shot as they darted to and fro, getting a quick scan of my surroundings before my ears picked up on the sound of concrete shattering open beneath me.
I looked down, before my wings flapped to the side and I performed a swift barrel roll, narrowly evading a massive pillar of an eraser that rocketed past. Snarling, I turned my furious gaze down to Character, who had one hand in their pocket and the other raised to me. A circle of Beat Blasters formed a halo between us, igniting their cannons with searing light and focusing in on me.
I folded my wings at my back and let gravity yank me out of the sky in a nose dive as those blasters fired their scorching rays through the air at me. I passed by the converging beams just in time, feeling their heat singe my hair as I shot through the halo 'o doom and cocked back my left fist. Barbarically ink spiked and stabbed out from between my fingers, forming viciously jagged knuckles.
Character barely had time to widen their eyes as I fired through the blinding lights, and I crashed fist first into their cheek with enough force to send the both of us exploding through the concrete. I surfed on Character's face with my fist through pavement, then rubble, until they slammed head first into a thick brick wall.
Chest heaving with adrenaline, I glared down at the mangled face my knuckles and my ink were buried in. Character's face was shredded by the spikes that detailed my fist, their right cheek ripped open and gushing blood and their left cheek skinned across the harsh ground. Red droplets had splattered up my cheek, but they blended right in with the crimson mask of my own gore.
Character didn't speak, but I knew they were alive and beyond pissed when their one visible eye creaked up to meet mine, flaring with DETERMINED light. Scarlet steamed from their mangled face, but that only pushed me to lift my right fist, ink spiking out from between those fingers as well.
"You hurt me!" I snarled furiously, crashing my right fist into their face just as I yanked my left away, sending red splattering like spilled paint across the earth at their side. "You hurt my friend!"
"You killed your own friends! You had a second chance and you wasted it!" I ripped my right fist away with intended roughness, ripping through more skin and splattering more scarlet ichor over the shattered earth we laid upon. "I gave you a third chance and you wasted it!"
"All you ever do is destroy!" I brought my hands together over my head, emotions towards myself and my counter part running higher and higher while the ink on my fists melded together into one gruesome spike. It's point aimed downward, and my vision went red when I saw Character's grinded down jaws still crack a smile. "No matter how much you're given you throw it away! No matter who tries to love you, you get them killed!"
Anthony, Granny, Lexi and Xander. My parents. In the past, I'd let them all down. In the present, an equally probable counterpart of mine had led the same path and turned his back on the Underground. And in the future, my choices and the cowardice that influenced them could lead to the deaths of the family I tried to choose.
But not me. Not ever again. I would not waste this new life. I would escape the confines of my past and cut off the head of my darkness, and I would do it NOW-!
STAB.
My emerald eyes shot open wide, and as blood overflowed from between my teeth, I turned my gaze down to the cruel steel Character had plunged into my abdomen.
"You should run your mouth less." Character's voice was distorted due to their shredded mouth, and when whatever torn apart facial muscles still managed to pull their bloodied and broken open lips into a smile, my eye twitched.
In the next instant, ink exploded up Character's arm and expanded around their blade, forming one blunt and massive cleaver on the fusion's arm and ripping from my belly button to halfway up my sternum. The point of the ink slicer jabbed viciously out of my back, and my crimson colors painted the devastation that surrounded us.
I tried to scream from the pain, but the fountain of viscera that shot out of my mouth from my many ruptured organs cut me off. Like a ripped open candy wrapper Character casually tossed my carcass aside, but unlike a candy wrapper their throw sent me flipping and skidding across a couple dozen yards. Eventually my rapidly chilling flesh slapped into the only standing wall of some destroyed corner store, and I flopped onto my side, curling my arms around my abdomen like I was trying to keep it from splitting apart.
"You know why most Angels stay Hacker instead of trying to be Cter?" Character's voice rang through my daze, and as desperate DETERMINATION smoked from my shredded core I managed to lift my head and watch the titan approach me. "You know why you're one in a million?"
Body trembling and dying, I forced myself onto my numb knees. My DETERMINATION had to be enough. This wound had to seal. I had to keep fighting.
*Live to win.
"Because 999,999 of us understand that actions have consequences." Face quickly reforming in red smoke, only Character's ruby eyes were visible through the mist that enveloped their head. Their footsteps echoed closer, and they stared right through me. "You lectured Hacker on the concept before, but you really don't know what it means, do you?"
"What are you... Talking about..?" I managed to speak, slouching forward and keeping my arms tight around my steaming and bleeding abdomen. The hole hadn't started sealing yet, but the pain and the bleeding was dulling, little by little. I figured that probably meant whatever important things were ripped open were starting to close. That was a good start, but I needed more.
"Come on Angel, you really think you can just escape what you did?" Character tilted their head to the side, their shadow starting to creep over my beaten and broken body as they approached. "Angel the perpetual lying asshole gets a magic do over and that lets him have everything he's ever wanted?"
I remained bewildered, cold sweat running in streams with the blood on my face while my confused eyes laid upon impending doom. I could hardly talk, hardly move. I still felt like I was dying, I just felt like the process was getting slower. I had to dig deeper, had to find more of my will.
"Well, I guess it's true, you did get all those things." Character smiled, I could see it through the clearing red smog. When they knelt down in front of me, and I saw a soulless expression on my own face while I fought desperately against Death itself, I found myself pondering.
*You wanna know if this is how I felt when you killed me?
"But you weren't the only one."
"W-... What..?" I choked, managing to glare through my pained wincing and speak over my dying breaths.
"Angels can't escape our past because it followed us here, 'Cter'." Character's lips curled up as they watched both my eyes start to widen. I was catching on, and somehow even more despair was grasping my possibly punctured heart.
"Y-you're... Lying..." I had to grind my teeth to keep them from chattering, shrunken pupils trembling in my widened orbs. "H-he can't be... They can't be..!"
Character reached out without any hesitation, slapping a hand onto my shoulder and tilting their head to the side. They gave me a shit eating grin, and they spoke.
"Lexi, Xander, and Anarchy are alive."
For me, the world went dark. The light in my eyes clicked off. I sat there, on my knees and slouched forward. My jaw hung open, my arms laid limp at my sides. I lowered my head as Character chuckled, climbing to their feet.
"And you better believe all three of 'em have had their eye on you." Character took a few steps back before they extended their open palm, and several Beat Blasters appeared levitating over their head. "Not that it matters now."
I didn't move, didn't say a word. Red stopped smoking out of my injury. I wasn't sure if my blood was still pumping, if my lungs were still taking in air. I couldn't see anything but the pale skinned boy in front of me, staring up at me with concern in his beautifully innocent ruby eyes.
"Angel?"
I didn't move. The lights in my eyes didn't turn back on.
"Angel..? C'mon, aren't you excited?"
Snow white locks falling around his face, the boy smiled perfectly up at me. He reached out with his small, unsoiled hands, and with them he gently grasped my own limp fingers.
"We're gonna get to see each other again!"
"With you out of the way, we'll be the top Hacker and the top Chara." Character's lifeless eyes laid upon me, light beginning to shine in the barrels of their blasters. "With strength like this, we could probably even stand against Anarchy!"
My limp fingers twitched with life.
"So try not to worry about the future, Angel." Character's lips curled into a wicked smile, the light shining in those Beat Blasters starting to illuminate the world around us. "We'll make sure you don't live to see it."
"... Angel..? You're not really gonna let them get in the way of our Reunion, are you..?"
Anny frowned sadly up at me, the misery he often hid in those scarlet orbs shining through. Slowly he lifted my hand, gently pressing the back of my palm against his little chest.
I could feel his heartbeat.
"You've gotta know how much I miss you, right?"
Bump bump.
Character recoiled when a brilliant red flare outshined their blasters, eyes snapping open wide before they winced and threw an arm up to shield the aforementioned orbs. They could feel searing heat on their skin and panic in their heart as boiling hot winds whipped and lashed across their flesh, and they were quick to jump back to get a better look at the violent display of power before them.
Crimson light flared over the rubble, turned everything to it's scarlet shade. Vermilion flames swirled around me, voraciously licking out and scorching the surrounding terrain. I remained knelt there, motionless as those same red fires crackled over my wounds. The gaping hole in my upper body rapidly closed, and slowly I lifted my head.
Character froze, shrunken pupils staring at me from afar. Hair shadowing my no longer so KIND orbs, only the furious red shine of my left eye was visible. A merciless stare, fixated on the fusion. Behind me, they watched a rebar spike that protruded from a shattered wall begin to bend and change its color to a bright orange as it melted under the heat of my DETERMINATION.
"Damn it damn it damn it!" Character shouted furiously, once more throwing that open palm out towards me. Their Beat Blasters swiftly recharged, before launching their beams across the trashed landscape towards my flaming DT pillar. The blasts were quick to be redirected however by the tearing winds of my aura, sending them sailing off into different directions and crashing through whatever buildings or rubble that crossed their path.
"It's no good! Our blasts can't get through!" In a panic Character stated the obvious, taking other step back and grimacing at the sight of me getting one foot under myself, gradually pushing myself off my knees. "What is this?! He was half dead five seconds ago!"
"You should run your mouth less."
A chill ran through Character's blood as they remembered their own words. Their jaw clenched, eyes darting from me to my growing aura. Their combined brains ran a mile a minute, searching desperately for a solution.
"He's getting stronger..! He's changing! Transforming higher!" The fusion deduced, before flinching as my wings suddenly unfolded from my shoulders, a shock wave blasting out over the city with their mighty flex. "We have to stop him before he can reach whatever he's approaching!"
"But how do we do that?!" Character bickered with themself, hands clenching to fists at their sides. They could see ink slithering under my shredded shirt, often slipping by one of the tears as it seemed to be gathering on my back. This only made them force their mind to race faster, desperately searching for an answer to this problem rapidly growing before them.
"I can't lose the only person I have... Not again..."
Realization struck Character like a bolt of lightning, and the panic disappeared from their face. Their expression was blank for a second or two, but then a smile began to form. Rapidly their lips curled, smile to smirk to grin. Then, they spun on their heel and threw one arm out, pointing away from me and back towards the street we'd been fighting on previously.
"WE JUST HAVE TO PUT HIM ON THE SPOT!"
Bitter ruby orbs stared up into an unforgiving overcast sky. Chara laid there, flat on their back, aching in all kinds of ways. The initial unbearable-ness of their wounds had subsided, and whether it was their DETERMINATION healing that had caused the dulling of their pain or shock, they weren't sure. Maybe it was depression. That'd been making them feel pretty numb lately.
Chara had tried to face Character, and they'd lost. They'd been stubborn and screwed everything up. Cter had to save them and face Character alone. God only knew how that was going.
On that note, Chara squinted their distant eyes, focusing in on the sky above. Were the clouds clearing? Was that light the sun shining down? A bitter sweet sight that'd be. Nice warm rays shining down on their broken down body and washing over the craters caused by their failures.
... But those lights were not the sun.
Those lights were five rings, looming in the sky above. The Angel's Halos of Death, Chara recognized. A Beat Dome. The same attack that Cter had nearly executed them with six months ago, now it seemed Character was going to finish the job.
It was a special kind of nihilism, what they felt in this moment. Beaten and broken they were, death raining down from the sky above. Chara had failed. They were a failure. And now everyone was gonna die. The silver lining was that they were either first, or they'd been too disorientated to see anyone else get killed before them.
The searing white light was approaching rapidly. Chara could feel the heat washing over them, and the blaring light was over taking their vision. In that instant, they were not laying on cold concrete. They were in a bed, tucked under the covers, surrounded by three terrified goat monsters as they stared vacantly up at the ceiling of their childhood room.
"Chara!"
The illusion shattered as a familiar voice rang out, and through the blinding light a black shadow flew over. A shield descended upon them, wrapping it's arms around their shattered body and clutching them close to it's chest in a desperate attempt to protect them from the fiery death above.
"You have to hold on!"
Chara's eyes were stating to close as they felt that wicked heat blast down upon them and their shield. And, though they thought they might have been seeing double due to their delirium, they thought they saw four wings curl protectively around themself and their Angel.
Flash.
Eugh...
Slowly my eyes began to creak open, confusion and pain coursing through me. I found smoldering rock surrounding me, my body face down in a crater bigger than any crater I'd ever seen.
It was hard to remember what happened. Most of what I recalled were senses. I was stunned, conflicted, afraid, and dying... Then there was a surge. I was rising to my feet. I felt, warm. Powerful and confident. I could see Character. That's all I could see. I knew I had to be stronger for what was coming, so I became stronger.
... Until I realized they weren't looking at me. Their next attack wasn't for me. I moved as fast my wings would carry, and then there was a flash. Now I was laying on the ground, clutching an unresponsive Chara to my chest and trying to gather my wits.
It was scary, seeing them unmoving. I didn't know if I'd succeeded in protecting them, I didn't know if they were alive. We both had scorched skin, broken bones, spilt blood. But I was awake, and they weren't.
Eyes narrowing to hide my trembling pupils, I scanned over my own body. Once more red flames were bursting to life across my skin, sealing my wounds, preparing me to complete this fight.
My haunted emeralds glossed down to Chara then. Unlike me, they were lifeless. I wasn't sure if their chest was lifting, if their heart was beating. They weren't like me, the fire of their soul was burning low. They needed more. They needed power. They needed what I had.
"... Not me." I spoke finally, sitting on my knees and pulling Chara's motionless form into my lap. My jaw clenched, my hands balling into fists against the back of their shirt. "Not me..!"
"No matter who tries to love you, you get them killed!"
"I don't need it!" I shouted as I felt heat rise to my eyes, quickly shaking my head. The fires on my skin started to shift, rising and twisting some in the heating air around me. "Give it to them!"
The flames of my soul spiraled back down, connecting to Chara and spreading over their beaten and broken body. I winced, cold sweat breaking out on my forehead as the fires on my flesh began to die out. That didn't matter to me, though. The only focus I had was on the crimson smoke that was starting to steam off of the limp body that I clutched close.
"Come on, Chara! I believe in you!" I snarled supportively, ignoring how my chest was starting to burn for deeper and more frequent breaths. "You said you can beat them on your own, didn't you?! Well I believe you!"
"Of course you can stop them, Chara! You're so much stronger than I am!" I confessed, tears rolling over from my pained and exhausted eyes. "You've always been stronger than me! You just have to prove it to everyone else!"
"So get up, Chara!" I shouted out, clenching my eyes shut tight and leaning over them. Water streamed down my bloodied and burnt face, dripping down onto their's. "You have to stop them! You have to win!"
I hugged them tight, letting my DETERMINATION flare desperately around the two of us in one final, desperate attempt.
"GET UP AND SAVE US, CHARA!"
Dirt.
Chara was laying in the dirt, staring up at a gorgeous, star-studded sky. The beauty was tainted, however, by the black smoke that spiraled up to block out all light in the dark.
Chara didn't turn their head, just let their eyes gloss from side to side. Around them, trees reached up, a precious representation of life and all the beauty it held. But the calm, respectful quiet of the forest was screamed and cried over.
Fire flashed in the distance, Death walking the path that laid at Chara's side. Gradually, they sat up, and their eyes narrowed painfully. Further down the path, they spotted a little brown haired child. She wore brown rags, less a dress and more a sack for potatoes re-purposed. It was torn in a few places, possibly from being old and worn and possibly from the struggles of her escape.
She was barefoot, terror in her tearful red eyes as she sprinted on scraped and muddy feet down the path. Cowardly she fled from the flames and the horrors they burned around. Chara turned their head, watching the girl sprint past them on the path as though she'd never even seen them laying there at all.
"... That's the earliest thing we remember." A familiar voice rang out, and venom entered Chara's eyes as they looked ahead, finding their future counterpart standing ahead of them. As F Chara stared longingly in the path that poor girl had fled, those brutal flames flickered behind them. "Running away."
"... What do you want?" Chara leaned back on their hands, narrowing hateful orbs at F Chara, who looked down to them with guilt in their eyes.
They stepped forward, leaned down some, and extended a hand to help Chara to their feet.
"... I just think we need to talk."
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