The hall felt strange now. It had been torn to shambles. Gutted and left for dead like everything else in the Underground. The glass crunched under foot, each little sound echoing against the stone. Yet it still felt quiet. Their tiny world felt too big.

When they left the hall at long last, the person who had walked through the archway so many invisible days ago was not the same person who marched out on the other end. That old version of them had died. Sans had killed them. Or perhaps they had killed themselves.

So what was it that walked out of that hall in the end? Something more? Something less?

They did not know.

Rain was like the last leaf that had clung to its home tree all Fall only to fall away dry, dead and ugly in the first cold winds of winter. She didn’t move. She didn’t stir. She looked everywhere and nowhere all at once; her eyes unfocused upon dust and rubble. She was disassociated from everything. Time, her body, even her own thoughts were a blur. It felt like she was somewhere high overhead looking down on herself through a fog.

Chara was at long last allowed to proceed in peace.

One would think that as an adult the castle would have looked smaller than she remembered. She had been just a kid the last time she had been here after all. Yet even in an adult body the halls still felt massive and sturdy and when she at long last came to the throne room, it felt just as imposing as she remembered. Being built for the mountain of a monster that was Asgore probably had something to do with that.

Speaking of which, Chara stopped short when she realized Asgore was in the room up ahead. He was as massive and imposing as ever. His golden mane of hair caught the warm synthetic sunlight, his massive horns curving high above his head. A royal purple cloak was draped over his massive shoulders and trailed behind him as he drifted from flower to flower like an awkward bumblebee.

Rain’s tired eyes dragged themselves over to him, taking in the towering figure of the king.

They were completely dwarfed by him. If they stood beside him they would have to take a step back and crane their neck just to look him in the eye. For a brief moment Rain wondered if this grand beast she had been told so much about would perhaps be a match for Chara. He certainly looked imposing enough.

She dismissed the thought a moment later, feeling too tired to hold onto the idea for long. He would fall just like the rest.

Chara wrinkled her nose in displeasure at the familiar smell of flowers. In her absence Asgore had allowed the accursed plants to consume the whole garden. There was probably some heart wrenching sentimentality behind his choice but it only left a bitter taste in her mouth.

The first time she had died, it had been with the taste of yellow flowers in her throat. The second time she had died, it had been because she had tried to rest her body in a golden bed of petals. When she was buried, these were the flowers that had acted as her blanket. And when she had awoken once more is was a golden flower that had once again tried to kill her.

She was so tired of yellow. Perhaps she would burn the garden when she was done here.

The king had his back to her over on the far end of the room now. He was kneeling among one of his many flowerbeds with his head bowed so that only his horns and tufts of golden hair could be seen over the arc of his broad shoulders.

A familiar voice reached her from across the room, its tone quavering and shrill with desperation. “Y-you don’t understand! You have to! Please Da-Asgore; go get them before she gets here. I know you don’t think you can do it but you have to try.”

Chara’s lips twisted in disgust.

Asgore’s voice was deep and soothing in response. “Slow down. I’m not quite sure what you are trying to say, friend. Who is coming to visit?”

Asriel let out a frustrated growl that hinted at the voice he had once had. “There’s no time! I was stupid. So stupid!” He sobbed. “I cut the power so you wouldn’t know. I helped her with all the puzzles and traps! There is nothing left to stop her now. So if you can’t do it, then let me. Just…just show me where they are and I will d…do…” He trailed off, his small face peeking out from under the corner of Asgore’s cloak. His watery eyes went wide and he snaked back into the ground with a little gasp of realization.

“Hello? Where have you gone? Flowey, was it?” Asgore rose to his feet and scanned the immediate area, scratching his head with a massive claw. “Curious. I have never seen a plant cry before.”

Chara rolled her eyes. Thank god Asgore was a slow one.

The sound of her passing through the foliage was enough to draw the king’s attention. With a small ear twitch he looked over his shoulder before turning around to meet her. He was wearing a full set of armor, its dark polished surface glinting in the light. That was new. Perhaps the big oaf had realized something was wrong after all.

“Huh?” He looked down his snout at her from across the closing distance. He frowned in thought. “You. You must be the one the flower just warned me about.”

She shrugged. “Guilty as charged.”

“Oh. Well, howdy!” His frown deepened. “Erm, forgive me for having to ask, but what kind of monster are you? Sorry, I cannot tell.” He admitted with a sheepish smile.

She twirled her spear and pulled out her knife. “Only the worst kind.”

He took a step back and raised his hands in a gesture of peace. “Now, now, there is no need to fight. I don’t know why you are so upset but,” He gestured to a small room with a table off to the side. “Why don’t we settle this over a nice cup of tea? I would be happy to listen to whatever it is you-”

With a running jump Chara closed the last of the distance between them. She aimed for his exposed neck and drove her fire poker down with all her might.

His eyes widened in dismay. He brought up a hand to try and stop her but it was too late. The blow struck true and sank deep inside his chest. The ground shook as he fell to his knees, gaping in disbelief as one massive hand went up to touch the poker logged up against his collarbone.

She had wondered if she would feel some sort of conflict at having done this but she only felt… cold. It was almost frustrating.

Almost.

Chara leaned in close to whisper to him, red eyes staring over his shoulder as her lips twisted into a soft smirk. “I did it, father. I didn’t give up. I stayed Determined, just like you said. I came back for you. I have chosen the future for humans and monsters.”

“Why… you…” His outline trembled, his shaking arms helping to prop up his weakening body. A white light was beginning to grow in front of his chest as his soul began to detach itself from his body. He smiled, lip quivering. “Are…Chara, aren’t you?...How…?” He reached out to touch her face.

Behind him the air filled with several shimmering dots that danced like bubbles struggling to maintain their shape against the weight of their own mass. All at once they tightened into the solid shape of twirling pellets and shot forward, drilling deep into Asgore’s back.

“What?” Chara balked; confusion and surprise rooting her in place. Asgore teetered forward from the force of the blow, eyes rolling up into his head as he fell. Chara stepped forward, arms reaching out as if to catch him as he fell. His soul! She had to catch his soul!

“I… missed you…so…” He hit the ground and his body scattered into dust, swirling around her feet and catching in her dirty hair.

Just a few inches below her eye level a small white heart shape trembled, struggling to maintain its form. She reached out to take it but a single whirling bullet darted by, piercing the heart at its center. Shattering its existence before continuing on to graze her cheek with a small red mark. She held her hand suspended in the air in disbelief, her eyes wide and unblinking. She didn’t quite comprehend what had just happened.

Gone. It was gone. The last soul, the only soul she could have used to get out- was gone.

Slithering out from behind the empty throne on his belly like the snake he was, Asriel made his appearance. “Chara! Chara!” He chirped, loud and shrill. “See? I never betrayed you! It was all a trick, see? I was trying to trick him into showing us were he hid the souls!”

“Asriel, do you know what you just did?”

“I killed him! Just for you Chara, just for you!” His leaves were shaking, his eyes wide and his smile nothing more than a grimace with upturned edges. “I was waiting to kill him for you. It’s my present to you. I finally got rid of the old man so he won’t be in our way! After all, I am your best friend and best friends help each other.” He was crawling towards her, vines bunching into nervous knots behind him.

“You idiot!” She screamed, kicking the tops off of several flowers and storming up to him. He shrank back, petals wilting. “You destroyed his soul! His soul, Asriel! The only boss monster soul in the Underground strong enough to be absorbed!”

“W…what?” He peeped, eyes darting around. “B-but, Chara. You have my soul, don’t you? I-I lost it. When I died I stopped feeling. I thought… I thought you must have kept it with you?”

She knelt next to him, teeth flashing as she spat. “Your soul is gone. All that’s left -if there is anything left- is inside of you. Withered, broken and missing half its pieces! “

“And, and mother? What about her?” He brightened at this thought, overly enthusiastic in a vain hope that such optimism would be infectious. “I’m sure you took her soul!”

She seized him by the stem, just under his stupid golden head. “Even if I hadn’t been buried under ruble when she died, she was still weak. Weak and sad and hopeless! She broke too fast for me to catch her. Don’t play dumb with me brother, you already knew this. You killed her enough times to know.” As an afterthought she added, “And now I also know that you have spent half your lifetime messing with Sans and never bothered to warn me about him. He knew things he shouldn’t have and kept me stuck out in the hall for weeks. What game have you been playing at, Asriel? Are you really stupid enough to try and manipulate me?”

“I-I, I didn’t have time to tell you! You chased me away! I-” That strange, ever-morphing face of his turned into something familiar. His true face. Asriel’s face. Or at least a pretty good likeness off it. “I’m helpful! I can be useful, I promise! Just give me another chance. Please, Chara, I won’t get in your way. I can help! I- I can, I can-” Tears spilled down his cheeks and ran off of his petals like rain.

Rain. How Ironic.

“Please don’t kill me!” He sobbed.

Chara’s crushing grip softened a little. She cupped his trembling petals and fought down her own anger. “Shhh. There, there my brother. Be quiet and listen.” She cooed. “You have done something very bad. And now you are going to have to make up for it. Do you understand? Are you willing to make it up to me?”

He looked up at her, dismayed and relieved. “Yes.” He squeaked. “Yes, of course. T-thank you!”

She gripped him by the stem and pulled out her knife. “Good.”

***

She drummed her fingers up against the armrest, her other hand holding up her sullen face. Things had taken a turn for the worst. There wasn’t really a good way to describe the tight spot she was in now.

She sighed, collecting the stray petals from her torn and dirty shirt and making a neat pile in her hand. She held them up to the air so that the gentle, aimless breeze of the Underground could take them up one by one and let them dance for a few feet before eventually falling away into the sea of their still-living brethren and her father’s dust.

What a filthy waste.

She poked at Rain in an attempt to lift her own spirits. “So, I guess my Rain of terror is official now, huh?” She teased, crossing her legs and taking on a stern pose, both hands gripping the arms of the throne.

It seemed that Rain’s mind had retreated too far to give her a response.

She huffed in annoyance. “I have been waiting to make that joke since day one and now the only person left alive to hear it won’t wake up?” She prodded at Rain again but it was no use. “Hey! I’m talking to you!” She grumbled. “Never mind. I don’t want to hear your annoying whimpering anyway.” She got up and dusted herself off and put her knife back in her pocket.

She didn’t know the exact details of why or how Asriel had become a flower but he had once had the ability to manipulate and reset time just like she did. She had thought that surely that meant that there was still something inside of him powerful enough to persist after death. Something powerful enough to absorb. Something still monster in origin.

She had been wrong.

Whatever it was that was left inside of him, it wasn’t a soul. Her accusation that whatever he possessed was broken beyond recondition had rang far truer than she had first thought. He had just been so… empty. When he died he didn’t even turn to dust. He just became an everyday flower, sticky sweet sap dripping from his stem.

With the Dreemurr family’s resources exhausted, she had reluctantly gone back to her last save point. Lucky for her she had set her next save down shortly after killing Sans, so she didn’t have to go through that twice.

Again she entered the throne room. Again Asriel hid upon her arrival. Again she tried and failed to obtain Asgore’s soul.

Once more Asriel begged for mercy, once more she laid him down to rest among the other flowers.

At first she had almost believed him when he had sworn the destruction of Asgore’s soul had just been a foolish oversight on his part. Maybe it really had been at first. But he actually seemed to remember things with proper clarity when she reset. His high levels of Determination were still good for something, it seemed. He feigned ignorance when he destroyed the king’s soul a second time but he tried to run from her on the third attempt as soon as the deed was done, giving away his secret.

She tried to warn him to stay away from Asgore on the fourth reload. If he didn’t ruin things for her she promised she would let him live. Yet still he returned at the last moment and destroyed the soul.

What he was doing was no accident.

He knew that Asgore’s soul was the last thing she wanted. He knew she wouldn’t actually let him live but so long as she didn’t have the soul, he knew that she would continue to reload and try again because that’s just the kind of person she was. And as long she kept reloading he could keep living in that precious little bubble of time. He could continue to survive within that limbo.

Had he first chosen to do this to her out of a change of heart? Did he feel some semblance of pity for monster kind and the humans above?

No. Of course not. He was beyond that. He was just selfish and afraid and like so many others before him, he was scared to die. So he was willing to face her wrath again and again and again in order to preserve himself in any way he could.

Pathetic. Ingenious! Frustrating.

Eventually she had to top and take a break from her resets. He was becoming too tricky to kill and she didn’t feel safe letting him slink off to make more plans while she tried to organize her thoughts. So when next she killed him, she let him stay dead.

For a long time she wandered the halls of the castle. She slept in her old bed which was far too small and knocked over every potted plant in the castle. She took up the king’s room for her own, tore down all the old pictures she had drawn and wore his long purple cloak while she watched his garden burn.

Over time an idea began to tickle the back of her mind as she wandered.

But no. Even if she knew where to find them it would be too risky.

But… what if she could?

The idea began to take root and grow. If she could pull it off she could be stronger than she had originally hoped. But if she failed, she could lose everything. If they awakened Rain there was a chance that they would try to help her.

No. No she couldn’t risk it. Not after all this. She would find a way to trap Asgore eventually. She just needed time to think.

But if she were to risk it… where would they be? Asriel could never find them and who knows how long he had been looking.

She wandered up and down the halls, deep in thought.

“What kind of monster is Asgore?” She pondered allowed. “Soft. Too soft.” She had recently found all the coffins downstairs. Her own had been empty. And odd thing to see. But knowing he had kept them all so close was important. He had not had them carried off somewhere quiet and remote where he would not have to think about them. Having them in the castle must have been an agonizing reminder of what he had done and yet he had chosen to keep them.

He was in the castle alone. Toriel had left, his son had died. The world had left him to tend to his coffins.

“He carries his burdens alone.”

They would be in the castle. Somewhere deep inside. Somewhere hidden.

She asked herself the question again: what kind of monster was Asgore?

Well, everyone had loved him because he was kind of a pushover. He wore his heart on his sleeve and wasn’t one to be deceptive with words. Mother had been the real brains behind the operation. If something required deep thought, planning or elegance she usually had a hand in it. But she had left. So the location would have been left up to Asgore.

She wandered deep into the castle where its walls met with the slope of the mountain. The halls were smooth and gray here. The light much more dim. It was here that the exit waited for her, its stone archway old and patient. She ran her hand along its dull surface. “Hello, old friend.” She had so been looking forward to passing through that arch once more.

The room was filled with a strange light. It was too distorted by magic to call sunlight but sometimes as the barrier danced and shimmered she imagined she could almost see the faint outlines of what was on the other side.

She sat down and watched it for a while, imagining what it must be like on the other side. She had been gone a long time. Rain’s memories helped fill her in one some of the things that had advanced in her absence but still there was so much that would have changed by now.

She continued to talk to herself. “He’s quite literal about things. No real flare, no garnish.” She snorted in amusement. “Home and New Home. “

Something caught her eye. She frowned, leaning forward to take a closer look. There was a small hole in the center of the floor in front of the arch. That had not been there before. She was absolutely sure of it.

She and Asriel had spent countless days playing in here. One of their favorite games had been throwing balls or stones at the barrier because it would kick up a huge shower of sparks that they could take turns running under. They would spend a whole afternoon seeing who could kick up the biggest shower and make the loudest noise while the other sibling stood under it. Asriel would always get scared and chicken out first.

Upon closer inspection there were other small changes in the floor now. Small oval tiles barely visible unless one put their nose close to the ground. They were made of the same material as the floor and the outline of each tile was so snug and smooth that it was only as thick as a few strands of hair.

Home because it was home. New home because it was their new home. Waterfall was wet. Hotland was hot.

He carried his own burdens and kept them close.

He was a practical man without much flare.

She reached out to trace the tiles with her finger but was met by the numbing zap of static. Her hand jerked back in surprise and she squinted at the archway. There was a second barrier here now, monster made. It was anchored to something in the floor and camouflaged by the already shimmering wall of light from the human made barricade.

“No.” She gasped, sitting up and counting the tiles.

Seven. There were several ovals in the floor.

“Asgore you didn’t!” She laughed, running her hands across the floor. Of course! He would keep them close and put them right where they would be needed! No one would bother to come to the archway unless they were going to use the souls anyway, so why not hide them in the one place you would only bother to go if you already had the souls handy?

“This is literally the equivalent of hiding your key under the doormat. How has no one found this yet?” She examined the hole in the floor. Some sort of keyhole to unlock the barrier and reveal the captured souls perhaps? Its shape sort of reminded her of the bottom of her father’s trident but that was long gone now. It had died with him.

She began to smack her iron rod against the magic wall, kicking up clouds of static. It would take a long time to do this but she didn’t have the key. Eventually the small monster made barrier would have to run out of juice. They wouldn’t have dared power it with the energy from the man-made one. They would have risked accidentally making the souls permanently inaccessible. In time she could break through. She was in no hurry.

Six. Six human souls. That’s how many they had collected before she had come.

Seven. Seven souls were needed to break the barrier.

Seven was Chara’s lucky number.

***

“I’m going to be gone a lot for the next few weeks.”

“Why?” She caught the Frisbee and flung it back over to him. He had to jump in order to catch it.

“Mom found a lady teaching cooking classes in the cirty. She signed me up. The drive is kind of long so I will probably just be staying with my Gran while I take them.”

“Oh.”

He tossed the Frisbee back to her. “When I get back I will teach you everything I learned.”

“Ok.”

He scuffed the ground with his sneaker. It caused him to miss the Frisbee when she threw it back. He didn’t seem to notice. “Sorry that I won’t be around for your birthday.”

She waved away the comment and tried to act like it didn’t bother her. “Nah its ok. You go do that thing you do. It’s important for you to learn how to make your dreams come true. Otherwise you’d just get stuck up on this mountain forever like my parents did.”

“Yeah I know. Still feel kind of bad though. I think this will be the first time I have missed a birthday since we met.”

She shrugged and walked past him. She could see the neon green of the Frisbee stuck in one of the pine trees several yards behind him. He seemed too distracted to go get it himself.

“So, what’s your dream then, Song Bird? How are you going to get off the mountain?” He asked.

She shrugged and tucked her chin up against the collar of her shirt. “Dunno yet.”

“Well you have to like doing something. I bet you could sing if you wanted to. I don’t care what your mom tells you. You are really good.”

She turned around and brushed her hair away from her eyes. The warm sunlight cut through the chilled air and made her red hair ignite like fire. It also helped to distracted from her nervous blushing. “I don’t know, Daniel.” She muttered again. “I mean, I sort of wanted to be a dancer.”

“Oh. Well that’s cool too!” He beamed, walking up next to her and nodding his approval. “What kind? Ballet? Ballroom? Hip-hop? Oh, do you like the uh, oh what’s it called, the stuff they do on that Riverdance show?” He smacked himself on the forehead. “Tap-dancing. Duh.”

“I uh, I really like the look of the Latin dances. You know. Salsa, Cha Cha, stuff like that.”

“Oh so like,” He plucked a dandelion from the grass and clenched it between his teeth and waggled his eyebrows. “The steamy stuff.”

She laughed and shoved him away. “Yeah ok, the steamy stuff!”

He laughed with her a little then scrunched up his face in displeasure as the taste of the dandelion began to sink in.

“Oh my god did you seriously bite into that thing?”

“Yes.” He spat out onto the grass. “Bleh.”

“Was it worth it?”

“Think so.” He frowned. “Hey, what happen to my Frisbee?”

“Over there.” She pointed at the pine tree it had gotten stuck in.

“Ah.” He jogged over to retrieve it, talking over his shoulder as he went. “So are you going to get lessons or something? Have you talked to your parents about it?”

Her smile fell. She tucked her hands into the sleeves of her hoodie and then hid everything up to her elbows away in her pockets. “Nah. I mean, I’ve mentioned it once or twice but they don’t think I’m cut out for it.”

“What? Why not?”

“They said it would be too much hassle. Besides, I’m too fat and clumsy to make a good dancer.”

Daniel stiffened. “Don’t say that.”

She shrugged. “Well its true, isn’t it?”

He tossed the Frisbee back to her. His brow was knit together in disapproval. “You’re not fat.”

She leaped up to catch the Frisbee and missed. It sailed high overhead. She slipped on the wet grass and fell flat on her butt.

“You ok?” Daniel was standing over her in a moment, offering his hand and a good-natured chuckle.

“Yeah. See? Told you I’m clumsy.”

“Heh. Well, maybe a little bit. Sometimes. But I bet you could still dance if you wanted to. And you’re still not fat.”

“Eh, maybe I should just aim for something more practical in the meantime. Something stable to get me started.”

“Well, is there something else you would like to do that would make you happy?” He had his hands on his hips and was blowing the dark hair out of his eyes. They had lost the Frisbee again. Truly, they were both horrible at this game.

“Well, to be honest I would be happy if I just got to do something that helped the people I care about be happy too. That’s all.”

“That’s it?”

She shrugged. “Yeah.” She hesitated a little, her fuzzy boots kicking at the weedy little flowers in the grass around her. “Hey, Daniel? If you ever do get to open that restaurant like you are always talking about, do you think I could work there too? With you?”

He blinked in surprise. “Sure, Song Bird. In a heartbeat. If you really wanted to, that is.”

She smiled in relief. “Good. Good, I think that will be my new dream then. Helping you get that restaurant so we can both work there.” Helping other people achieve their dreams sounded like a nice dream to her.

He returned her smile. “If you want, when I get back we can make a late birthday lunch together or something using all the stuff I learned during my lessons.”

She bounced on her heels; hair bobbing as she breathed into her cupped hands to warm her nose. Spring was dragging its feet this year. “Ok. I’d like that. Sounds fun.” She looked around for the Frisbee. It had passed through the tree line again. Its neon green markings shone through the bush it was entangled in. “I’m gonna go get that. Then maybe we should go inside and do something else. We suck at this.”

“Yeah. Dogs make this stuff look too easy. I just keep getting hit in the nose. Hey, I went online and found that anime you were talking about yesterday. Want me to go set that up?”

“That depends. Is it the sub or the horrible, horrible English dub?”

Daniel grimaced. Her love of horrible English voice acting drove him mad but he loved her enough to humor her now and again. “It’s the dub.” He sighed.

She beamed at him. “Then sure! Be right there.”

Daniel jogged off towards the house, still shaking his head in defeat.

She wove her way in-between the trees and made her way over to the bright green shape among the bushes.

The world warped and rippled like someone had just thrown a rock into a pool of still water. The ground rocked so violently that she fell to her knees. A terrible screaming sound burrowed deep inside her skull. Screeching brakes, nails on a chalkboard, someone in great pain- they seemed to originate from everywhere all at once. Then, ever so slowly, she began to realize the screams were coming from her.

The wind howled, making the trees bow to it in hopes of a mercy that did not come. A voice called out, desperate and familiar. It was calling for a name she did not know. Lightning flashed in the sky above, painting the sudden boiling black cloud cover overhead in a bright array of unnatural colors.

The voice called out for that name again. It was Daniel, it had to be.

She struggled to her feet, grasping at sticky pine branches to keep herself from falling over as a chaos of neon lightning unraveled itself in the sky above her. Blue, yellow, orange, purple- a hundred different lightning strikes dancing across her vision.

“Go back inside!” She cried, bracing herself against the violent wind. Several voices were screaming in that wind, talking over the top of each other. “Daniel! Go back! It’s not safe!” But when she looked out in the direction of the house, there was only darkness. Everything was gone. Yet still the voice was there.

“You can’t give up. You can’t let her win.”

She spun around, the voice was right in her ear, clear and calm despite the madness around her. At first she thought she was looking at the green of the Frisbee. Then she realized it had a soft glow to it. It was shaped like a heart.

A wispy green outline stepped into full view. He took her by the hands and held her close. “She tried to make us bend but we won’t. Not for her. Not for anyone. Not until we know there will be peace.”

“D-Daniel? What is this? What’s happening? What’s going on?”

His vague shape looked up in the sky above them. The black clouds were growing ever darker. “This is not real. But its not a dream either. Not exactly. It’s Chara. She’s trying to fight us.”

It all came flooding back to her with the gentle grace one expected from being hit by a bag of bricks. She had retreated deep into her mind and fallen asleep. She was still in the Underground and Chara was the one in control.

“Daniel, there is nothing left. I tried. I tried but I couldn’t stop her.” She cried.

He didn’t seem to hear her. “We don’t have much time. Come on, we have to get you out of here. We have to try and find a way to separate you two.” He took her by the hand and pulled her along. They had hardly gone three steps before black gnarled tendrils sprung up around them like sickly tree roots. They latched onto her and pulled her back, her red soul manifesting and burning bright in panic the moment the darkness touched her.

She saw Daniel’s faint shape become ensnared in the black tendrils as well. The world itself seemed to snarl at them, dripping with venom as Chara’s darkness fought against the human souls.

“Daniel!” She screamed, the shadows ripping the two of them free of each other’s grasp and dragging them farther and farther back. Above them the lightning was becoming less and less common in its strikes. Chara was pushing them away.

“You have to wake up! She’s sending you back! Fight her! Don’t give up! Stay Determined! You can beat her! She’s not even-”

***

All at once the world went completely dark. All the light, all the fighting souls in the sky- everything- it all winked out of existence. It was like she had been sucked into the vacuum of space.

She cartwheeled through the nothingness, struggling to open her eyes. Her mind reeled at the realization that she had no eyes to open. Or she did, but there was simply no world left to see. They were in the void that carried them between deaths.

“What…?”

Chara’s bitter voice came through, rabid and snarling like a cold northern wind. “I’m afraid I must once again admit that I have lied to you, Rain.”

“Where are we?” They continued to drift and fall, the nothingness stretching on far longer than usual. They could usually see the end of the tunnel by now but somehow this trip seemed to be taking them farther back. She kept trying to twist herself around to find something, anything that resembled the end but she was lost. “Where are we going?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Didn’t you hear your friend? Asriel ruined everything. There was nothing left for me there and your friends were certainly not going to cooperate for plan B. So we are going to go and fix the little mistake of ever having let my brother live in the first place. We are going back, Rain. All the way back.

Back to the very beginning of our little adventure.”

End of arc one: Rainfall.