PLDF Chapter 9

"Chapter 9: Return to Undertale (Sub-Entries 81-90)"

Sub-Entry 081: "Return to Undertale":
Three consecutive explosions followed by instantaneous displacement into a world that had hung in my memories for seven long years.

As many times as I'd visited and re-visited countless Undertale timelines--prime and alternate...stable and unstable...

...somehow it still faded from memory.

"Are we back?" Gadget asked.

My gaze sharpened as I caught sight of Mount Ebott in the distance.

"Yes.  We're back."

Asriel looked ahead as we continued down the proverbial "road to nowhere". Though all roads lead to somewhere...this one only lead to abandoned memories. And not just abandoned by us. Abandoned by all the monsters we set free.

"I know I only hear the sounds of the cars and the ambient noises of the wind and such outside but...I hear it, Volt."

"Hear what, Azzy?"

"I hear it calling.  The echo of home."

"Boss, why are we heading out to an abandoned mountain if everybody has already vacated and gone on to their own lives on the surface?"

"Well, Drew...there's a lot of...unfinished business inside the Underground.  If Goat Son is going to re-discover his past...he needs to start at the beginning.  And well...the fall down the mountain into that bed of Golden Flowers is what began it all in every timeline.  Though...technically the story's prologue began with the war between humans and monsters...that's...no longer something we need to explore."

"Bit wordy, but I gotcha."

"What's the plan, Commander?"

"We park the cars at the foot of Mount Ebott and use the Train's hover mode to ascend us up there until the whole group can go down the mouth of the mountain."

"Which is why we packed the mountain climbing and spelunking gear in addition to our own individual methods of flight, hovering, or unconventional transport." Bunnie followed up.

"Correct."

It wasn't long before we reached the point where the cars could go no further. The road had ended leaving only a faint hiking trail up the mountain in a spiral. Some of us went on ahead; feeling they needed the exercise.

"Heh." Asriel smirked as Sally raced some of the other sup.

Bunnie let out the briefest of chuckles before joining me at my side as we waited for the Jules-Verne train to land.

But as soon as it did...Bunnie's moment of levity faded.

"What's wit the scowl--"  I started.

It was then Asriel shook his head and sighed.

"You want to tell him or should I?"

"Tell me...what?"

"That we have stowaways..." Bunnie opened the Time Train's doors, reached in and grabbed...!

"Antoine!?" I was...definitely in disbelief. He was the last one I expected to ever tag along.

"Well.  At least he's showing backbone."

"I--"  Antoine started.

"It would do you no good to explain your actions.  You're here now.  But..." Bunnie started.

"You didn't come alone." She grabbed two more people.

"I told you she'd know." Willamina glared at Honey.

"Eheheheh....oh boy."

"You guys TRYING to leave us shorthanded back home?" I was scolding but...I didn't really mean it as much as I probably would have if this did actually present a significant problem.

"Sorry.  But where Sally goes, we follow!" Honey slipped out of Bunnie's grasp and tore a pair of fire trails up the mountain.

"I have no excuse, Commander.  But..I'll make it up by keeping her out of trouble."

"Fair enough."

"You on the other hand aren't leaving our sight." Bunnie glared at Antoine.

"Oui." Antoine said but...not NEARLY as nervous as he used to.

Well. Some time later and a few train rides up the mountain...

"Well.  All of us are equipped with the climbing gear and safety measures." Drew gave a thumbs-up as he secured his harness.

"Asriel and I are going first.  I have the most experience with this and...it's Asriel's birthright."

"Agreed."

"No arguments, boss."

"Okay.  Let's do this."

And without falling down in either sense of the words...we descended into the darkness.

I backflipped from magnetic panel to magnetic panel as Asriel lowered himself with the NX Switchboard Pro. It seemed to stretch on forever until...my sandals touched down on what was most certainly the Golden Flowers. Still alive. Still dominant. Even without Monsters to tend to them...somehow they thrived.

"Asriel?"

"It's...nothing.  It's like...waking up from a dream in reverse.  Does that make sense?"

"After my DeltaRune experiences...perfect sense."

Asriel looked down at the flowers.

"This was...where they were buried."

An ominous silence gripped all of us. It was morbid. But...denying it wouldn't change anything. This was where ever Chara iteration ended up after Toriel took their corpse from the seven casket in Asgore's castle. Did she really give consideration to Asriel and Chara by separating them from one another?

No. Don't think such things. Even if they might be true...no good could come of dwelling on past mistakes by both parents.

Asriel looked around. That expression he was wearing. There was no denying that he knew he'd been here before. One-hundred fifteen years ago. A LIFETIME ago. He gazed longingly at the open door frame...the gateway into the next room, knowing EXACTLY where it should lead...or rather...

..to whom it should lead. And believe me...I was just as apprehensive.

The RUINS seemed...even more ruined than the last time we were here. I hoped the puzzles were still functional. I'd really hate it if the spike trap malfunctioned. I was prepared to use my magnetism in case.

"No sense delaying the inevitable." I hung my head.

"Volt." Asriel lifted my head up by the chin so I could look him in the eyes.

Orange. The color of Bravery.

"You're right.  He can't hurt us any worse than he already has in the past."

And with that...we stepped through the doorway.

Silence but the echo of our footsteps.

The darkness...all that darkness. I couldn't see any movement. Any silhouette. Any sign of the weed.

We approached the center of the room. It seemed like we were never going to get a sign that anything living was left in here...

"He gave you sufficient warning..."

I gasped as I heard the familiar voice.

Asriel remained unshaken.

"...you just couldn't help yourself.  You just had to ignore him.  Of all people...why wouldn't you listen to him?"

I was at a loss for words. And flailing, metaphorically.

"You just couldn't stay away.  You just had to come back."

Asriel stepped ahead of me.

"Because it was all as much a part of Destiny's Plan as it was Fate's.   They both intended for us to end up in this place, meeting once again."

"You..."

"Yes."

Flowey suddenly became visible within the faint light source above.

"My oh so perfect reflection.  While I remain your distorted image in the cracked mirror."

"You know you are not hurting me.  Only yourself."

"Oh my!  And this is the part where I'm supposed to protest 'what would you know'?  And go into the tirade about how you got everything while I lost everything."

"It's never as black and white as you make it sound.  You didn't lose everything.  You made a sacrifice for everyone else.  Only now it doesn't seem fair because--"

"Grrrr!  Don't LECTURE ME ON WHAT I ALREADY KNOW!"

"A--"

"NO!  You don't GET to use that name on me, Arcade!  I'm not him anymore and I never will be.  Get it through the space those horns are separating within that skull of yours!  This world can't HAVE two Asriel's."

"I...suppose that makes sense." Asriel still looked like he didn't want to accept it any more than I did.

"Why does it have to be that way, though?"

"It...it just does!"

Logically it stood to reason that this Asriel was no older or younger than ours in terms of age...but he was still behaving like a child.

"You know you don't put on as convincing an act as you think." I prodded. "You're trying to sound like Chara--"

Flowey hissed.

"Volt.  Please don't go there." Asriel shook his head.

"Sorry.  Reflex." I grumbled, trying not to be sore about Flowey's long list of deeds.

"There's nothing for you in this place, Arcade.  Both of you."

"That's where you're wrong.  Memories are all I have of this place.  Without past...how can I hope to have a future?"

"And I HAVE a past.  But what future do I have?" Flowey snarled.

"Well...you could--"

"Wait.  Are you seriously offering..." Flowey's voice became smug as if he was amused.

"I mean you don't HAVE to deny yourself--"

"Riiiiiiiiight.  I'll just unbury little old me from this soil and go back to the old goats and say...hey!  Remember me?  The flower that tried to kill you and take your souls?  Yeah.  Well I'm back and...oh guess what?   I'm the dusty remains of your dead son brought back by the good lizard doctor's experiments with Determination."

Ouch.

Flowey chuckled darkly. "And just when I thought you couldn't disappoint me more...you really have outdone yourselves and proven you're both...king and prince of the IDIOTS."

Asriel visibly frowned at the I-word.

"Maybe so.  But we're compassionate enough to at least put it on the table."

"I'm going to make this...as clear as glass...so listen...well..."

Suddenly Flowey's thorny vines snapped around Asriel's arms and squeezed, the thorns spiking him hard.

"Asriel!!!" I pointed my weapons. "LET HIM--"

"Volt!  No!  It's okay!  This is nothing!  He's not going to do anything."

"And how do you know that, you naive goat!?"

"Because you're NO ADONIS.  And never will be."

Suddenly the vines loosened.

"You're still scared of him.  Even though you know what BECAME of him."

Flowey's vines trembled a bit.

"He traumatized you far worse than he did me.  It's obvious why you betrayed us and took even Frisk's soul.  You couldn't overcome that fear of yours.  I know that fear all too well.  I still have it...but I stopped letting it be my master and started letting it be my fuel."

"What does that mean!?"

"Fear is a resource when used correctly.  But you never learned how.  You act on it.  You let it decide your path for you.  And you hide that thin excuse that you can't feel anything."

"Are you calling me a liar?"

"I'm saying you're telling a half-truth.  If you can't feel anything.   Then why did you cry in front of Asgore?"

"...so you know?  Curses.  Then it's true what he said about you having the wolf's memories.  Then you also know I led him to his slaughter in the Genocide Runs.  I ended him--"

"Because that human...that version of Frisk terrified far more than anything.  Until you met Adonis."

"Stop it!  Stop it!"

"Stop what?  We're trying to help you.  We're giving you a way out."

"Then I'll leave you with one last reference he dropped on me, goat.  There's...no way home."

Asriel remained quiet for just a moment. "Heh.  Imagine that.  The last bit of legacy he leaves behind is a Spider-Man reference."

"This is the ultimatum, Asriel Arcade.  And I'm about to make your choice permanent--"

"I don't think you will." Asriel remained calm as the vines continued to grip but not constrict.

"And why is that--"  Flowey suddenly choked on his words as he recognized the sound of Lupe's staff thumping down.

"You brought the Druid."

"Close.  But not enough cigars to go around."

That was when everyone else's eyes became visible in the darkness.

"Oh I see how it is.  You don't think I have enough tentacles to--"

"The Human Souls haven't been seen since the Barrier shattered.  Have they?" Asriel was direct.

"...!"

"Maybe with one soul or maybe with some spark of what you once had...you might be able to take one or more of us out...take those souls and then turn the tide in your favor until you have all of us.  But you've used up everything.  And you've chosen to throw everything and everyone away.  What was once self-exile--a noble act--is now nothing more than the sour grapes of a brat throwing a temper tantrum.  I'm disappointed in you, Asriel Dreemurr."

"I told you not to call me that, Asriel Arcade!"

"It's who you are and who you'll always be.  Now.  The next move is yours."

"...!"

And reluctantly...Flowey's vines uncoiled and retracted.

He was fighting back the frustration...trying not to show that he was about to.

"Asriel has always been a crybaby.  Why would you deny that now?  Why do you feel the need to save face?  It's not a sign of weakness.  It's compassion.  I sense it in you...not an entire soul.  Barely enough to be called an ember.  But there's something...still there that makes you...you."

Flowey hung his head and his petals drooped.

"You've wasted your time.  There's nothing in this place but dead memories.  Crushed hopes and broken dreams.  What could you POSSIBLY wish for in a place like this?"

"An origin I can truly call my own.  And once I have it...I can have a future that belongs to me.   When I get there...I hope you knows there will be a place for you in it."

Flowey turned his er...back on us all...and burrowed underground.

Asriel's mouth twisted into a frown.

"Coward."

"Asriel...!" I gasped at his wounded, bleeding arms.

Bunnie helped him tear away the sleeves and started applying medical jutsus.

"That was a pretty reckless move, Azzy."

"I'd like to believe I know how my other self thinks.  Really...he's just an underpowered Hyperdeath.  And I've long come to terms with Hyperdeath."

"Well.  I guess with him no longer an issue...what's keeping us from the grand tour of your place?"

"It's...not really my place.  Just another timeline version of it--"

"It's your place if you want it to be.  The only thing that separates you from Flowey was a choice and an opportunity; one that was given...and one that wasn't.  You're the result of the former and from making the right choice."

"C'mon, Azzy.  Let's pay a visit to your mom's old place."

"Right.  To our old vacation home in the RUINS."

Sub-Entry 082: "The House That the Dreemurrs Built":
Seven years. Seven long years. And yet...how did it fall into this much disrepair? Honestly it looked more like 107. Was this another of Madam Fate's acts of spite?

"I see those gears turning in your head, Volt.  Wanna share?"

"Seven years...if I had broken a mirror back then the bad luck would be up by now if you believe in superstition."

"Dancing around the point, Boss."

"Read me like a book, Drew.  If the timeline hadn't been reset it would be fifteen.  I wonder what this place would have looked like then but--"

"When you returned to this world to this new timeline, five years had passed but everything looked the same." Violet reasoned, being unusually straight.

"Yes.  If it weren't for the lack of "micro glitches" I'd probably have never felt like it was the same but different.  I probably would have felt like I just picked up where I left off instead of having to start over."

"And now that you're back you're seeing the passage of time in effect." Bunnie followed my logic. "Something...not always that comforting to you, correct?"

"Immortality never stops reminding you that the world goes on around you even when you feel like you will always stay the same."

"But you have changed, Volt.  In these fifteen years, you've grown as a person.  You've gotten wiser.  Just as I have."

The first room. Two staircases leading up to the open door flanked by hanging vines. Everything was so purple just as I remembered it. The bed of red leaves in front of the wall between the two staircases. Everything was exactly the same as we'd left it..............except for one thing missing.

"The...Save Star..." I blinked. "It's gone."

"Yeah.  It would be." Asriel remembered how he and Frisk crashed their game saves...their game code. The entire timeline was broken away from whatever...the code and software framework that somehow tied everything to Destiny and Fate's game.

Asriel lead on as we came to the first puzzle room--the Middle Road Puzzle. And like it were nothing he stepped on the titles in order and solved the first puzzle, opening the door.

"Only the fearless may proceed. Brave ones, foolish ones. Both not walk the middle road."

Asriel recited before I could. How was it flooding back to him faster than me? Than any of us? He...was from here, more or less. If you disregarded the timelines and just considered it ALL Undertale. Genocide, Neutral, and True Pacifist...they all existed parallel to one another in an endless set of infinite superimposed planes of existence. Those straws of the broom I spoke of. Some with that "red coating". Some with that red coating worn away in spots...or stripped away completely. The stable and unstable timelines. It was all here, all in one AU cube. Our AU cube.

The switch room. Three switches on the wall, two bridges, spikes that prevented the protagonist...protagonists (namely us) from entering the next room, and a plaque on the wall that read "Stay on the path." Again no obstacle.

"It's like it's permanently etched into my soul."

"Does it worry you, Asriel?" Lupe suddenly asked.

"Worry me?"

"That...it feels instinctive...or preordained?"

"Like I'm not in control of my actions.  Maybe...for a moment it did but.  I know I'm choosing this.  I know I have a choice to heed the clues or ignore them completely.  I've been disconnected from this "game" world and now there's not even a "game" left of it.  So...whatever I did feel...I'm over it, Lupe."

"That is good."

The blueprint puzzle. More of the same.

"The western room is the eastern room's blueprint."

The Rock Puzzle. And yes...Violet just had to make as many references to Dwayne Johnson as she could fit before being thwapped.

The Leaf Puzzle. I think Gadget was waiting for this one as she quickly headed to the spot she had originally chosen before and low and behold we got past it quick.

"Glad we didn't have to do that nine more times." Rotor offhandedly said.

"I don't know.  Might give one of us the title of Legendary Hero."

I slooooow turned to Violet. Did she EVER stop peeking into my notes from my many Undertale Prime explorations?

The One-Switch Puzzle. Solved quickly and the spikes were retracted. It was then I noticed some key items were missing. The ribbon most notably. And of course...all this time and we hadn't encountered a single monster. Not a vegetoid, not a froggit...nothing.

The rotating puzzle room was the last of the significant obstacles. And...it proved to be less so than it had ever been to any of us. We reached the center of the ruins like it was rehearsed even though we hadn't given it thought in seven years.

We'd gone through it so fast we'd passed through parts like the pillar hallway without giving it thought until the hindsight made us reflect on it...on a Goat Mom and a cell phone...you know. The "uge" as Vi put it.

Heck even the Monster Candy room's dish was empty and overturned on the floor. It still hadn't been tended to after Jon pretty much emptied it out. Way to go, son-in-law...

Okay, enough riffing on Jon.

Once we passed the mouse hole...

"The cheese was still there." Gadget scratched her head.

"Don't try and pick it up.  That means YOU, Jon."

"Awww."

Further exploration revealed even the spider webs were gone. Muffet and company had cleared out completely.

No sign of the Froggits...not even the miniaturized one in the hole.

"Just up ahead..." I uttered before...!

And there we were. I'd know that tree anywhere. And behind it...the house that the Dreemurrs built.

Asriel stood frozen in his tracks...looking at it longingly.

"Do you...need a moment."

A moment of silence.

"Moment's over." Asriel turned to me with watery eyes. He was holding back the tears for when he really needed them.

Some of us had broken away only momentarily to check out the overlook of Home. That view of the castle ramparts and towers and brick-walled city. I never really questioned it but...if this was Home...then...it completely escaped me that New Home was a perfect copy of this far, far away from the cave RUINS. I'd never recognized just how BIG the space inside the RUINS actually was or that all of HOME had been abandoned save for Toriel's home and the sparce monsters that once inhabited it. Everyone else had spread out all the way from Snowdin to New Home ages and ages ago.

How did I not think to explore all of this!?

Of course...there was no sign of the toy knife.

Once we all regrouped to where Azzy was waiting for us...he opened the door and one by one we went in.

And then...the feels just surrounded us all.

Mitzi bee-lined for the kitchen. Bunnie and Sally examined the now-empty bookshelves.

Even the tools by the fireplace were gone and the fire was out.

Everything just felt lifeless even though it wasn't...colorless like New Home's copy.

It was then I noticed Asriel humming that familiar Rebecca Sugar song...about a garden...about everything being right where you left it. Honestly, I was having trouble remember if it was an Adventure Time or Steven Universe thing but...what I should have asked was...how Asriel was channeling it at this exact moment. Yet I didn't.

Asriel looked upon the room that was...closed for renovation.

I'd often speculated about it but--

"It was Dad's room." Asriel plainly said. "When he...was last welcome here, no doubt."

A silence gripped us all...until Violet forced the door open with a crowbar.

"Hey!" I snapped.

"Are you kidding me!?" Mitzi put her hands on her hips.

"It's...okay.  Nothing but dead memories in here anyway.  It's not like we're going to break the game or anything."

Was that a moment of dark humor out of Asriel.

Under renovation was...putting it mildly. It was stripped bare. No sign that ANYONE lived here. Toriel...really wanted to get rid of Asgore's memory in a hurry, I guess.

"Disappointed?"

"Of what?" Asriel shrugged. "I wasn't expecting anything so...it's fine."

Backtracking to the next room? Toriel's room. Pretty much in the same state but at least not boarded up shut. And...there were subtle reminders something was once here. The imprints on the ground of a "bigger than twin-sized bed". Indents of where the heavy furniture along the back wall once stood. Evidence of "Chair-iel", the desk, the potted plants. Everything.

"I almost feel...mom's presence here." Asriel covered his chest with both hands...somehow similarly to Toriel's mannerisms. Callista hugged from behind, supportively.

The last of the rooms in the hallway...described as the "Guest Room".

"This was...my room." Asriel looked upon the barren room.

It was strange. Toriel's room had almost a...blue aura still left in it...while this room felt...reddish? Not sure how I could "feel" a color but...that was what I was getting out of this.

Evidence of the large rug. All the furniture from the back of the room...long gone. And yes...even a rectangular ring where the toy chest once was.

Asriel walked over to where the bed once was...and lay down on the floor and looked up at the ceiling...like he was imagining it was still there. Judging from the impression...it was hard to believe he could ever be that small.

"It felt strange to lie in the spot where my bed was. It feels entirely too small for me now."

I got a weird chill down my back at Asriel's realization. It echoed a thought of Frisk's after the True Pacifist Ending.

Pit offered to help him back up once he'd...made his peace with it all.

"Thank-you."

I think it was obvious what to do next.

Once we gathered together again in our large group...it was a long glance down the staircase.

Azzy nodded...and led on.

Into that dark place we went. That ominous dark place that...preceded that unpleasant experience of a Goat Mom not ready to let go...after not even a day of the eight child coming into her life.

That test to see if they could survive. I'd always had her look of horror and despair from many a timeline where...she accidently ended the Eighth Child in battle. It still haunted me. And I'm sure Asriel had an echo of that memory in his head somewhere.

He sniffled as he looked upon the gates leading out. Sadly he shook his head.

"Oh, mom...how many years went by...all those children leaving you...I can't imagine how it all conspired to drive you to this point..."

He and I pushed the doors open and walked to the patch of grass where Flowey was waiting.

"If you're expecting me to say anything...don't hold your breath." Flowey turned away. "Go see your precious world.  Get lost for all I care."

"My offer's always on the table."

"It doesn't matter how many of you make that electric wolf's offer.   This world doesn't need two Asriel's.  I don't think it even needs one."

"Flowey..."

"Wasn't it all sunshine and rainbows where you disappeared to for 115 years?  Weren't you happy abandoning this place?"

"I was but..."

"You're a greedy one ain't ya?"

"Greed has nothing to do with it."

"You're trying to get something you desire...thinking of yourself.  Who's the one in denial?  I admit it.  I got greedy too.  So why don't you want to admit you're the same as--"

"I'm not denying it.  But really...I've had this argument with Hyperdeath.  Sorry.  But it's an argument you cannot win anymore than he can."

"Fine.  Be stubborn.  But one day, Asriel Arcade.  You'll understand I was right all along--"

"And one day I'll tell you the same.   I look forward to the day when one of us can actually admit he was wrong in the end."

"You arrogant--"

"Pot's calling the kettle black, Flowey." I warned. "We're going on ahead."

"Like I'm going to waste my time and effort stopping you.  Go on.  Go ahead.  Get out of here.  I don't care.  I can't care."

"Well.  At least one of us does." Asriel walked past the talking yellow flower...and met no resistance. And each of us walked past him with no resistance.

"Flowey." I was the last one to pass him. "It really is lonely at the top.  But then what constitutes the "top" is a matter of perspective."

"Don't bore me with your riddles.  I know where I stand."

"Pretty impressive task for someone who doesn't have legs."

Flowey hissed at Vi's snipe.

"C'mon, Aunt Vi.  Not cool."

"Hell does exist.  Because each of us makes our own iteration of it and we choose to live in it...or escape from it." I said rather plainly before I exited. "I hope this isn't a sign that your Determination isn't used up."

I knew it wasn't. Flowey was determined...but focusing it on staying right where he was. I guess now I understand the connection between him and Sans; it took a truly unique kind of nihilism for the two of them to clash against each other so intensely when then two of them were so alike in certain ways.

Though I wondered....as we were approaching the spot where Sans first made his appearance on the other side of that gateway.......wherever he was now...how much less so had he become now that he reluctantly put his faith in Frisk...in Asriel...and in me and my friends? Now that it paid off...how far down the road to recovery had his psyche progressed?

As we continued along...the corridors became a lighter and lighter and still lighter shade of purple until we reached the door.

"Any time you're ready, Dr. Arcade." Asriel managed to get himself out of the deep funk.

I nodded...flexed my magnetism...and forced open the doors to the outside...

Sub-Entry 083: "Into Snowdin and a Stop in Snowdin Town":
...and I immediately regretted it.

"God...dammit..." I growled, wishing I had kept that muffler/scarf. I yanked my lab coat shut tight and wrapped my arms around myself.

"Happy days are here again!"

I growled in response. "Oh shut up, Jon."

"Some of us came prepared." Antoine boasted as he snapped up his winter coat. Goddammit, I've being shown up by Antoine of all people!

Not to mention Mitzi had her Thermal Belt. Asriel has his Taiyoudama flames. And pretty much anyone else had their own method of enduring the cold.

Once I forced back my distaste for the climate, I trudged forth, Asriel actually having to  catch up to me. I think I was on autopilot by this point.

Fortunately he got my head back in the game in time. Our surroundings might not have given me a reminder of where we were at first. But Gadget's moment of timidness at the spooky dead forest around us gave me a wake-up call.

I stopped short of the...gate thingee once it all clicked again.

"It's been a while but...I don't remember this here.  Was this...built as a trap to keep humans from going further?" Asriel was starting to recall my research about Sans.

I know he said he was a sentry...but I never got a straight answer of just how far up Asgore's ladder of loyal subjects he was. Papyrus never really got into the Royal Guard...but...

...was it possible that Sans was in it all along? That was one theory. Another was that he was part of the research team in Hotland. One telling said he and Papyrus were W.D. Gaster's creations. Others his sons. Others...well...too many other theories to comb through. All I did remember that was "canon" was that the people of Snowdin Town said they arrived one day and asserted themselves and...the rest was history. Try as I may I never did figure out the meaning of those words. Should I interpret them literally or in some form of metaphor?

"This place has much in common with a taiga biome." Lupe mentioned offhandedly. That made me recall the large river that flowed east...toward Waterfall and into Hotland and straight to the CORE. Even at a time like this, Lupe was thinking of the ecosystems around here.

"But I sense...no life other than the environment itself."

"Snowy, icy, or not...it's nice and open.  I'll stretch my legs on anything if I can get an open road." Sally said as her Overdrive Sandals deployed its traction spikes.

"Don't scout too far ahead, Sally.  True we've been here before but we don't know what has changed." Rotor warned.

"Hmm." Usagi tilted his "Raiden" hat. I still didn't know what the proper Jang word for it was. Pretty sure Bunnie did. I'd ask her another time.

Pit, now realizing the openness of the environment was all too eager to get some altitude to scout from above. And yes...he couldn't help but map out his surroundings with a blank checklist scroll from his world; marking it with a pencil as he readied the torch to magically mark our position on the map.

Everyone else who tagged along quickly got on the same page. The warm-up was over and now we were in literal cool-down.

Honestly the emptiness actually made me wish for the company of Snowdrake and Icecap. Some jokes or even a moment of disdain for Icecap's narcissism felt like it could snap me out of my blue funk.

"You're...awfully quiet, Azzy."

"A lot to take in...a lot I'm remembering.  Just...trying to sort through what I'm comfortable recalling and talking about.  Chara and I used to play in this area a lot.  Snowball fights and...hot chocolate at the restaurant in town."

He didn't call it "Grillby's". So...maybe his father or someone else had an establishment before the man of fire took over? Or maybe I was just reading too far into it.

Exploration yielded nothing out of the ordinary. And...too much ordinary. Rather...not enough familiar faces was the best way I could clarify it. Gyfftrot, Doggo, Dogamy and Dogaressa. Not even Jerry was around and I figured of all people who would be ditched he'd be left here to complain about the WIFI sucking hard. But...I guess even the ditched can ditch this place, too. Flowey really did seem like the only one left.

At least until Jon lead us down a path and low and behold...

"Oh my!  I wasn't expecting anyone to return."

"Hey.  Been a while.  You holding up okay?"

"I'm doing just fine!  I can tell the human who brought a piece of me outside to the surface is still taking care it even now.  My dream was for even part of me to travel the world and...I feel like it has done that."

Frisk managed to preserve a piece of the Snowman? I guessed...she was keeping it in a freezer somewhere? Or took it to a place where it was always snowing and maybe made it part of a new snowman? Who could say?

Well. After some introductions, re-introductions and some friendly conversation...we were on our way.

All of the check-in stations were abandoned. Sans' only had empty bottles of ketchup to speak of. The broken giant sculpture of Lesser Dog's over-extended neck brought back memories. How DID he get his neck back to normal anyway?

Glyde was nowhere to be found in the mysterious door.

All the traps had been turned off.

Asriel managed to get the ball into the hole in record time scoring a red flag...but nothing else. The game...really was offline. Maybe completely gone.

Alphys' tile randomizer was offline, the path still bright pink.

Even Papyrus' ultimate puzzle-the Gauntlet of Deadly Terror had been taken down.

"A lot happened in this place after...my other self fell down." Asriel observed. "All these extra puzzles seem excessive but...I can also tell the person who made them was...holding back.  Like..."

Asriel smiled.

"...like they didn't want any humans actually hurt.  Don't kill...and don't be killed."

"Papyrus..." I uttered.

"A skeleton after my own heart.  I know I told the alternate timeline version of him I wanted to be his fan and friend...now I have to keep that promise when I meet this timeline's Papyrus."

"Yeah.  Yeah, you really should."

I was solemn for a moment.

"So.  You gonna have to go through his schtick about Asgore clones again?"

That made us both burst out laughing.

"I guess he'll start calling me tiny Asgore though...not so tiny, really."

"I feel like I've heard that one before." I smiled.

"You guys are going to really have to clue us in on the inside jokes." Honey teased.

"Some of us are kind of in the dark." Scott shrugged.

"Oh there is sooo much weird humor in this place.  Unfortunately most of it got up and headed to the surface world so...you're just gonna have to take our word for it." I explained.

"Good times."

"I trust you're not gloating about saving my life in Snowdin, Violet.  Heroes shouldn't gloat."

"Would I do thaaaat?"

There's the Rabbotou glare.

"Eheheheh..."

"You know there were a lot of hidden cameras trained on us, don't you?" Drew brought it to my attention.

"Yeah.  Remnants of Alphys' surveillance network."

"We going to have someone ELSE to complain about beside Al Dente and Violet, boss?"

"I'll vouch for her." I waved it off.

Gods...so many details flooding back. Too many to list and they were popping up one after another. I think when I got down to it...this whole place was the ultimate Time Capsule. And for whatever reason...I just loved time capsules. Maybe...that was where my reputation as the King of Crossovers and the Knight of Nostalgia came from? Okay that second one was a nickname I just now started and was somehow hoping would catch on.

After picking through this place with a fine-tuned comb...gawking at spaghetti frozen to a plate with an unplugged microwave...to an unpowered Electricity Maze (much to my disappointment)...

We finally arrived at Snowdin Town.

And yes...it turned out to be a ghost town. Everyone had packed up and left. The Christmas Tree had been stripped bare. And yes...the house of the Skelebros. had been undecorated. Both mailboxes were empty and abandoned.

Grillby's Diner was closed and the signs and everything removed. The LIBRARBY was emptied out and even the misspelled letters were gone.

Ice Wolf was nowhere to be found and the ice flow had stopped completely.

I looked at the others for a bit...we took a vote...and decided to check inside the House of the Skelebros anyway.

"Stripped to the bone?" Violet joked.

"A bit of an obvious one, Vi." Asriel shrugged. "But wow...I would have liked to see this place when it was occupied."

We all checked everything out. Even Sans room was no longer sealed with ominous flames. Though...he did leave some of his mess behind. Papyrus' though was spic-and-span cleaned to a bleached bone white.

That left...the kitchen. And yeah...I had told everyone of what lay inside.

I also warned anyone who went in to brace him or herself. ANYTHING could have been changed since the last time. And after the state of disrepair the shrine had been before fighting Mad Mew-Mew? I was expecting nothing short of an apocalypse. But inside turned out to be something I considered much worse...

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Before THAT sight we would behold...nothing seemed changed from the old ruined shrine and the Mad Mew Mew SWITCH door. For all but five seconds before a giant bulldozer rolled through and leveled everything. We all caught sight of the annoying dog driving it.

"Wha--"  Was all that Asriel got out before it all...literally dropped on us along the far wall.

A sign that read "sign". A token exchange machine. A donation box...and a giant slot machine.

It hit me immediately what this was.

"A casino.   Why oh WHY did it have to be a casino?" I sighed, facepalming. To be honest...I'd never liked casinos much. My time on Sim City simulations reminded me they tended to increase crime rates and Violet's collection of DVD's had no shortage of movies about mafia ties. Plus no shortage of...ahem...inappropriate content and depravity--

"I got this, Commander." Violet said as she started plopping in gold in the exchanger unit until she had piles and piles of tokens. She took this waaay seriously. Gods...does she have a gambling problem I don't know about? I already felt like I needed a shower. But...maybe I was the only one among us that was this opposed to gambling.

So little by little, Violet started donating...she'd been peeking into my notes again.

10 C won her...a poker table in which a mannequin of Sans appeared with an automated speaker box behind his grinning mouth. Wait a minute...did he have a part in this--?

I also noticed a Mad Mew-Mew replica.

"if you win anything take a look at it and talk to me.  someone's gotta roast you for all your hard work."

...he did. He totally did.

Violet donated again, this time 25 C. And that got her a...A "GamerBOX game console system"--which  bragged that it featured an exclusive virtual slot machine, but noting that it has no real-life benefits. Sans mannequin pointed out that one could watch a video recording instead of playing games yourself. Mad Mew Mew noted that the console interfaced with her body and she made Alphys faint from fright while stealing the doll.

"This is going to get weird, isn't it?" Sally asked.

"GET weird?" Drew retorted.

50 C later and an MTT-branded fast food box appeared in the room, containing game controllers covered with ketchup and buns. Sans noted that while saying puns at MTT Resort, the king couldn't stop laughing and the performance was cut short. Mad Mew Mew noted that she once cut several pictures of Mettaton out of Burgerpants's menu to replace with her own.

And it just kept going on.

100 C and...A "backwards" baseball cap appeared in the room, which was noted to be backwards despite nobody wearing it. Sans claimed he won't wear it because he "just combed" and isn't a hat person (despite wearing a visor). Mad Mew Mew said Undyne would look great in a hat but it would be difficult to fit her hair through a backwards one.

Asriel had to have the same vibe as me...like everything in here was delayed from when the Monsters were last in here. Like they'd been waiting years for these iterations. Almost like the Boss Monsters were still here...?

200 C. A war-torn Gamer's Treaty listing the "only 50 good games to ever exist" appeared in the room. Sans implied that it was written by Toriel and that her top recommendation were "the same rpg as always" which he would get "if it ever came out on gamerbox." Mad Mew Mew claimed that anything she did is canon to Mew Mew, relaying a story about blowing smoke due to the doll's shoddy design.

"Wow, that's meta." I thought of a certain other game console said to *ahem* blow smoke from an urban legend. Though...in all fairness, I think someone was using it as an...ahem...illegal drug smoking apparatus named after the onomatopoeia for the sound a bell makes. Eeesh. I just implied PG-13 material.

Vi was up to 300 C and the reward was...A GamerBOX GameCamera (resembling an Xbox Kinect) appeared next to the GamerBOX. It came bundled with "MTT Dance Off", a game where the player loses if they stop applauding Mettaton. Sans noted Papyrus has been taking selfies and editing muscles into them, a "glimpse of the future." Mad Mew Mew refused to take a selfie with the protagonist using it.

I had nothing to say to any of that. And even if I did...I don't know if I should.

Finally she capped off at 500 C and that won her...the HD Upgrade?

"Boss...?" Drew looked outside at the bouncing coins that suddenly appeared...the ones that matched the virtual coins that the slot machine seemed to display on screen.

"Vi.  Quit while you're--"

Too late. She was already testing out the slot machine.

Three cherries resulted in...several cherry-flavored GamerBlood Energy Drinks appearing in the room, which contained vitamins B1 through the nonexistent B5, caffeine, and "whatever vitamins are in radioactive waste." Sans noted that Alphys used to drink a lot of them. Mad Mew Mew mentioned that Burgerpants refuses to give her "a battery smoothie."

I blinked. Battery smoothie? That sounded like something Chameleon used to tease me about.

Three ghosts. An incorporeal ticket for "a live Gaming Performance" from Mettaton appeared in the room. Sans noted that Mettaton always used mods to make the main character in the game into Mettaton, but most animations aren't modded properly. Mad Mew Mew implied she stole it from Napstablook due to the complicated relationship between them and Mettaton.

Three bones. Various beautification skin creams appeared in the room. Sans noted that Papyrus used a lot of these, despite not having skin. Mad Mew Mew implied she eats skin cream and has attempted to "re-screw" Burgerpants's head on after he refused to make her ice cream from it.

By now most everyone in the room was giving me looks. I just shrugged and tried not to look like I was about to lose my mind...or my head after that Mew Mew response.

Finally Violet got the slot machine to come up D-O-G. And what did this get her?

A statue of the Annoying Dog in a suit advertising fried dog food appeared in the room. It "felt" like we could puts something in the dog's hands which could solve a puzzle, but actually had no effect beyond that feeling. Sans claimed that fried food is unhealthy, making an implicit reference to his "fried snow" joke in Snowdin Forest. Mad Mew Mew suggested it could be a good body for Napstablook, noting its potential knife-holding abilities.

By that point. I was done. And so was everyone else. We dragged Vi out of there and back into the kitchen after she had her fun.

Rather than stick around to hear more of the mach-up Sans and Mew-Mew's funky interactions...we decided to bid Snowdin town goodbye and head for wetter pastures.

"At least it'll be warmer where we're going..." I grumbled.

I looked over at Asriel.

"Hey...um..."

"I'm holding up well.  It was...a weird experience but...nothing as weird as things we've already been through.  What can I say?  This is the world I came from."

"Yeah.  Glad to hear it."

Through the fog and past the spot where Papyrus once battled Frisk one instance...and me during another.

Onward to...

Sub-Entry 084: "Back to Waterfall":
Waterfall.

While it was true I wanted to get out of that icy Hell...

I traded up a place that was bright outside and overall cheery despite the freezing temperatures...to a dark, damp, and dank zone. Full of ancient glyphs, weird ominous lighting, overgrowths of grass and bogs, risk of being washed away by waterfalls and micro icebergs...and an overall feeling of dreariness, depression, and gloom.

Something about this place always put me on guard despite it having the most ambient, most relaxed geography and atmosphere out of the entire kingdom. It was like I could feel Undyne's lone eye still piercing me after all this time...not so much as judging me but anticipating the moment to pass sentence on me.

And really...it was here where I saw the futility of Papyrus trying to find another way of capturing the human...one that was less..."murder-y" and dependent on impaling with spears.

I was almost expecting Monster Kid to greet us but...tiny armless dino dude never came.

This feeling of solitude. Of abandonment. I'd never thought I'd feel it in the Underground of all places but...I wasn't alone. Neither was Asriel. None of us were as long as we were together.

It was just that...we were strangers in a familiar land that no longer felt familiar. It felt...lifeless without the Monsters.

But what was what I was focusing on.

Gadget and Lupe would be drawn to the Echo Flowers.

Bunnie remembered this was the home of Gerson.

Sally was hoping the twin Pathetic Ghost Houses were still around.

Mitzi recalled what I said about an abandoned quiche...couldn't imagine it was still good but...I also knew food made which magic down here...didn't spoil.

Scott and Callista both tried looking to see if Castle Dreemurr was visible in the distance. We'd have to get closer; the best view was after the piano puzzle and...the statue with the music box that played...His Theme.

Alright Asriel was thinking the same thing as me. I felt as if...the notes of that song were already echoing in his mind.

And then there was Jon wondering if there was somewhere we could get food...a Nice Cream perhaps?

I reminded we were still far from Hotland's MTT Resort...and even if we got there...the place had to be closed down so...no Glam Burgers or Steaks in the shape of Mettaton's Face.

And all of us were most certainly thinking about Temmie Village. Would any of those little rascals stay behind?

The trek began.

We'd all been keeping our eyes open but not a single article of "armor" or "weapon" of the six human souls could be found. It had to mean Frisk kept her word...and brought them to the surface to be...properly returned to their next of kin or. This in turn made me think...what had Asgore done to make amends for his terrible deeds? How would he have gone about paying for his crimes on the surface? Were any of the families of the six souls still around? What era was each of them from?

The more of Sans' outposts I saw the more abandoned each felt. And the less evidence he was ever around them there was. Few ketchup bottles, most notably.

No sign of Monster Kid. And of course...no Save Points.

"Gods...I was going to make a joke about dead code a long time ago but...now it just seems in bad taste even for me." Vi wrinkled her nose.

"Feels like it should be a good thing but...it just makes me feel depressed for some reason." Willie agreed.

"It is what it is." Rotor rubbed a tusk.

The Dimensional Boxes were gone, not that Frisk needed an inventory any more.

The Sea-Grass continued on. Lupe only studied it briefly, not wanting to slow the group down.

"The Wishing Room." Azzy remembered.

It was a quick chore to arrange the Bridge Seeds and make progress to said Wishing Room. Azzy and I both anticipated our cell phones going off to hear from Papyrus or Undyne but...nothing. No reception, in fact.

I figured if Alphys' lab was still in Hotland...I doubted her computer was and thus my USB dongle went with it. Meaning I probably had no access to her security; assuming her security systems were still around and still functional. Unless...I could tap into them through my own sub-lab outpost. But...in reality...wouldn't that be inefficient to go out of our way beyond the lab to a place further away?

I'd...figure this out by then, right?

The Ferry Dock. I grew...nervous waiting for a spear barrage that would never come.

Asriel patted my shoulder knowing what was on my mind.

Onionsan's area. But no Onionsan.

An empty Nice Cream cart...much to Jon's heartbreak.

"Hey look!  A telescope!" Gadget started to check it but I held her back and shook my head.

"I am not to be intimidated by an inanimate object!" Antoine bravely checked out the scope.

Sally...could barely contain her laughter. Bunnie even smiled.

"What?  What is being so funny?"

"Ohhhh I don't know.  I guess I should applaud you for...keeping an eye out...in the blackness of this space.  You took a real shiner to having fore-sight into the situation.  I hate to reflect on this without being crystal clear about maintaining my focus...but...I guess I'd only prove a one-eyed jack-rabbit can trump a military genius when it comes to see-ing the bigger picture."

That. Many. Puns. Surely Antoine would pick up on--

"I am not knowing what you are talking about!  I shall be taking 'zis banter with zee grain of salt."

...I stand corrected.

"What are you grinning about?" Antoine scolded Asriel.

"Not...a thing."

"Come on.  Somebody has to tell him!" Gadget gestured to her eye as Antoine turned away.

"Not it." Sally held up her hands in protest.

"Let him have his dignity." Rotor  shook his head. "It'd probably be worse if we drew his attention to it."

"Then again it could be worse if he find out and realizes we knew all along and didn't tell him."

Oh boy.

No sign of the small bird.

No ballet shoes. No River Person.

The piano puzzle. Asriel could hear it in his heart so...he played that song he knew. It didn't affect the hidden door, as it was already open and the artifact long gone and swallowed by the Annoying Dog.

A double back and...

It was raining. Each of us had brought his or her own umbrella as I had requested we do.

There it was. The statue. The song of Memory. Asriel dropped to his hands and knees and hung his head for a good long while...and cried, sniffling. And low and behold...there was still an umbrella in its grasp.

We came to that area. That open area with Castle Dreemurr in the distance.

"So...that's where...?" Callista started.

"That's where." Asriel followed up.

Scott placed his hand on Asriel's shoulder as Callista held his hand tightly.

To the Bridge and that maze of docks that lead to where Undyne's spear had chopped a large section of it off.

So...we reached the end of the line and...made our way down by each of our own methods. However each of us did it...we all ended up in that spot on the outskirts of the garbage dump.

"It...doesn't smell as bad as I had thought it would." Jon sniffled.

It was weird. Is it because the Monster throw-always turned to dust and magic already? Could it be because the humans had stopped using Ebott and its surrounding area as a dumping ground?

I noticed Asriel was again humming "His Theme". I had the flashbacks of His Memory nipping at the back of my mind. Of waking up in a panic and screaming his name.

Onward through the dump and past the last known place of Mad Dummy.

"The Ghost Houses are up ahead, right?"

"And Undyne's House and Gerson's Cave..."

"And Temmie Village!" Gadget followed up.

"The path to Hotland isn't far beyond Undyne's Crag."

And so we hit them all.

Napstablook's house was...strangely unlocked and the door open  But completely abandoned. We took a moment to rest and...feel like trash for a good minute or two. Trippy all over again.

"Wow...that was...surreal." Azzy rubbed the back of his head.

Undyne's house brought back more memories.

"She was...playing piano.  Right there." The impressions in the floor were still there but not much else.

"Smells a little..burnt though." Asriel wafted the air around his nose, shooing away the odor.

Mettaton's house had bene cleaned out and made spotless. Not even a single diary was left.

Gerson's Cave. Nothing to speak of.

The bird that carries us over a disproportionate distance? Gone as well.

Temmie Village...

Well...the mushroom was still there and as depressed as ever. The graffiti of the Temmies' rich history was still there. The shop...cleared out. No sign of any soft-boiled eggs.

Not a Temmie in sight. Yet...here seemed to be where the most life seemed to still be focused.

Lastly...Undyne's Crag.

"First time I came here I about tumbled off the edge trying to save Monster Kid.  Second time the Major and I broke up the battle here and...well...you know all this by now."

I'd made most of my team go over at least some of my reports.

Only a few stops by Gadget and Lupe to listen to the Echo Flowers. But beyond that...Lupe had all she needed for study. And Gadget was trying to stay positive even though the was no reunions to be had.

It was time to leave this place behind.

Oh yeah...I was looking forward to this.

Next stop, Hotland. But first...

Sub-Entry 085: "Memories of Ghosts, a Monster Kid, and Temmie Village":
A rest before continuing on and I felt it appropriate if we have kind of a review session and...swap a few stories and experiences. I felt I didn't need to hold back about my first run through here when the timeline was still UTPR-3224. Plus we all wanted to share in the nostalgia of our runs through UTPR-3235 (still the current timeline).

"The first time I was down here...I mean during the initial research into  timelines of Undertale Prime, I remember trudging through this area and almost losing a sandal while disoriented and distracted by the transport team dropping me off target after forgetting to reboot my SPECTRE card.  I wrinkled my nose.  "After countless botch and having to abandon several timelines, I finally broke protocol and took my gear off of automatic and just set it for manual control. The Council was pissed but the results were worth it."

"You don't talk much about things behind the scenes, Commander." Mitzi observed.

"For good reason.  If I'd tried some of this shortly after the Council busted me down to field agent, I'd have racked up a lot of insubordination and strikes that Daimyou still would have ignored...but in all probability she'd never know about it and my butt would be grass."

"I remember combing through Waterfall the first time, Commander." Bunnie pondered. "Keeping out of sight and otherwise unnoticed was almost too easy." She sounded a little disappointed that she wasn't challenged at the time.

It was then I noticed her ninja suit wasn't black per se....but more blue. And it blended into the artificial sky hauntingly well. Apparently that was a real ninja tactic. When I thought about it, it made sense. Black would stand out on a blue night sky no matter how dark out it was. I think that's why she only reserved actual black for her kuroko spirits.

"I was so on edge but...observing Monster Kid for a while made me realize most of the creatures in this world weren't all that much a threat.  And I remembered what you said about our souls being more powerful than a monster's and a human's merged like with Hyperdeath."

I nodded. None of us, Antoine included, could theoretically have ANY trouble dusting one if we didn't hold back. But I also reminded...intent was everything. Something I'd learn from one of the many other AU's out there over time. The less you wanted to bring harm or death to your opponent, the more you could hold back and the weaker you could make your attacks. It was by the grace of Destiny that I only managed to score a hair-line cut on Sans that only did 0.1 damage when we Megalovania clashed. Considering how protective I was feeling of young Asriel, my temper almost blew it for me.

"Eh.  Can't really speak of Waterfall.  But dang did I have fun using that bird to cross the disproportionate gap."

I still wasn't quite sure how she pulled that off.

"Man.  Getting to meet Napstablook.  Good times.  Good times.  Great tunes." I'd suddenly notice Sally had her D.J. headphones around her neck. She just put them on, I guess.

"He's so timid but so nice." Mitzi agreed.

"I wanna see him again!  I hope Mr. Mettaton will let us visit him!" Gadget was spritely about it.

"One of the few ghosts I think I could get to like." Jon commented.

"Jon, I trust you're not mistakenly calling Hsien-Ko a ghost again.  You know she's a Jiang-Shi, right?" Felicia prodded.

"Oh come on.  You're going to razz me for old habits that are hard to break?"

"Lei-Lei-chan will be angry with you if she finds out." Bunnie warned.

Lei-Lei? Was that her nickname for Jon's friend the Chinese "stiff corpse"? Though...that translation never really sat well with me any more than "Chinese vampire". Truth be told...I wasn't sure how to classify a Jiang-Shi. Not quite alive but not quite dead.

Suddenly Lord Raptor's stalker-infatuation with her made almost too much sense. But she'd bash me over the head with one of her giant spiked mace balls if I EVER compared her to that empty-headed zombie. Probably wouldn't like being compared to the pharaoh mummy, Anakaris, either.

Why was I now taking an interest in my son-in-law's old life with the ancient-blooded ones?

"You're awfully quiet, Rotor."

"I know where you're going.  And just because it is a water environment doesn't mean I'm all that enamored by it any more than Snowdin.  Really, it's just kind of normal for me."

"But you still thing Hotland sucks, don't you?" Jon crossed his arms.

"Not a place I want to spend the holidays, Jon." Rotor agreed.

"Ugh.  You two don't know what's good." I grumbled.

"Someone's anxious to get there." Violet teased.

"In due time, Commander." Bunnie reminded.

Pit sat down and wrapped his wings around himself.

I could tell he was a little glum because he didn't have any memories of this place. It was all knew to him but he wanted to be part of the conversation. He just didn't really know how to be.

"Hey.  Easy there, my friend.  I get it.  It's all strange and new to you." Asriel knelt down and patted his shoulder.

"You'll acclimate to it.   Easy for me to say when I've been here a lot once upon a time some 115 years ago."

Pit really didn't answer but I could tell he understood and was grateful Azzy was consoling him.

"Hmm." Lupe kept quiet but...I could tell she was probably the only one who wasn't feeling a sense of melancholy like many of us. I think...this was one of those areas where the life force energy...the mana...was strongest and flowing most readily. It made sense. This place's identifying characteristic was water and water pours and flows so...why shouldn't the life essence.

I could also see the gears turning in her head. She could sense that the mana around was considerably less now that there was no fauna left behind. Just the plants and the geology. The water the artificial weather...however it worked down here (maybe ice melted from the mouth of the mountain and dripped down as rain in Waterfall, snow in Snowdin?

Really all this time and I never bothered to use my research station to find out?

I guess the conversations wouldn't really be complete unless we all got into a big discussion over Temmie Village.

Too much to say about it and not enough ways to express it without sounding um...silly?

Then again those of who didn't have that problem...

"...and I could just spend all day with them!  They're soooo cute!" Gadget bubbled over after talking about 20 non-stop minutes about something I didn't even think HAD that much conversation material.

"Take a breath, little sister.  You're getting over-excited." I tried not to laugh. Though really. She did put me in a good mood.

"Temmie Village and its inhabitants defy description and expectations." Bunnie admitted. "Truly they do have a very...deep history." Bunnie smirked as she recalled the picture of a Temmie riding a dragon.

"They sure don’t' have much of a grasp on the Common language." Jon wrinkled his nose.

"Most of the time." I recalled a moment when one of the Frisk incarnations wouldn't sell some of their wares that the Shopkeeper Temmie REALLY wanted...and suddenly its speech went from being on par with Tithius to...suddenly I feel like watching my back because I was going to turn around and see the shopkeeper in a slick business power suit. One of those expensive ones made in Valendia that most certainly projected the image of a Mafia boss.

I still had echoes of "YOU'LL REGRET THIS!" in my head. Eeeeeesh. Were Temmies a LOT smarter than they let on?

My research into other AU's like Underfell suggested a VERY HARD YES. And other AU's seemed to call to mind when a Temmie most certainly couldn't take one of Sans' puns. Temmie-ache indeed. Well...I never would have pictured a Temmie dropping an F-bomb before that point.

"Everyone's a critic.  Even a Temmie." Asriel chuckled.

Wait...did Goat Son just confirm that this might be canon in THIS timeline? Ohhh boy. Better watch what I say if I run into them on the surface. Oy-yoi-yoiiii...

"This is all gravy." Violet was eating it up.

"Do you ever pass up a chance to be derogatory?" I frowned.

She just grinned and stole a kiss from Usagi. I saw him blush momentarily.

The down time continued a bit more with lesser discussions about Water Sausages, Echo Flowers, and even the Quiche.

At some point during our travels through Waterfall...we did stop by the walls that told the War of Humans and Monsters and the prophecy of the Delta Rune.

Asriel stopped at the very last one with the crudely drawn picture of a horrible beast.

"Hyperdeath.  Even now it's a warning to me, even though I've made my peace."

"Azzy."

"Well.  I guess every Asriel is bound to experience his other alter-ego at some point.  After all...."

No, Asriel. Don't say it.

"...the Writing's on the Wall." He didn't just say it...he sung it quietly.

Ouch. That was an emotional gut-punch. And yet I think he and I both understood I needed it. I needed his blessing and closure to it.

Some of the others looked at each other in confusion. Bunnie and Callista already picked up on our thoughts.

I think Sally recognized the name of the song and...it didn't take her long to piece together from the lyrics what was going on.

"Commander..." She uttered.

"I think we can all appreciate the sacrifices you made.  Many of us made our own."

"For my sake.  It does take a village." Asriel clearly looked like a fragment of him still wasn't sure he deserved it but...I could also tell he believed what he wanted to believe. It wasn't about deserving. It was making the most of what you were given; no matter how little or much it was.

He was standing on his own two feet and carried parts of all of us. He was the product of our upbringing and every single person in the room was proud of him. This prophecy had come to pass and there wasn't an aftermath to lament. Not for this version of him.

And that immediately made the two of us think of Flowey again. How was it possible that two outcomes...two very different outcomes of Destiny and Fate's plan could exist simultaneously? We really did break the game.

Good.

After the conversation finally wound down and we had enough of a breather...

"C'mon.  You know where it is that I want to go." I wagged my tail excitedly, eyes lit up as I could see the neon sign from here.

"Let's not keep you waiting, best friend." Asriel crossed his arms and grinned smugly.

Okay, this was still HIS day but...c'mon...it's Hotland!

And Hotland is...

Sub-Entry 086: "Hotland Remains Hot As Heck, and I'm Still Lovin' It":
"...hot as the depths of Heck and I'm loving it."

"C'mon, Commander.  If you're going to swear, just swear." Vi stuck her tongue out.

"Don't ruin this for me, Vi." I growled.

"Wheeew!  I forgot how hot it really was in this part of the underground." Asriel wiped the sweat from his brow. I still never found a formulaic basis for which of us with fur could sweat and which of us couldn't. Me? No. And even if I could, it wasn't nearly hot enough to make me uncomfortable. But boy was Jon suffering.

So. Let's review, starting with the sights. The entrance in? Mostly reddish dirt and rock extending into precariously high cliffs and mini-mountains-sides. But with very definitive paths branching in paths that went directly in the cardinal directions. As for the atmosphere itself? Mostly blackness in this area. Blackness lit ominously by glows of red, orange, and yellow. If you strained your eyes hard enough, through the blackness, you'd notice the outlines of the incredibly dark gray rocky walls though you'd probably only see the silhouettes.

If you're afraid of heights like I am, you're strongly encouraged not to look down. Though if there was something that was going to rattle me far less than a bottomless pit, spikes, or something else just as unpleasant...it would be an endless sea of boiling, bubbling lava. But the thought of burning for eternity, with the Goddess Contract continuously keeping my life force infinite...still doesn't appeal. Even if I'd be able to eventually climb out, the agonizing process of regeneration is...still nothing you want to imagine. Eeesh.

Oh yeah...can't forget to mention the warped visuals from the heat distorting your vision somewhat. That wavey effect you could ascribe to a dream sequence? Yeah, that's a pretty good way to describe it.

But it's not just natural environment we're talking. Alphys' lab is practically at the entrance. Actually it's room three from the start.

Then there was the sounds. With the CORE now shut down any mechanical noises had long since died down. And you could hear the full force of the roaring air currents  rising up from below and the bubbling, gurgling, sizzling, and the snap-crackle-popping of the magma and flames.

The smells? Yeah, I've described it before. The acrid smell of sulfur, the burn of molten carbon, the smoky scent of ash, the "low-brow" rotten egg odor of methane and traces of stinging ammonia. Yeah. It should play merry Hell with my nose but...I'd grown to enjoy it provided I didn't breathe TOO deeply. I mean...in large enough doses it's STILL debilitating.

And the feels. Well...what else to feel but hot? Hot like the core of the sun. And depending where in Hotland we were? It could either be a dry heat like deep in parts of Earth's own Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas....or a humid heat in the steam jet areas which made it...ABSOLUTELY HORRENDOUS if you were anyone but me. Okay, it did make it a little hard to breathe to the point even I'd be panting but...I still stand by everything I said.

So. Geography now  It was practically memorized.

Room 1? Another sentry station with a wooden bridge leading into room 2.

Room 2? The water cooler. Already Jon had gone ahead and was guzzling it. At this point it wouldn't matter if he used it all up. Undyne wasn't going to need it by this point. Despite being in this hot environment...the water cooler kept it pretty icy and as well as surprisingly purified.

I'd noticed that when I returned to this room after Undyne was spared by being splashed with water that Clam Guy would hang around this area. But...no one was here now.

So that of course brought us to...

"Dr. Alphys' Lab." Gadget was the first to say it as she looked upon it like she was trying not to cry. She knew...full well it was abandoned now and...all that were left were memories and whatever Alphys didn't take to the surface.

An all white building with the word "LAB" spelled out on a sign above the door. And above the sign and the door were a pair of balcony windows. From around the corner, we could make out the bubble-dome windows with plus-shaped framework dividing them into four-pieced pies.

Bunnie and I pried the door open. Well. After Violet busted open Asgore's room, why not be a hypocrite about it? Meh. I really don't want to have to start encouraging her but...

"It's okay, Volt.  It's not like we're desecrating anything." Asriel seemed to accept it.

"You know...I can't say I can remember this place in my time a century ago.  Maybe it did exist and maybe it didn't...I'm not really sure, honestly.  But if did exist then--"

"Then there's good evidence that Dr. Gaster once considered this his place of work and residence.  Though...I don't know if he'd ever confirm or deny it.  In the state he was last in...I was worried what demeanor he had in the depths of his self-imposed prison.  Honestly...I don't know how he dealt with frustration."

"This place reminds me of a section back home in the overworld." Pit found it a little trickier to fly due to the thermal updrafts. He landed and folded up his wings but soon realized. "I should step lightly.  I think I can feel the heat through my sandals."

"Palutena will get you a new pair if they melt off, kiddo." Vi patted his shoulder.

"But who's going to get me a new pair of feet?" He asked.

Okay...there was some of his own a-dork-able-ness peeking through. I had an easier time believing his true persona was sealed by the gods. Maybe they really DID want Pit to make the best impression around us. Maybe to keep the faith in the gods?

"C'mon!  Inside, quick!" Rotor hurried as Jon shot past him like a cannonball before wiping out on the floor, arms and legs spread out as his face hugged the floor and his tongue just rolled out of his open jaws accompanied by heavy panting.

I shrugged.

"No offense, boss, but you really aren't normal." Drew had taken his jacket off and Callista and Scott weren't fairing any better.

Everyone else who didn't have a means of thermal balancing hurried behind leaving Mitzi, Honey, and the rest pretty much holding up the rear. I chuckled and went in last.

And then I realized...yeah. No CORE? No power.

"I got this." I held my palm to the wall and strained a bit before I had pumped enough electricity into the lab's emergency uninterruptable power supply banks. After having no power source for years, they eventually drained to empty and left what was left of Alphys' lab de-powered.

Dust. But not fallen monster dust. Dust but no cobwebs.

The monitors were still installed but completely blank with TV static. Alphys' workstation and other computers were gone. The desk was gone but there were still some leftover pieces of kibble and dog food where the bags used to be. A couple of ramen noodle cups were behind. One emptied out. One still unopened. Neither had expiration dates. Monster food. Magic. No spoilage.

I offered it to Jon.

"....no thanks..."

"Jon not hungry?  He really doesn't feel well from that heat." Violet wrinkled her nose.

"Too bad she doesn’t' have a fridge still here." Rotor observed, looking around.

Gadget headed up the offline escalator to Alphys' room. Abandoned. Even the equipment, books, bed, and manga were gone.

But one thing that WAS still here...the Mettaton-shaped hole in the wall.

"Good times.  Good times." Violet mused.

Gadget spied it on the ground at that moment...picking it up, we could all see that it was a note Alphys had left behind. Despite it being only seven years old, it had yellowed pretty badly. Strange.

Rotor cleared his throat and read aloud as Gadget couldn't muster up the nerve to read it herself. I could tell...just skimming over it made her really sad.

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

"Dr. Alphys..." I murmured.

"I feel...so sorry for her." Mitzi sighed as she comforted Gadget, hugging her and patting her back as Gadget sniffled, resting her head on Mitzi’s shoulder in a little sister-ly way while sobbing.

"The more I learn about her, the more I feel like...she must think I really hate her...I mean the other me."

"I told her before.  You don't have any reason to hold a grudge against her.  As for the other Asriel...yeah...he'd forgive her too if he was himself.  Flowey...yeah, I can't imagine he wants anything to do with her.  That...that I don't think any of us can help with but...she should know how much we all support her by now, right?"

"She has had much time on the surface with those who care about her to heal her own emotional scars." Bunnie reminded.

"What a melancholic soul." Miyamoto Usagi commented.

"It's going to be complicated when we reveal the truth to the others.  And...put a lot of eyes on her when they realize she's been keeping these secrets all along, too." Jon looked up from where he lay.

"Let's...cross that bridge when we get to it.  Okay?" Asriel encouraged.

"Yeah.  Let's." I agreed.

I stared longingly at the "little lizard's room" door. All this time and It should have clicked that a steel security door most likely did NOT lead to a bathroom. Honestly I probably should have clarified it was the entrance to the True Lab all along.

All those times she was using the "I have to go to the bathroom" excuse...what was she really doing in the True Lab to avoid interacting with me and with Frisk?

I nodded my head to the side. Those of us brave enough to see it...followed me through it to check out what was left. And really...there was so little to speak of while simultaneously having just as much left behind.

"This place gives me the creeps." Rotor gulped as Gadget hid behind him.

Antoine and Jon took turns trying to prove who wasn't scared; from Jon pushing Antoine forward to Antoine grabbing Jon by the tail to prevent him from turning about-face and getting out of there.

The monitors were still there...the messages still there.

While all of Alphys' research had been cleared out...someone else's was left behind...radiating this vibe that Alphys felt she had no right to touch any of it much less move it.

"Yikes." Mitzi gaped at the DT Extractor.

"What the Hell is this thing, Boss?"

"Something he doesn’t' feel comfortable explaining about." Asriel cut in, his eyes hidden under the shadow of his bangs. Even harder to see with the lights all so dim, even with the emergencies barely staying on. Gaster must've really had one heck of an auxiliary power supply keeping this place running without the CORE.

"Any reason it resembles Gyfftrot's skull?" Violet questioned.

"It has a strong resemblance to something else..." Asriel muttered in a low voice.

Oh yeah. Photoshop Flowey. A curious name for his twisted imperfect form housing 6 human souls for a world that had no idea what "Photoshop" even was. For a while I'd called him Omega Flowey. It seemed more like something Gaster would have named him. The debate of which it canonically was still went back and forth in my head.

"So...?" Sally looked to me.

"Yeah."

She understood. She was ever the scholar and always had that mind like a steel trap. Yeah. She figured out what it was for pretty quickly...and instantly lamented all the test subjects that were subjected to it. With so many timelines with so much variance over when W.D Gaster even existed...when he fell into his creation...how many of the human children he put in his machine if any at all.......the answers I THOUGHT I had just started to muddle all over again and I was having doubts to the truth.

Gradually the others began to catch on. Even Jon. The moment of silence grew...far longer than a moment.

As we explored, a lot of the rooms were cleaned out. Even the mirror room with the potted golden flowers...only the flower pots were left.

The foggy room? Still foggy. Nothing in it.

The room of beds? No beds.

Refrigerators? Gone.

Fan room? Ventilator fans were running at minimal capacity. Stuff in there and kind of hard to breathe after a while.

The TV room? No TV. No shelves. No tapes. And Asriel knew exactly what my apprehension was.

But most disappointing (to Jon at least) was even the vending machine full of "popato chisps" was gone. He was a lot more active now that he was in a place a loooot cooler...if not colder.

And of course the Power Room. While every inch of the True Lab was abandoned...I just felt like the memory of the Amalgamates was lingering behind. I was bracing myself to be covered in Endogeny slobber. But it never happened.

"Well.  Here we are." Asriel beckoned, arms spread out. And yeah...I picked up immediately that he was making a meta reference. One only I'd get. Just the same as I picked up on everything from "Heartache" to "Bergentrückung" to the very obvious "Hopes and Dreams". The most meta things I'd come to recognize...where the "music cues". I couldn’t' explain the existence of...the various theme music that somehow hung in my mind when I'd been throughout the Underground but...here it was again. I think that same "music" was etched into his own soul...his own genetic makeup. Weird. So very weird.

The others shrugged and looked back and forth, not getting it.

"This place is a quantum level of depressing." Honey complained.

"I actually agree with her.  It doesn't feel safe down here." Willie wrapped her arms around herself.

"I think we've seen all that we're going to see down here." I finally conceded. "All in favor of heading up and out of Alphys' lab and into the rest of Hotland?"

"AYYE!"

"Opposed?"

Silence.

"Unanimous."

And after a lengthy double-back...

"We've seen so much but..." Mitzi started.

"...we're not even a third of the way through Hotland yet.  Big place." Sally agreed.

"Plus there's the CORE and New Home..." Gadget reminded.

"Sacre bleu cheese...!"

Haven't heard THAT catchphrase out of Antoine in ages. Guess it wasn't as easy for him to maintain his bravery as he was making it look. Though...some of us would say he was just trying to prove it to us...and himself that he could be brave. Maybe...he still had cracks in this newfound courage.

"Never mind that.  How long until we get to MTT Resort?" Jon whined, his stomach audibly growling.

"I read you, son-in-law.  But if we're going there...we're all going to have to work for it.  It's not exactly a taxi cab away."

"Taxi?  What are you dating yourself, Commander?  It's all about taking an Uber or a Lyft these days." Violet jabbed.

I rolled my eyes.

"Let's just go." I trudged on with Asriel patting my shoulder as he had a giant anime sweat drop on his forehead. Yeah...this was clearly awkward.

Sub-Entry 087: "From Alphys' Lab Back To the Sleeping CORE":
And deeper into Hotland we went. More of the maze of the winding rocky cliffs but now we had conveyor belts so less walking. Violet couldn't help but say the flame jets lining the paths looked like someone was having a light saber party and must've really stocked up on cyan Khyber Crystals.

"Nerd." Honey mussed Vi's hair as she pressed ahead.

"And proud of it and don't you forget it." Violet was clearly unphased and unruffled.

Chameleon had been trying for ages to get under Vi's skin in retaliation for her getting under his scales. What made Honey think she had a chance of doing so?

"Uh...boss?" Drew stopped in his tracks.

A moment of silence before he turned to me and said dryly "You're not serious."

I crossed my arms and remained blank as a new refrigerator as we stood before the huge maze of steam jet platforms.

Yeah. We had reached the Magma Chamber.

"God save the Queen..." Jon uttered before he lay down on his stomach and covered his eyes and whined.

"Get up you big lug." I smoldered.

All this time and still no sign of the personal "armor" and "weapons" of the six fallen children. This area was the resting place of the burnt pan originally.

I made it clear that complaining about it was only going to waste energy and breath so...might as well just do it and press on.

Asriel let me take the lead as his memory of Hotland wasn't as infallible as Asgore's or anyone actually from Hotland for that matter.

Room 5. And Azzy and I both knew what was here when the power was on...

"Lasers."

"Excuse me if I have my doubts, boss but...not a fan of getting pierced with death lasers."

"It's okay.  They're offline.  No power, remember?  The conveyors are running off emergency and the steam jets all power themselves so...even if they were running, there's a easy way through them."

"Hmm?" Scott raised an eyebrow.

"Orange attacks and blue attacks." Asriel recognized the color of the laser lens. "Orange attacks won't damage you if your soul is in constant motion through them."

"You expect me to believe a laser won't slice me in half by charging right through it?" Drew lowered an eyebrow.

"I know it sounds strange but it's true.  And blue attacks won't hurt you as long as your soul stays still."

"You mean just do nothing and the beam will just sweep through us like a ghost.  Right.  Makes as much sense as the rest of this crazy place."

"Suspension of disbelief seems to take on a literal meaning around  here, doesn't it, son?" Scott pondered.

"Yeah.  Yeah it does."

Room 6 now. The security puzzles.

"Shame.  Would have liked to try my hand at this." Azzy sounded disappointed. Papyrus is going to love you as a new fan and friend, Goat Son.

Fuku Fire and Skateboard Girl once occupied this area. But Grillby's daughter and the goofy-footer were nowhere to be found.

And then came room 7.

"Is that...a KITCHEN!?"

"Cooking with a Killer Robot." I really should have walked Jon through this...but more than that I should have warned him that...

"Wha...no.......it's...it's...!"

"Yeah.  Empty."

All the food was gone. The set was still but most of the props torn out and the I wasn't sure the plumbing or the oven even worked. I guess Mettaton took his show to the surface. I had a feeling he was good at multitasking across TV, concert tours, and who knows what else.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news but...what makes you think MTT Resort will have anything to eat either?" Honey prodded.

"Ohh nooo.  Ohhh man." Rotor facepalmed.

"We're losing him." Violet rolled her eyes.

"Way to go, Honey." Willamina whapped the cat upside the head.

I looked to Mitzi.

"Like you need to ask, Commander." Mitzi crossed her arms with a sassy smile. "If anything I overprepared just for a situation like this.  And if MTT Resort has a kitchen or snack bar, it'll make my task that much easier."

From the abandoned set...that took us up a floor to the Conveyor Belt Puzzle and the Vent Puzzle.

Vi offered to hack the switches to trigger all at once but Gadget and Rotor convinced her it was probably a bad idea. Asriel and I agreed, Azzy offhandedly mentioning something about a Fatal Error and the possibility of our cell phones all going off and ringing for eternity. I...didn't question it. Should I have?

Another room later and here we were on MTT News. I was beginning to remember Alphys' rant about Mew Mew Kissy Cutie 2 when we all came across the various bombs that had been dropped on Frisk in the past...the LITERAL bombs.

"It's okay!  They're all diffused." Gadget stepped back from the video game bomb.

"How...can a glass of water be a bomb?" Pit stared at it.

"Well, there was this one case in Jersey in the suburbs where the water was infected with FIRE!" Violet joked.

"Vi, I told you before.  We do not acknowledge Carl Brutananadilewski's neighbors."

"But they are the Aqua--"

"Don't." I cautioned.

"I don't want to know, Vi.  Do us a favor and cut the crap, we're in no mood for your sh--"

"Language."

I think I saw Goat Son roll his eyes.

The third floor. By then the mazes were getting complicated and a lot of the group's patience was wearing thin. The heat was getting to a lot of us. Jon was at wit's end.

That eventually got us to...Undertale the Musical.

"No.  No way." Jon protested before Antoine pushed him down the trap door.

"AHHHHHH!  NOT COOL, ANTOINE!"

"Antoine, I'm going to take back some of the things I said about you.  You've...you've earned it." Rotor handed over of Antoine's favorite off-world French pastries.

"Merci."

"Ultra Crew Institute go down the hooooooooooole...!" Violet proclaimed as she jumped in after him. One by one we all followed into the Multi-Color Puzzle room...also known as the FIRE TRAP.

Buuuut...I guess Mettaton didn't pay the gas bill so the flame jets were completely out. And the puzzle was pretty much stuck as it was under-powered, the tiles flickering in and out just a bit. And it seems their effects had shut down too.

Floor 3. Mitzi was leading us by this point because she knew where it lead.

"Muffet's place..."

The spider-webbing had...deteriorated so...crossing the floor was a lot easier. But...really...no sign that Muffet had ever been here besides the spider webs. Even the baked goods table was gone. Checkered tablecloth and all.

At least Jon stopped complaining now that we were in a momentarily cooler area. I guess the world heard his pleas because outside...

"NICE CREAAAAAAAM!" Jon practically screamed, in tears.

"Come on, you can't possibly expect--"

And before long, Jon was gorging himself on Nice Creams from the unattended, abandoned cart.

Huh. I stand corrected. Guess Nice Cream Guy figured someone would need these more than he would.

"Hey!  Share the wealth." Willamina snagged one.

Well. This was the part we took one out and passed it around until we were all enjoying the momentary treat.

"Weirdest ice cream ever.  It hasn't even started melting." Drew shook his head.

"This could get addictive." Callista smiled.

"Curious." Usagi eyed it before deciding it was safe to eat.

And just as a tease...a hop skip and a jump led us to MTT resort.

Inside...the fountain was still going...on the floor. Eesh. Unimaginably wasteful. Now Mettaton didn't even have Burgerpants to mop it up.

Rooms were all abandoned and stripped bare. Bed frames were left behind but not even mattresses remained...and still no mint on the non-existent pillows. Definitely not worth the five-star rating.

Dining area? Just as barren. MTT-Brand Burger Emporium? Same deal. But it gave Mitzi the opportunity to cook up a storm for a nice lunch with the over-excessive extra ingredients she brought along in V.E.H.I.C.L.E. storage. We ate hearty and that was the last time Jo complained on the trip.

Once we'd looked around back and found no sign of Bratty or Catty...it was back inside and straight through the giant double doors.

"Seriously.  They're not subtle about telling people where the main power plant to this whole shindig is." Drew wrinkled his nose.

This had been a long journey. Hotland alone took up a lot of it. Asriel had been quiet most of this area...mostly because he didn't really recognize it, I guess. Mettaton was after his time in at least a number of the timelines and AU's I'd visited. This one seemed to follow that rule. The times he spent away from New Home, he and Chara must've spent the night at the Inn in Snowdin. Heh...snowed inn. Hilarious.

The CORE.

"This is some serious Mainland-looking crap, boss."

Admittedly...it did kind of look like the laboratory facilities in Mainland at some point. But yeah...that ominous neon blue metal look of this place...the towering supports that held the walkways up...the bitter smell of ozone and the static aura that poofed our fur out..

...and only the blue machinery and the towering supports remained. The water below was still...and the energy discharge...gone. Even the neon outlines around the doors were dark. All of the machinery and lighting was dimmed if not extinguished and the place was just so quiet.

For the first time I did not smell ozone. And...somehow that still made me think back to the VVVVVV case. "Indie Game" worlds like that somehow felt connected to ones like this in the most subtle of ways.

When we got to the fork in the road...we took the sage's path. There was no need for war or warriors on this world now.

All of the security puzzle remained solved from when we were last here.

"Remember when we were traveling Hotland outside..." Asriel suddenly spoke up.

"That view of the CORE from outside...this giant towering structure looking like the most evil oil refinery...rising up out of that giant lake of lava..." He went on.

And I remembered. The first time I was here...I was escaping "Alphys NEO"...then a return had me on the island against Mettaton NEO...both possessed by Chara-Wraith.

"I hear ya', Azzy.  This place is very different inside than outside." I pulled my lab coat shut and shuddered a bit.

And low and behold...there was Mettaton's room with that heart-shaped reactor/stage.

This time...I think it was Violet who was trying to save face and not let on that she was melancholic. She was normally good at putting on a brave face and completely fooling us all without letting us know how she was really feeling...when she was genuinely distressed, depressed, or otherwise...in a rotten mood and didn't want to take it out on us.

But the tell was...she wasn't saying anything. Which was just as bad as if she was being overly talkative. It just...caught us off guard that she was going with the latter. Like she knew she wasn't going to fool anyone so...she was just DARING us to draw attention to her silence.

"Mettaton's the one I know the least about.  He was after my time.  I mean...I'd...had close encounters with the ghost that hung around the Ruins in the past but...I didn't know he had a cousin...or that his cousin became corporeal...or--"  Asriel started.

"Or that he left Napstablook high and dry to pursue his dreams--"  Honey cut in before Violet actually gave her a glare.

I think...Violet of all of us understood Mettaton's soul better than anyone.

"Hey.  He resolved things with Blooky.  He's happy now.  He has no regrets, right?" Gadget was the one to comfort her? Not entirely unexpected but I didn't anticipate it, either.

"Besides.  With the Blook-ster at his side, he'll stay nice and grounded.  Napstablook will make sure the fame doesn't go to his head again.  And I'm sure he's learned his lesson with leaving Alphys behind."

I wondered about that. Based on how the scenario went from Lab to this very room...it was all an act Alphys had orchestrated and Mettaton was in on it. Which made me question how much of a falling out he and Alphys really had if the were working that closely just to win Frisk over. Though...there were definite times I could tell Mettaton went a little rogue during the plan; he most certainly went "off script" a few times.

"Huh..." I bend down and picked it up. "The smallest of torn pieces from Frisk's shirt.  How did I never notice that?"

It had to be from the real Frisk and not Evil Chara impersonating him. She'd been unconscious from her fall and part of it must've torn off after against part of the machinery.

Asriel picked it up from my hand and stared at it...that look in his eyes...was I reading into it or was it...?

"So.  That it?"

"Yeah.  Only one place left to go.  But first...a detour..."

"Detour!?" Jon said, panting.

"Of course...that place." Bunnie mused.

Sally and Lupe looked at each other with the faintest of smiles.

"Someone want to clue us in?" Drew asked as Pit shrugged as Antoine and Usagi joined Scott and Callista and the rest of Team Acorn in a "we're out of the loop" group.

"Trust me.  All will be revealed. "  Asriel smiled.

Sub-Entry 088: "My Abandoned Sub-Lab Outpost":
And here we are."

"Another lab building.  Yaaaaah." Honey rolled her eyes.

"You're not appreciating it for what it is." Sally lowered an eyebrow.

"Clue me in, team leader.  What's the big deal?"

"This is a location that exists in no other Undertale alternate universe...no other timeline.   Our Commander made his mark on the land.  He took a risk and resigned its existence to the destiny or the fate of UTPR-3235 in spite of knowing that he was deliberately altering the events of this timeline.  He knew full well he was directly interfering with what's now become UTPR-3235's history.  But it's more than that.  There was always the possibility this timeline would be reset again...and all this would just cease to exist, rolled back by Frisk's will but...here it is, seven to eight years later.  Still existing.  Still proof of our Commander's resolve to ensure this was the one.  This was where we make a stand against Fate."

Bunnie had explained that pretty well. It's like she was one with my thought process...like she came up with my master plan herself. She was connected to my soul, somehow and understood exactly everything I wanted to say, word for word.

"That is...pretty significant.  You accepted the responsibility for however you'd change this world." Rotor scratched a tusk, inquisitively.

"And violated what's essentially considered taboo in the S.T.C. organization." Callista reasoned.

"Exactly."

"Something you struggled with...in the previous timeline?" Asriel asked.

"Very much so.  I...was still operating on the old S.T.C. agenda.  Still struggling to stay by the book without being tempted."

"It's...a good thing you went with your heart, Commander." Mitzi put her hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eyes. "Asriel's future depended on you not playing your role...but doing what you felt was right."

"It's like I don't have to explain a thing anymore.  Well...to most of you.  Still a large part of our group that's playing catchup."

"Glad you're not bogging us down, boss.  Still a lot of crap to take in but...it's starting to make more sense." Drew shrugged.

"Well.  I guess this is the big moment." I slipped the activator key out of my pocket, approached the console, inserted it and gave it a clockwise turn.

With that...everything lit up as the geothermal systems reconnected to the massive array of thermocouple conduits that automatically lowered into the lava below the bedrock and foundation I'd constructed, using alloys of titanium and tungsten; interlaced and interwoven with carbon nano weave, tempered with more tungsten--a metallurgical composite of my own design.

With that...I had full power once again as everything came to life and my mainframe resumed exactly where I left off when I put it into hibernation.

Even dormant...its systems recorded the exact moment Alphys shut down her security network. It created its own holistic copy of all of the surveillance footage recorded after her lab was offline; documenting everything up until the last Monster (save for Flowey and the Snowman) had left the Underground.

"Wow."

"I feel kind of funky never showing Asgore even a kilobyte of data out of this place but..."

"You kind of had a good reason." Violet mused. "Spoileeeeeeeers."

"Yeah.  Spoilers." I was just now grasping how much of a danger to the timeline I had just sitting here. But as long as I was the only one who had access to it and as long as Alphys was the only one keeping any secrets I might have divulged about this place...

Still. Uncharacteristically sloppy and reckless of me. There's that worry again. In the end...nothing bad happened. But something COULD have.

"Momentize, Volt." Asriel interrupted my thoughts.

"Hmm..." Rotor and Sally inspected my various equipment and experiments.

"Looks like parts of the lab back home.  Though a lot smaller and you don't exactly have a wing for me to develop my best demo-work." Drew looked around.

"Yeah.   No weapon or explosives research.  Not even cap guns around here.  No...everything here was built with peace time in mind."

"I like that." Asriel nodded.

You bet he did. Don't kill and don't be killed. And sure as heck don't invent new ways that could result in either; even by accident.

"Heh." Willie pointed a thumb at my rack of saxophones.

"What?  You never know when a serenade for a boss monster will come in handy." I shrugged. It was one of the rare times I heard sass from Willamina Mongoose. It was all good. She earned a moment of being sly.

"Commander...really." Mitzi looked at my fridge full of frozen dinners and such.

"I'm disappointed.  All this and no homemade meals?  All these pre-packaged instant TV dinners and Alphys' instant ramen?  Very unhealthy crud, you know."

"Yeah...they were placeholders.  I never got the chance to load up on Grillby's."

"That's not much of an improvement with how greasy that stuff is."

"Sounding like Papyrus, Mitzi." Jon poked.

"If you're begging me to apologize for not taking enough food from home back to here, you win.  I apologize.  But I had a good reason for doing so--"

"Because you couldn't risk someone seeing something here that shouldn't belong in the Underground." Asriel followed up.

"Exactly right.  Pretty sure a Mitzi's Rock-Afire Pizzeria takeout box would...draw some questions."

"Fair enough." Mitzi smirked.

"All this and no treadmill?" Sally questioned. "Sarge wouldn't like it."

"And I know you wouldn't dare rat me out, Sally." I put my knuckles to my hips.

"You got me there.  But she still wouldn’t like it.  Being on mission is no excuse for idleness.  You sit around watching a computer screen long enough and even your immortal body's going to atrophy." Sally gave a cocky grin.

"Well.  Aren't you going to say anything, Rotor?"

"Well.  Nothing really to say other than I'm impressed you got working plumbing stretching all the way from Waterfall to here."

"Can't keep running back to the water cooler where Undyne collapses in that heavy armor, now can I?  Plus I used one of your water purifiers and cooling systems.  I would have asked you and Skeeter to install it yourself but--"

"I gotcha.  Time-constraints and--"

"You were kind of bogged down with calls all over town.  Lot of plumbing really decided to blow up during the week."

Gadget was already fiddling around with my spare parts and had already invented three or four new makeshift devices by the time I checked on her.

Asriel still wasn't really commenting about the Underground as much as I thought he would be. I know he'd grown up a lot and wasn't exactly a kid in a candy shop but...you'd think he'd at least be somewhat less reserved about it all than this. You'd think he'd show more excitement than this.

Then I realized...he was holding back because...because...no...I'd......rather not say. Downplaying it or not, I didn't want to think about that now and he didn't want to think about it, either.

I was sure though...come New Home? Even he wouldn't be able to keep it bottled up for long. Somehow...the dam was going to break and the tears were going to flow.

Everyone else who wasn't in the loop as the rest of us...really didn't know what to make of it.

How was Antoine supposed to react to this? He wasn't exactly a scientific mind?

What about Usagi? He was a ronin samurai who'd been in the Rabbotou Clan's service, essentially as a paid bodyguard watching over an ancestral temple and was now being further compensated by Nikita to make sure Bunnie wasn't taking any unnecessary risks as well as being her shield for unexpected and otherwise unconventional assaults on mission that could actually cause serious damage to both her body and her nanite systems.

Scott? Scott didn't exactly have good memories of laboratories any more than Bunnie or Sally did.

Callista? Indifferent. Labs were similar to operating rooms. She was a doctor.

Pit? Well...he was used to Dr. Light's Lab back in his N-Division days. Plus he survived Dr. Wily's multiple labs over the years. He knew that labs could be used for good just as much as they could be for evil.

Yet, the one thing that everyone kept in mind was...it was my lab away from our lab and isolated from Alphys'. Off the books,  Just my own little mark on the world. And really...maybe something in here could have come in handy during the years we built up to this moment. Whether against Adonis or it could have provided something extra during the class of the seven Hyper Gods...maybe it was just missed opportunities...but...

Like the Scout Motto says: be prepared.

"Should we raid anything in here?  I mean I know it's abandoned out there but..."

"You can if you like.  I don't expect we'll need any of it, little sister, but..."

"Be prepared."

You channeling my thoughts now, Asriel?

"Commander!" Callista chuckled. "You don't really believe psychic abilities are something you can just teach, do you?"

"If the person learning has psychic potential?"

"I assure you.  Asriel doesn’t have that kind of psionic esper.  He just knows you that well."

"Well.  That certainly puts my mind at ease."

Asriel cracked a smile at that. That was all it took to reassure me that he wasn't in a moody funk. Yeah, he was holding back what was on his mind and what he was feeling but...I was sure he was saving it for the right moments.

"Are you sure, Commander?" Willamina asked.

"It is your sanctum sanctorum." Usagi agreed.

"The building is just materials.  It's just a symbol as would be the act of raiding it or outright destroying it.  But the memories it carries are right here.  Whether it vanishes from this world or remains a historical landmark--the choice starts with us and it will be up to the Monsters of Undertale to decide.  As it stands it's been abandoned for seven years, so...Asgore and Toriel weren't all that hung up in it being a tourist trap."

"If you're convinced." Scott pondered.

"Frankly.  If we leave it behind it'll keep doing what it does on its own.  It won't bother anyone but...it won't accomplish anything either.  Just go on silently collecting data that's never really going to be of use anyone now.  Its power supply is basically limitless as long as geothermal conditions remain the same.  And at this point, it doesn't matter if Violet downloads my research..."

Violet about dropped the pen drive.

"Well.  Phooey.  You just took the fun out of this." She gave a pouty face. "This almost makes it not worth it."

She huffed and plugged the drive in and downloaded to her half-hearted content.

"Spoilsport."

"I had to pay you back for years of teasing.  You're a regular Nagatoro."

"Oh no you didn't.  You didn't just go there." Violet huffed.

"So it's only fair game if you peek at MY research but not when I find out what's the latest anime you're checking out."

That made a number of the others chortle and hold back a grin.

Yup. I'd put Violet into her most tsundere mood, leaning toward the "I'm pretending to be mad and not care about you" to cover up the fact that "I respect and/or like you" feeling.

"Hmm..." Callista examined the microscope. "You did afford yourself the best toys.  Asgore may have paid for the construction of the place but...you furnished it yourself.  Pretty impressive, too.  The mass spectrometer alone is state-of-the-art.

"A lab's a lab's a lab to me." Honey rolled her eyes.

"Don't listen to her, Doctor.  This facility is incredible." Rotor's inner scientist was emerging again.

"Charles would have liked this place--"  he let it slip out before looking at Sally.

Sally put her hand on his shoulder and gave a reassuringly look that it was okay.

"Charles?" Pit asked, the only Charles he knew by name was the former monarch of the united video worlds back in the days of the N-Division...the same as it was for Videoland in the other AU...the father of Princess Lana.

"The Minister of Science back in Ecotropia.  Ancient history for some...lost family for others." Bunnie replied.

I knew the name. I also knew about the connection to Mobius' AU in ACM-001 and ACM-002. Yet...I dared not to speak Sir Charles Hedgehog's name.

Asriel was already thinking it:  Sonic's uncle. Brother of Jules Hedgehog.

A moment of silence. We'd only a bit of time in my sub-lab facility...but we'd gone off topic from Undertale multiple times into territory all over the place. From what I was keeping in the fridge to Videoland.

"Hey.  Don't know how I could have missed this." Asriel tapped the floor with his sandaled foot. We all saw it.

A very large Delta Rune elegantly emblazoned in the floor. Decorative...but definitely identifying it as a facility of the Royal Family.

"Went with this for obvious reasons." Asriel was of course pointing out that in a normal case...this would have been an Ultra Crew Institute logo.

"Very obvious."

An ominous silence.

"Well, team.  There's only one place to go."

"Come on, everyone.  Let's go back to where it all began...the place of my birth...the place where I was raised..."

Asriel was trying to put together one of his inspiring speeches.

"We're going to New Home."

Sub-Entry 089: "We Arrive at Castle Dreemurr"
At the end of the line the line...at the end of the CORE, rather...a single elevator took us to the last stop in the Underground.

It felt like the longest elevator ride ever.

I felt like...I could hear...a voice that Frisk originally didn't recognize...but I sure did.

It was only my imagination but...the person it belonged to had been long dead...and the murder-flower that replaced him assured us he wasn't coming back.

"Jarring."

"Hmm?"

"That's the feeling you get when you remember his words.  Only...you're pretty sure you heard them during the True Pacifist run after the Amalgamate scenario.  Right?" Asriel asked me rather directly.

"It's scary how linked we are since being merged as one mega-soul." I shuddered, remembering the line that Adonis crossed...what he forced us to become.

"Memories make for the worst kind of dreams, don't they?"

"You guys are creeping us out." Honey complained.

"All this serious talk is kind of bringing the mood down, boss."

"I know it's...just hard to get out of our systems.  Out of all of us, the two of us lived it far deeper than anyone in this elevator."

"You can lean on us any time, Commander." Scott offered.

"As can you, Asriel." Callista reminded.

"Yeah.  I think we need some level heads to keep us grounded in reality.  We're nearing the epicenter of...well...a lot that went on."

Bunnie nodded. "Callista and I can both vouch for you.  That was no small feat.  All of reality was saved thanks to you."

"I'm not even sure what it is we're going to find in the Barrier Room.  Just a long hallway to the outside, I guess." I put my hands in my lab coat pockets and leaned up against the wall. This was a pretty big elevator and despite how many of us were crammed in here...we hadn't hit the weight or occupancy limit. Was it...always this big in the various runs we went through?

I suppose it had to be big to accommodate someone Asgore's size and additional people going to and from the CORE though...what not sure why Asgore would need to visit it after Gaster officially unveiled it and brought it online...y'know...ceremonial pomp and circumstance, making sure the whole underground was in the loop...making it nice and legal as far as the kingdom was concerned. Just...stuff.

So...would it even make sense for him to visit a place that I'm sure the heat was murder on a guy his size with his amount of fluffiness?

Finally the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened.

I hesitated a moment before exiting...then anticipated that the elevator itself would be wrapped up and sealed shut with Flowey's vines once we were out...but...it never happened.

I doubt he lacked the determination or desire to do so.

Really, he was being pretty sour-grapes about it all. I mean this was what he wanted, wasn't it? A timeline where something new and something different was happening all around him.

But...I guess he was just sick of it all. Not just what happened over and over and over in the worst take on Bill Murray's Groundhog Day movie. The whole world had broken him. I don't know if he ever did go to the surface in any timeline but...the fact that he was here now, meant some version of Frisk reset it all and put him right back into this Hell. No wonder he didn't trust Frisk any more than Sans did. How many self-awareness held that sword over the eighth child's head because of what they kept doing?

This was a chance, with no going back, for Frisk to finally show that this version of her had changed and wanted to move forward...be normal. Or as close to it as any of us got.

Asriel was the first to speak as he took the lead and stood longingly before the long catwalk-like path into the maze of towering ramparts and cathedral like buildings. It did...kind of look somewhat Russian but with a lack of onion-bulb minarets. The dome-roofed building at the center kind of reminded me of the Capital Building in Washington D.C. on Earth. Possibly something I'd see in London to the other side of the Atlantic in the United Kingdom. I kept expecting Jon to bring up something about the Old Bailey in reference to places it reminded him of.

Dead silence for the longest time until Asriel decided to speak; quoting word for word the words inscribed in a book found back in Snowdin Library.

"Fearing the humans no longer, we moved out of our old city, HOME. We braved harsh cold, damp swampland, and searing heat... Until we reached what we now call our capital. "NEW HOME."

"Wow." Pit gasped.

A moment of silence before I decided to ruin the moment, just to cut the tension.

"Asgore still can't name for beans."

Asriel snickered and a few of us smirked or chortled at the joke. The rest just went with it.

"Even now...everything's all that...depressing, old-timey grey-scale." I finally settled back into melancholic.

"It does look so very...lifeless.  And sterile." Lupe admitted. "And not just because we're the only life in it.  It's almost like--"

"Time itself stood still." I finished.

"Yes." She blinked a few times, before it set it that I of all people would understand this better than anyone.

"It's not to hot and not too cold.  It isn't dank at all.  It doesn't feel anything like a castle should feel like." Sally cocked her head.

"Back in the time of my ancestors, before it was christened Ecotropia, things were more like medieval times.  And while I can't say from experience as Ecotropia palace was modernized and...a lot more sanitary by then...old school brick castles like this weren't known to be clean or even healthy places.  They were always status symbols but...back then a lot of things that you should probably be hospitalized for now were defining characteristics of royalty and high society."

It was...odd hearing Sally actually talk about being royalty and what life was like back then. I think...it was almost like New Home was unlocking things within our memories we kept repressed. In some cases some of us were ashamed of.

So...Asriel led on, completely on autopilot but...I could tell...he was overflowing with emotion and holding back the tears. Only once did I catch him briefly wiping his eyes on his wrist in that familiar way.

"Are...you okay, son?" Callista asked.

"Y-yeah...I'm...*sniff*..fine."

Still a terrible liar. Even when you never liked to lie, you were bad at it when it seemed like the only way to protect us while we were protecting you.

And then Asriel stopped before it. The entrance to...

"My friends..." Usagi's gaze widened.

"Call me crazy, but am I seeing deja vu?" Willamina asked.

"Mon dieu.....!" Antoine's jaw hung open.

"No.  You're not seeing double.  But this is a copy of mom's home back in the Ruins.  Welcome...to King Asgore's home."

"This is...this is NOT where I expected a King to live!" Wille was in shock.

"It's so......humble." Pit admitted.

"That's New Home." Asriel nodded. As he turned around...he wasn't even trying to cover the streams of tears.

"This is...?"

Asriel nodded.

"The Throne Room and all the other places and such in New Home are just...all for appearances.  For what was expected to come with being Royalty.  Most of it housed a lot of other monsters and such.  There was a giant aquarium but it was cramped quarters for the aquatic life."

Huh. Onion-san called it.

"It was the perfect place to run around in...have adventures...explore...and yet..." Asriel's gaze fell. "It all felt too small...and too lonely.  I was also seemingly...unapproachable.  I think...even kids were afraid to go near me because I was a Prince.

But...maybe I'm not just remembering it THAT way. I also remember...I was shy. I was timid. I was always...jumping at my own shadow. Maybe that's why I didn't make friends down here.

All the while...how could it just escape me that I was already a friend to everyone. Everyone already loved and respected me. Was I...just looking a gift horse in the mouth? Did I...just pass up all those opportunities?"

It went back to what Flowey said about passing up opportunities. Though he was talking about stealing a soul from what he thought was a helpless human brat.

"How could I have been so blind how much dad and mom...Asgore and Toriel tried to encourage me to make friends?"

Asriel looked to this side. "And then...there's a memory...I don't know if it's mine or another AU Asriel's...but I could swear I prayed at bedside for the powers above to send me a best friend...an angel...the nicest one they had."

"Hate to spoil the moment, Goat Son but that sounds like a scene from Lilo & Stitch."

Bunnie quickly whapped Vi.

A moment of silence before Asriel brushed it aside. "Yeah, you're probably right."

If he was trying not to let on that it did bother him, he was doing a good job. Which could mean he really wasn't bothered by Vi's comment. Though it was probably a good thing Bunnie stopped her before she could follow through with comparing Chara to Stitch at his most...maniacally mischievous; devilish laugh and all.

"Asriel...I studied so much about you from the beginning of this assignment to now and yet...I never knew."

"Some memories of mine have to still be in your head, Volt."

"Yes.  Some are.  But...a lot of them just feel like they're repressed or...forgotten.  I think I now understand what've been going through up until I de-neurolized you."

He nodded.

Just like at Toriel's house...everything went almost exactly the same. Practically word for word...step for step.

But there were differences, too.

Obviously everything was monochrome.

I was about to whap Violet for making light of the situation with a song on her Cyberdrive Gauntlet's media player until I noticed it was actually Asriel playing a song on his bracer's media player.

"Goat Son...?"

And then I recognized the name of the song as the Grateful Dead's "Touch of Grey". How appropriate...

"Must be getting early clocks are running late

Faint light of the morning sky looks so phony"

Down here there was no morning sky. It was artificial...phony. I wasn't really sure what the light source even was in this part of the Underground.

"Dawn is breaking everywhere

Light a candle curse the glare

Draw the curtains I don't care 'cause it's alright"

We were long past dawn by this point. As for candles, I was pretty sure we wouldn't find any in Asgore's home though...there might have been curtains. I know his house, like Toriel's had a pair of windows--one on each side of the door.

"I will get by

I will get by

I will get by

I will survive"

Well. Asriel did survive when he was fated not to. Destiny saw to that.

"I see you've got your fist out say your piece and get out

Yes I get the gist of it but it's alright

Sorry that you feel that way the only there is to say

Every silver lining's got a touch of grey"

I remembered how we confronted Flowey at the entrance. Yeah...that's basically what he told us: to say our peace and get out. Where we stood now...a touch didn't even come close to describing how much grey there was.

"I will get by

I will get by

I will get by

I will survive"

Sally crossed her arms and looked solemn.

"It's a lesson to me the eagles and the beggars and the seas

The ABC's we all must face try to keep a little grace"

Gadget was dancing to the song, completely missing the point of its depressing context. Right at the word, "grace", she even did a little pirouette.

"It's a lesson to me the deltas and the east and the freeze

The ABC's we all think of and try to win a little love"

Callista rested her head on Scott's shoulder as he momentarily brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"I know the rent is in arrears the dog has not been fed in years

It's even worse than it appears but it's alright"

Jon's stomach growled and he whined, flattening his ears and giving the sad eyes.

"Cow's giving kerosene, kid can't read at seventeen

The words he knows are all obscene but it's alright"

Violet thought back to herself at seventeen...so angry, but far from illiterate. But boy did she know how to swear when she threw fits.

"I will get by

I will get by

I will get by

I will survive"

Bunnie looked to the house and remained steadfast.

"The shoe is on the hand that fits, there's really nothing much to it

Whistle through your teeth and spit 'cause it's alright"

Usagi had sat down in a lotus position and had removed his sandals and tabi. He held one of his rope sandals up by the straps, almost like he were wearing it as a glove, checking to see that they weren't starting to become critically worn. As I learned way back when...the Jangese considered it a really bad open when you break or snap a sandal strap.

Oh well a touch of grey kinda suits you anyway

And that was all I had to say and it's alright

Asriel looked at us like the song said everything he wanted to get off his chest.

"I will get by

I will get by

I will get by

I will survive"

We all began to gather at that point.

"We will get by

We will get by

We will get by

We will survive"

Our whole team was gathered around Asriel, hand in hand, arms around backs and shoulders. All together, standing as one with Goat Son at the epicenter, taking it all in.

"We will get by

We will get by

We will get by

We will survive"

"Thank you." He looked at each of us.

"No.  Thank you." I gave his shoulder a couple squeezes, before we pulled each other into a man-hug the likes Asgore would have been proud of.

Inside...everything was just as grey...everything but the Golden Flowers. How they defied the laws of chroma and luma, I never figured out. But there it was.

This time...it was the center room that was under renovation. Sure enough...it too was emptied out after Vi pried it open with a crowbar. Toriel...really didn't want to leave a single trace of herself.

All of the things that made Asgore's room what it was were no longer here. The wardrobe with the Santa suit. The dresser with the Nose Nuzzle Champions '98 trophy. The desk with the journal that had countless entries of "Nice day today!" written on every page. Asgore's immense bed. The macaroni art of a flower...and even the Mr. Dad Guy sweater...which Asriel confirmed was hand-knit by Asgore himself.

Asriel was fighting back the sadness and losing the battle. It was now up to sporadic sobs.

"I'm okay...really...just a lot to...take in."

The Kitchen? The same. The only thing left behind where the crumbled up recipes for Butterscotch Pie. Yeah...if these were Asgore's attempts to replicate Toriel's recipe...this told a sadder story. If they were Toriel's, then she did a half-hearted job at destroying them so Asgore wouldn't follow them and carry even the smallest piece of her with him. I figured it was the former case.

And then...Asriel and Chara's room. What can I say? Two beds. Two of everything. And the gift boxes were open and empty. That's how I pictured it.

Well...just the boxes were left. The outlines of both beds were present. Not even a stuffed animal was left. Asriel immediately confirmed which bed would have bene his...laying down yet again and being...utterly devastated, emotionally, with how he'd outgrown the boundaries of the dust outline.

I think...he was actually trying to cry himself to sleep while...fighting himself to stay awake.

"Poor guy..." Jon observed.

Even Violet was looking misty-eyed. I was...sure it was hitting her harder than most of us who were in the know. She...understood loneliness better than anyone besides Asriel.

Gadget was actually crying by this point.

Jeeze...this was breaking us. Even those of us who weren't in the know...who weren't in the loop.

This was...Goat Son's saddest point in years.

Finally...he decided to leave the past behind. It was time to leave Asriel's happiest memories...for this timeline's most tragic memories for its Asriel.

The chain across the staircase remained undone and hanging, the padlocks on the floor. Down we went. There was no sad story about Asriel to be given by the Monsters this time. The story had already been told. I'd even told it to every person with me at this point.

A long walk through the corridors and the gates below followed. This finally led us to...the Judgement Hall.

And unlike outside...this place was lit up with color. Vibrant golden orange twilight color.

...but alas...no Sans. No judgement. Nothing but the last doors into Asgore's throne room.

"I feel like I'm on trial for something." Honey commented.

"You have NO idea." I said in a low voice. Almost every encounter here was unpleasant. This either became the setting of Mercy...or Megalovania.

I could see Asriel shudder, having actually put on a jacket he'd kept in storage. I knew he wasn't physically cold. It was a trick of the mind but...he could sense Sans' presence and the sins of the other Asriel...of Flowey...trying to crawl up his back.

"Let's get the Hell out of here." Drew ushered us head.

And there it was...Asgore's throne room. Wall to wall flowers.

It was then I realized there were...a ton of oddly shaped holes in the ceiling that should have been obvious to me ever time I came here...no, it was more like the ceiling itself was a sponge-like structure...or like swiss cheese, letting light through but...not evenly distributed...more like in blotches. Yet...the flowers were all growing to the same height and level of health rather than the ones in the shade withering like they should be.

Asriel only took a moment to guide us away from the forked path outside that led to the basement coffin room. He...didn't need to see it and neither did we. Besides...I already know they'd all been cleared out and the bodies brought to the surface and buried where appliable. IT was the last bit of info I had gotten before putting my Undertale research into dormancy.

There in the lone checkerboard tile that was completely surrounded on all sides by the Golden Flowers...was Asgore's abandoned throne. He...hadn't even had it removed much less destroyed. Just...forgotten.

Asriel...slowly walked up to it...and then sat upon it. And just like that...the image I was greeted with...? It just looked right. He wasn't wearing robes or a crown but...I could see him...as the next King of the Underground. King Asriel. Yeah...I think even he felt it for a bit, too.

But then...he rose from it and walked away from it.

"It...just doesn't feel like it belongs to me.  It doesn't feel right to sit upon it.  It was nice for a moment to ponder what might have been but...I don't belong in this room.  I don't have any business being a king."

"If...you're certain, Azzy."

"I am.  This is just...a relic of a past life.  It's...not hurting anybody so...we're going to leave it behind."

As it turned out...Violet and I both snapped a picture of him while he was seated. I'm sure Vi would photoshop robes, a crown and a scepter or trident in his grasp. But y'know...that's Vi.

"Well...we came all this way.  There's nowhere left to go...but out."

Beyond those last couple doors...

Sub-Entry 090: "The Path Beyond the Former Barrier Leads Back Outside":
There it was.

The Barrier Room.

The longest of hallways. Even now with the Barrier destroyed...it felt...ethereal. It felt like it did stretch into infinity.

I don't know how it was possible. But all we could see was an endless stretch of light. We couldn't see the corners of the room. We could just barely tell the room was even a rectangular shape. Just the pure black doorway far into the distance. A door that was gradually swallowing up the light in so many progressive gradients, it just seemed...unreal. A trick of the light, it just seemed like one big white space that gradually dimmed and dimmed and dimmed until it suddenly became an inky black rectangular void that somehow got dark, darker, yet darker still.

Excuse me while I shudder.

You're enjoying this too much, Gaster, wherever you are.

"So...this is what all the hype was over?"

"You can't see anything now but...there was a magical barrier that sealed this whole mountain up as a prison.  People--humans and monsters could go in...but separate, they could not go out.  Not without..." Asriel turned away in disgust and shame.

"Not without a monster taking a human soul or...a human somehow taking a monster soul?  If that's even possible?"

"Even when it was around, Lycans like myself and Hybrids like many of us would be able to go through the barrier but...anyone here who is human would be...trapped until they...did the dead and took a Boss Monster's soul or...vice-versa." I explained.

"Wow.  That is dark." Willie noted.

"Jeeze.  They knew what they were doing to keep the Monsters down here.  Sacrifice your morals and gain Extermination Points or suffer for eternity while staying pure."

"Just the kind of game that tickles Madam Fate's fancy."

"I'd tickle her fancy alright...with Mick Foley's barbed-wire club!" Violet pounded her fist into her palm.

"Save an Equalizer sledgehammer for me, Vi." Sally cracked her knuckles.

"Guys.  No.  Haven't we learned not to rush to violence?  Come on.  Don't kill and don't be killed." Asriel reminded.

"Right as always, Asriel." Lupe gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Hmm." Bunnie nodded.

"So...without the barrier,  I guess nothing's stopping us, right?"

"Nothing but us."

"You said our journey was just beginning.  What did you--"  Usagi started before I held up the letter I'd received from the Dreemurrs...from Asgore and Toriel.

"We have a place to be.  And they're waiting for us."

"You mean?"

"Yeah.  The big reunion is at hand.  No more delays.  No more complications.  No waiting around anymore.  Just us...heading to the agreed-upon residence.  And...everything that comes with it."

"The Boss Monsters are all going to be there?"

"Everyone who RSVP’d.  Pretty much everything.  Maybe even a few other faces might drop by."

"Even...?"

"Yes.  Even Frisk."

I'd tossed the name around so much I'm sure those who weren't in the loop were getting sick of it. But Asriel...Asriel could hear the call. It was like a magnet...no...two magnets drawing each other together.

"Though...it might be late into the day because..."

"University?"

"...yeah." I acknowledged that Asriel had made a pretty lucky guess.

"Don't know how you knew that but...something of that matter."

"I can wait.  I waited 125 years to meet that one person." Asriel said no more. I think he was trying to avoid Violet from picking up on anything...embarrassing to admit. Especially given where this story had started on campus...

That said.

We began the long hike.

And before we knew it...somehow we arrived back at the top of the mountain. It made no sense, given how the inside of the Underground was structured. How the mouth of the mountain was by all accounts a normally lethal fall into who knows how deep below before hitting that sudden stop at the end.

The sun was still out but...it wouldn't be long before it would start to set. I mean we were still in the spring months so it would still be a ways before dusk but...

Somehow it felt metaphorical. Somehow it felt like a sunset even though it clearly wasn't. It was just like the end of every True Pacifist Ending.

"I have to keep wondering...if there was EVER a timeline when all of us made it to the surface and...Chara and I didn't have to die.  We'd all see the sun together...some way the barrier could have been broken without so many humans having to be killed."

If such a scenario happened, I certainly never found an AU or timeline like that. I mean...there would be no "game" to it if that were the case. Madam Fate would have turned up her nose at it.

"All that travelling got us right back where we started." Drew noted the Time Train still there.

The cars were still parked below. Not a soul came by. Not a soul disturbed our rides. All was on schedule.

"Well." Asriel stated.

"Well." I replied.

Silence.

"Race ya down, Aunt Sally!" Asriel had suddenly donned his OGPX gear and was now in a head start.

"Why you cheating little...!" Sally started to get worked up.

"No excuses for snoozing at the starting line!" Asriel called back, his white contrail starting to dissipate.

"Oh it's ON!!!!" Sally, Willamina, and Honey took off after him.

I shrugged and offered everyone a lift aboard the Jules-Verne Train.

"Well...it's still not the same as seeing the Boss Monsters' "endings" for myself instead of just...dreaming them while I was unconscious in the med bay buuuuuuut..."

I yanked the steam whistle cord a few times as we took to the air. Probably not a smart move but who out here would EVER believe they'd seen (and heard) a steam locomotive in the clouds!?

Once down below, Asriel was already behind the wheel of the Delorean.

"This counts as a rematch and a win, Aunt Sally."

"Ohhh-ho-ho, this isn't over, Goat Son.  You are NOT getting my title that easily."

"Well time will tell if I can actually take it from you.  Today is already yesterday, but tomorrow?  Well...it's a NEW DAY!" Asriel cued up the entrance music of Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods (now that Big E. had gone solo following his championship win and had gone to the other brand).

"You're not going to play a trombone behind the wheel, are ya?" Violet joked. I wasn't sure if that was a reference to "Francesca" or Sans' incidental music. Go figure. It was probably both.

We'd all load up in the cars we arrived in and...some of us would have to squeeze in tighter to accommodate for the stow-aways. But overall...it worked out.

I think we all had one last look behind us before we took off and high-tailed it to where I had programmed the coordinates in the GPS systems all around.

While I couldn't be sure...it almost felt like Flowey was watching us from the very edge of the exit from the Barrier Room.

"..."

Turned out...he actually was. Not a word did he speak. He made his choice. He wouldn't be moved. That was what he convinced himself...that's what he convinced us...all of us...hadn't he?

Since we weren't planning on returning to Ebott...I suppose we'd never know.

I'd made more memories here that meant more to me than too many of my STC assignments could ever claim to. It was truly life-changing and that was saying something for an immortal.

To perfectly frank...? This was the easy part.

Nothing could prepare me for how much courage and resolve I'd need to undergo what lay ahead. What was next.

Just like the Two Great Ones...I'd have to face the music. I'd have answer for a lie that spanned far more then 15 years...far more than one timeline...far more than just one monster prince.

What was coming, I'd need everyone here and Asriel to stand with me if I was ever going to face myself in the mirror from this point on.

To put it simply...I'd be at all of their Mercy.

But this isn't my story.

This is his story. And frankly...the impact this would have on him...and them...would be IMMEAURABLE.

CRYPTOSMASHER LOGOFF

END TRANSMISSION...

Chapter 10

Back to Part 1