Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Hey Susie, can you come with me to the library later? I'd like to study with you! I mean, if it's okay, ehe..."

That's how it started, with Noelle simply asking Susie to come to the library. Now...? Things are so...wrong...Oh, but I'm getting far too ahead of myself, I was just about to say the ending! That's no fun, there's no mystery.

I'll restart, just for you. After all, you're a part of this too! No, no...you won't be making choices. These are mine! You don't have to control them. I know many of you would feel guilty, so...you all will be observers, able to talk to Kris and My Vessel, emphasis on "My," of course.

Others will eventually be able to be talked to! You will know by the " !!! " at the end of each chapter, followed by the name in parentheses. I'll provide one at the end of this chapter as an example.

Now, let us...

♡ Proceed.

!!! (Player)
This means you'll be able to talk to me and each other! Can't have you guys telling Kris or Vessel anything right now, after all! The story hasn't even started again yet....

Chapter Text

A person was sitting in front of their laptop, sighing to themselves. Of course, you can probably figure out who that is, if you've read the description of this story.

"Just how do I even do this route without seeing what I've seen tons of times already..? I want to change something, just to add something new..."

They laid their head down, thinking of ideas...then giving up. Why bother? They don't know how to code, and there's not enough patience in them to learn.

"Whatever...It's still a good game, even if I've seen this chapter already. Maybe I'll notice something new, or just get a sense of nostalgia."

A small bit of plot here and there, nothing too special to this story, but I'll describe it for you, dear readers. And for summary's sake, pretend they already visited the Castle Town beforehand.

"Hey, Susie! Do you want to come to the library with me? I'd like to study with you, uhm...if it's okay, at least! I'll be in the computer lab!"

Noelle, of course, asked Susie to go to the library with her, no doubt to just spend time with her...even under the guise of studying, hopefully to make Berdly's company less noticable.

"Uhh...Yeah, sure! I'll be there!"

Such an enthusiastic reply from Susie...Gay. Homosexuals. This isn't the main plot point...still worth pointing out though. I'm horrible at romance, so we'll be focusing less on that soon.

"Great! I'll see you soon!"

Kris, Susie, and the Player watch as she runs off happily. Susie, of course, flips out.

"Kris, did you see that? She asked me to go study with her! I guess we have to go ACTUALLY study, which is lame...but I'm up for hanging out with her! Let's go!"

She pulls Kris's hand, dragging them with her as she eventually ends up at the Library. She went on a detour for 10 minutes just before, to make it seem like she wasn't in a hurry.

"We're here! Let's go in, Kris!"

She barges in, dragging them to the computer lab's door. She opens it, but...it's dark. The same kind of dark that was in the closet.

"Does this lead to another Dark World?..."

Two options show up. Finally, the Player can interact again.

Go in ♡ Computer at home

"Susie will have us go in anyways, so..."

♡ Go in

"I knew you'd say that!"

They both run into the room, falling into the darkness for another adventure. Little did the Player know at this time, something new would happen for them, too...

!!! (Kris)
You will now be able to talk to Kris!

Chapter Text

Kris and Susie land in the Dark World, the typical outfit change being completed. Susie, being reasonably confused, looks around. It doesn't look familiar to her at all.

"...Huh. This is definitely new."

The player sighs out a reply

"To you."

They know that Susie can't hear them, obviously. They just felt like talking. They make Kris walk up to a save point, choosing a file and saving.

"Here we go again. At least this is fun, otherwise I'd have a headache from the repetition."

After walking around, occasionally having to dodge sparks dropping from hanging plugs and sliding down surfaces, they hear a voice.

"Anyone, help, please..."

It sounds like...Noelle. Of course, Susie was shocked, but Kris kind of figured she'd be there. Noelle noticed them both, her eyes widening..She mainly focused on Susie though.

"Wait, Susie?! Why- I mean- It's cool you're here, but...wait, no, get out of here, before you miss your chance to!"

Just as she says that, a UFO-like cage floats over to Noelle, trapping her in it, before floating upwards. Susie ran over to where Noelle used to be, looking upwards, trying to find her

"NOELLE!"

Laughter comes from the edge of the greenish ground that Susie and Kris were walking on. A blue chair could be seen floating up, with someone holding a glass of...whatever the hell that green stuff in the glass is. They don't know it's battery acid yet. The person abruptly stops laughing after a few seconds.

"One hell of a study session, isn't it?"

Susie stares up at her, shocked and wary.

"Who in the hell are you?!"

"I am known to most as Serial Number Q5U4EX7YY2E9N, but you two children may call me..."

She takes a sip of that green stuff in the glass, holding up one finger, as if to say "one moment."

"...Queen."

And insert the rest of that interaction here. If you don't know it, I recommend playing the game or watching a playthrough.

Anyways, Queen makes two Werewires fight Kris and Susie, directly after Queen states she doesn't feel like fighting directly.

The player looks at the screen.

"About time...I guess I'll fight, just to get myself ready for the rest of the route."

They make Kris and Susie attack the Werewires, making the two enemies run away. Kris wasn't very happy with this, but didn't say anything for now. As such, the player didn't notice.

Susie and Kris were gonna walk again, but two more Werewires appeared. Susie got startled, jumping back.

"What the hell?!"

The enemies calmed down.

"Huh...?"

Of course, Ralsei appeared.

"I just used the Pacify spell to put them to sleep!"

Of course, the rest of that interaction is Susie catching Ralsei up on what happened. After that, they all start walking together. After a small cutscene which starts up the main music for Cyber City, the player saves again. There's no real need, it's just a habit.

They walk for a little while, with the player making the trio fight some Werewires and Tasques, as well as reading an article about Recruits for Castle Town.

Then, there comes the scene with Queen talking to Noelle about becoming her peon, as well as Susie spilling the beans about Queen planning to turn Noelle's face into a robot face.

Kris walks over to the arcade minigame, seemingly already knowing what to do, while Susie and Ralsei stand back. Kris goes to get the controls, doing a convincing "I give up" act. The player picks up on how fake it was, unlike Queen and the others. After all, it's their first time seeing, unlike the player.

"Huh. That's new...Maybe I just didn't realize it at first though?"

And the rest of the scene commences as it does canonically. The arcade machine blows up.

"I must say, you lifeforms are amusing...I have a proposition for you. Perish in absolute destruction, or thrive under my hellish reign? Go ahead and choose!"

The player stares at their options, immediately choosing for them.

♡ Perish

Susie looks at Kris.

"Don't say that so enthusiastically!"

They soon proceed to plan to chase after Queen when she hurries away, with the player taking a minute to save once again. With that, they take a break to eat in real life.

I'm gonna enjoy my food, so, I'll be able to respond to comments easier!

Chapters until next character to talk to: 1

Characters available to talk to: Player/Me, Kris

Chapter Text

The player comes back, opening their last save and continuing from where they left off. They make the trio leave the room with the broken arcade machine, walking around, until they encounter a pair of Virovirokuns in their path. The player forces Kris and the others to fight, then makes them go into a room with the words "AGREE2ALL"

"A puzzle? You do it, Kris"

Susie and Ralsei step aside, and the player has Kris step on the letters (and number) until it's solved. Queen can be heard from a distance, clearly talking to them.

"You typed: Agree2All. Thank you for agreeing to the release form, now you are all legally my minions! I can now use your likenesses for funny statues."

Susie crosses her arms.

"What if we just don't do what you say?"

"In that case, I would be forced to...use someone else, probably."

"Better get started on that then."

"Okay but I'm still gonna use your likeness."

They leave the room, going to a path that leads to a few teacup rides. They get in, going up using the teacups, soon getting off and walking into another room. Soon, a part of the floor separated from the rest of the ground, floating across to another part of the ground.

A pale yellow speaker darkner goes in front of the three.

"Dead end...!"

The three look at each other, before looking back at the pale yellow one. Susie speaks up again.

"What the hell is your deal, twerp?!"

"Twerp?! The name's Sweet!"

Well, that solves the name situation for Susie and Ralsei...Kris still just seems deadpan, they probably just don't care. Sweet seems to see how they just now knew his name.

"Don't tell me you never heard of the Sweet Cap'n Cakes!?!

Ralsei looks at him nervously

"Uh...It doesn't ring a bell..."

Sweet seems to get a bit...shocked? Sad? Honestly, hard to tell.

"Guess our act is still slightly underground..."

However, he gets a happy tone right after

"Not only are we Cyber Field's best music trio...but we're also the last resistance against Queen and her crew, and that means resisting you!"

Susie looks extremely annoyed at Sweet.

"We're fighting Queen too!"

Another interaction goes just as planned. A battle starts up. There's no way to kill them since they heal too much, so the player makes Kris and the others dance with Sweet and the others. Susie and Ralsei learn their own ACTs, using that to help win. With that, the battle ends.

Sweet and the others go back to their shop, welcoming Kris and the others to come by at any time. The player makes them go up to the shop, buying a few weapons and armor, then heading out and equipping it.

They soon have to fight a few more enemies...Kris seems to be getting more annoyed, gripping their sword tighter, but it's not really noticeable enough to seem like more than part of a battle animation.

"This is frustrating..."

That's all they thought, not doing much else. They keep on anyways, not like they have a choice. When the battle is over, they head over to a building that seems more like a factory, and come out the other side of it with rollercoasters that match them. When they come out, however, Queen is there.

"Enough, you foolish children. I have been merciful, but now it's time for: your unwilling imprisonment (Getting captured). Drop the capturing capsules!"

As they fall, they...miss the three completely.

The player giggles a bit, while Ralsei speaks.

"...Er, you missed us."

"That was not a miss, that was a tactical calibration."

Susie raises an eyebrow.

"Are you gonna, uh, try it again?"

"No I only have like 4 cages...Okay wait, I have a small plot twist. Come forth, my peon!"

Noelle appears on her own rollercoaster, embarrassed.

"S-Sorry, I just...couldn't say no."

Susie looks absolutely flabbergasted, staring.

"Noelle?!"

Noelle starts complimenting Susie, with Susie just being a bit confused and awkward at the moment. Queen soon cuts in.

"Okay this isn't going to work, bring in the next guy."

Berdly comes in. The player glares at him through the screen. They really don't like him.

After a few lines of dialogue, the coaster battle starts. Kris and the others keep hitting his coaster, making it slowly break as Berdly keeps talking about how Kris must be jealous and how he'll accept Kris as a slightly less distance Number 3 when paired with Berdly and Noelle. His coaster eventually breaks, sending him off the edge of the rollercoaster tracks.

"My queen, save me!"

Queen pretends to be busy.

"In a minute dear."

She looks at the three, swishing her drink around her cup like fancy wine.

"Okay so I have some updates. This Roller Coaster is not actually finished."

Susie looks like she's about to strangle Queen.

"WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?!"

"Pain."

The trio suddenly gets launched off the edge, landing in a trash pile head-first. After a few seconds of regaining their bearings, Susie stands up.

"...Looks like the trash saved us."

They all hop down, minus Susie, who stays on top of a red thing that is usually on a "no smoking" sign

"Now look who's king of the trash pile, haha!"

She laughs, but falls and scrapes her knee. Ralsei runs over to her, worried.

"Susie, are you okay?!"

Susie stands up, trying to seem tough

"It's nothing, I just...Ow..."

While that all goes on, the player sees something monochrome and vaguely human shaped...they walk off, having never seen it in their past playthroughs, ignoring the current situation that they've already seen. Interacting with it, it's...the vessel they made? Was it really discarded here??...How would anyone explain this to the other two? Would Kris even try?

They can't risk Kris suddenly reversing all they planned on...they link part of themselves to their vessel, keeping control over Kris at the same time. They let the Vessel stay there on the ground, continuing to go along with the story until Susie and Ralsei go a different way than Kris does.

Soon...Soon, we'll get closer to the part of the story that is truly different.

!!! (Susie)
You can now interact with Susie!

All interactable characters: Player/Me, Kris, Susie

Chapter Text

Just as Susie and Ralsei go to a path that is now blocked off by traffic cones, the player looks back at where their vessel is, seemingly sentimental.

"...I'll come back for it. I won't abandon my own creation."

They soon have Kris go over to where the "Triple trucies" scene happens. While the player chooses the dialogue options, Kris begins to wonder...What did that one person mean by that warning? "Things are going to go terribly wrong. I apologize for any trauma you may receive"? Yes, they're already annoyed by the player, but...what else could happen? What's so bad that it'd result in trauma?

Kris can tell the player was surprised at one point, after they got out of the trash pile, since it took them a while to do anything other than stare where a monochrome thing was. They couldn't see exactly what the player was looking at, they both see the world from different perspectives.

Just as they snapped out of their thoughts, Noelle joined them. Seems she'll be following them around now...

(Read summary for why this one is so short!)

Interactable characters: Player/Me, Kris, Susie

Chapter Text

"Okay, maybe I should've gotten my vessel earlier...oh well. I'll deal with whatever happens next. Fuck my life, man...I should really think more."

The player makes the two walk the way Kris just came from, of course, getting dialogue before they can even exit the room.

"Kris, isn't that the wrong way...?"

Kris wonders that too. They know they shouldn't be going that way, but they're unable to choose which way they actually want to go for now. They want to go and seal the Dark Fountain, not get farther from it...and yet, they have no choice in the matter. They just go back, Noelle following behind them.

They end up bumping into a Virovirokun, with Noelle getting startled soon after.

"What are we doing..?! What's going on?!"

Kris - [Defend]

Noelle - [IceShock]

*Noelle cast ICESHOCK!
The enemy is frozen.

*Noelle became stronger.

They backtrack a few more rooms, going back to the one with a fork in the road. The player makes them fight two poppups, doing the same routine they did with the Virovirokun.

They go into the room with the trash pile, Noelle speaking up nervously.

"Kris..?? Are you sure this isn't the wrong way?"

Kris feels very uneasy, but is forced to keep walking. They go into the room with multiple boxes with a red "no" symbol on them along the edges, running into another Virovirokun (Talk about a common enemy lmfao) and, of course, the player makes them do the same thing as last time. After that, they do the same to a Werewire.

The player makes them walk to one of the boxes, where their vessel was. It was just barely hidden by the boxes.

"...I said I'd come back for it. Hmm...can I control two beings at once? Will the game allow it...?"

The player tries. Of course, luck seems to be in their favor. They now have to use WASD and the arrow keys for both of them to move, but it's not too much of a problem, just takes a bit to get used to. They seem to forget Noelle could actually see though, along with Kris.

"Kris...? Who's that?"

Noelle gestures to the vessel, currently slowly standing up.

"Shit. I didn't account for any dialogue change brought by this..."

The player grumbles, but sees two sets of dialogue boxes, both with choices.

Dialogue box 1 (Kris) - A friend ♡ Stay silent

Dialogue box 2 (Vessel) - Wake up ♡ Don't

"Hmm...well, I guess I can just choose anything."

(Kris) - ♡ A friend

(Vessel)- ♡ Wake up

Noelle looks at Kris, not noticing the vessel has woken up.

"A friend...? I haven't seen them before, what's their name?"

Kris doesn't know the vessel's name either, they haven't seen it around before! But it seems that the vessel suddenly waking up was timed well.

"My name is Agate."

Noelle looks startled, but then tilts her head.

"Like..the gemstone?"

"Yes."

The player smiles. What? I like gemstones, okay...plus Agate is a pretty name, even if it may sound overused.

"Well, uh...s-shouldn't we get going...? I don't think we're really supposed to be back here..."

The vessel, Agate, nods. The player makes Kris and Agate leave the room, with Noelle following behind. Kris is puzzled now...they know that isn't supposed to happen. They don't know too much about what is and isn't supposed to happen, but..this definitely is unusual.

Just as they start heading back, they run into an Ambyu-Lance. Agate watches the battle, as they have no weapon at the moment.

Kris - [Defend]

Noelle - [IceShock]

On standby: Agate (Learn more about this category at the end!)

After two turns, the battle ends, and Ambyu-Lance is frozen. They run into a Tasque, then repeat the process. They soon arrive back in the alleyway, going into the next room.

Kris steps on a button, causing mice to come out of a hole. Noelle jumps back while screaming, and Agate steps out of the mice's way. Noelle shakes, turning her head to look at Kris

"M-maybe you can get the mice into the other hole...?"

Kris moves the block thing to what is our right but their left, then down one. The player makes Agate run up to the button and pushes it, before realizing that Kris moved on their own.

"Well, I guess that helps me out. Seems they can't really talk on their own, so, I should be fine. The route can continue."

The mice come out, going into the other hole, and then the three go into the next room. Kris and Noelle fight two more Ambyu-Lances, with Agate still on standby. Once it was done, they went into a room to our left, which is their right, and picked up a pink ribbon. The player thinks out loud.

"I kinda wanna put this on Agate, but...nah. Noelle deserves some armor."

Of course, Noelle was equipped with the armor directly after.

A few more battles later, they walk up to an advertisement of a giant ferris wheel. Noelle, who's absolutely amazed, stares at it.

"Wow, this makes the one at the festival seem like a toy! Kris, do you think Susie would...oh, who am I kidding?

Kris - ♡ I'd ride it with you

Noelle giggles, albeit slightly nervously.

"What, so you can shake it when we reach the top, like when we were younger? No thanks, Kris!"

Kris - ♡ Noelle will ride with me.

"Huh...? S-sure...uh, if you want...You can make up for when we were kids...! (This...has to be a prank. When did they get like this..?)

The player then makes them go to the pink Addison's shop once the dialogue is over. The pink Addison begins to speak to them.

"Aw, two young beings, walking around on a school night! Would you be interested in some Dating Shoes?"

Noelle looks up at the Addison, a bit confused.

"What...? No, you got it totally wrong! Kris and I are just...uh...friends...? (Kris is my neighbor, but we've been through so much together...it's like we know each other better than anyone. Yet...it's hard to say we're really friends?)

Kris - ♡ We're something else

"(What does that even mean...? All I'm sure of is that there's no good meaning to it!)"

They go to walk away, but the pink Addison raises their voice just enough to be heard.

"If you're something else...then maybe dating shoes aren't right for you? Could I perhaps interest you in a...FreezeRing?"

Kris walks back up, with Agate watching from a few feet away. Noelle raises an eyebrow.

"A ring...? I'm sorry, but I really don't think we need something like that...!"

"C'mon, angel! You can't get stronger without some good equipment!"

"Stronger...? Ah, right, I guess that's how things work here... (Faha, Kris buying ME a ring...? Yeah right!)"

Kris - ♡ Get it

Noelle looks at Kris, shocked.

"Huh...? Kris, you'd buy it for me...? I guess we could ask about it then..."

She looks back at the pink Addison.

"How much does it cost?"

"It costs a tiny price of $1836!

Just one more Dark Dollar than they have. Noelle looks nervous.

"I'm sorry, w-we don't have the money for it! (But it was nice of Kris to offer to pay for it...)"

Kris - ♡ Get it

"Wait, me...? You want me to get it...? You know we can't afford it..."

Kris - ♡ Get it

"What...? I just told you, we...we really don't have the money. What are you asking me to do...? Y-You aren't asking me to...just...?"

Kris - ♡ Get it

"Kris, no...I can't...I could never..."

*...You got the FreezeRing.

A moment of silence.

Kris stands there, subtly shaking, thinking to themself...

"(...Oh...Oh no...)"

Important info: "On Standby"
This is where those with no equipment, or replacements for a fallen party member, reside. They're functionally outside the battle in most cases!

Characters available to talk to: Me/Player, Kris, Susie

Chapter Text

Noelle looks around, Kris and Agate nearby. She seems...scared of what she potentially did.

"(What...just happened...? Did I really...No, they obviously just gave it to us. Besides... it's good to get stronger...right?)"

The player opens up the inventory, going to the armor and weapon section. They had equipped the white ribbon from chapter 1 onto Agate while everything was happening, so now it's time for another experiment, to see what they can and can't equip onto them.

After switching out Noelle's SnowRing for the FreezeRing, they try to equip SnowRing onto Agate. It seems to work, providing some additional Defense. As such, it's not a weapon for Agate, but a defense item. It seems that monochrome gear gives additional stats...

Their current weapon is Kris's old Wood Blade. It's not monochrome, so it only has the default stats....but it's a weapon nonetheless. Maybe, somewhere along the line, the player can equip a monochrome weapon onto Agate? It's something to hope for.

Kris looks at Agate, before the player makes them walk off, making the two follow. They go to an alley with two buttons and a laser, with Kris stepping on the first one, then trying to go through, but being prevented from doing so when off of the button. Noelle notices this, stepping on the button so they and Agate can pass through, then Agate steps on the second button so Noelle can follow.

Noelle sighs to herself after passing through, slowly trying to calm down.

"(See, everything's okay...getting the ring was a good choice, right? So, why do I keep thinking about...stepping off the button, and... Letting Kris and that new person get...No, stop thinking like that. It's horrible!)"

Kris - ♡ It's natural

"Huh? Kris, what are you talking about?! (Did I say that out loud on accident...?)"

They all go into the next area, encountering 3 more Tasques.

Kris - [Defend]
Noelle - [Iceshock]
Agate - [Defend]
On Standby: None

The enemies freeze instantly, one by one. It takes 3 turns to freeze all three Tasques, ending the battle quickly. Kris looks...worried? No, that's probably just some trick caused by staring at the screen too long.

They go into the next room, and the player makes sure to save. Been a while since they've done that, after all. While using Kris to save the progress, the player makes Agate pick up some CD Bagels from a box, then they all go into the next room.

They go downwards, and after defeating two Virovirokuns, Kris picks up the BounceBlade. They equip it, and then Agate takes the MechaSaber and equips it...but it seems to not be light enough for Agate, making the attack go down by 4 because of inaccurate grip. It's still a major improvement from the Wooden Blade, so there's no current attempts to replace it.

A few more battles, then they head over to a dumpster in an alleyway. A voice comes from inside of it.

"LOOKING FOR [Irresistible Deals] THAT WILL [Blow Your Mind?!] WELL [Shut Your Mouth] BECAUSE YOU ARE [A Weakling!] TRY A LITTLE [Friday Night WorkOut]... THEN I'LL SHOW YOU MY
5 LEFT."

The talking ends, and the three head out of the alley. They fight another enemy, then go to another mouse puzzle. Noelle looks at Kris and Agate, but speaks to Kris only.

"Another puzzle...H-How do we solve it this time?"

Kris - ♡ Proceed

"How...? There's nowhere to go! The path is blocked..."

Kris - ♡ Proceed

"Kris, what are you doing...?! Are you alright...?"

Kris - ♡ Proceed

"The laser is in the way... If I back up any more, I'll...You didn't actually hear what I said earlier, right...? You wouldn't...You wouldn't let me...-"

Kris - ♡ Proceed

"K-Kris...?"

Kris - ♡ Proceed

Agate made no moves to stop this, but Kris was trying their best...

"There, I...did it...? (I just listened to Kris, and then...the puzzle was completed...They weren't trying to hurt me, they just wanted me to get stronger...what was I thinking? They wouldn't ever want me to get hurt. But that grey one, Agate...did they know that?)"

As the three walked, Noelle kept thinking.

"(Of course they did, they must have. They're Kris's friend after all, right? They just wanted to stay out of it, they must be confused too, with this new place...)"

They get into two more battles after a few minutes of walking, another CD Bagel, before entering a third mouse puzzle room. Noelle looks at the puzzle, then at Agate and Kris.

"I'll...do the puzzle for you both...!"

She walks over to it, idly doing the puzzle while thinking to herself.

"(Isn't this a good thing? I'm doing things for myself. Solving things, defeating enemies, and even just taking what I need...and each time I do it, I get stronger. What had I done when I solved that last puzzle? When I'd taken this ring? Does it even matter if I remember it at this point?...Maybe it doesn't, as long as I'm getting stronger. All the battles are blurring together, but, if Kris says to do it...Then I'm sure I can do things, the things that I never have done before. So, isn't it a good thing...? I'm becoming stronger. I'll keep becoming stronger, just as long as I listen...)"

She soon finishes the puzzle, walking back to the two.

"All done! Should we find more enemies?"

Agate looks at them both, following a few feet behind. The player sits up in their chair, controlling where Agate and Kris go. They go into the next room, battling a few more enemies, then going back to the dumpster in the alleyway.

The voice from the dumpster talks again.

"[Angel] , [Angel] , ARE YOU LOOKING FOR THE [Ring] OF [Thorns]?"

♡ Yes

"THat'll be 1997 KROMER."

♡ Yes

"HERE'S YOUR [Ring]! BE CAREFUL, IT MIGHT [Sting]
EAHAHEAHEAH"

(You got the ThornRing.)

The player switches out the FreezeRing on Noelle with the ThornRing, then places the FreezeRing on Agate for extra defense. Seems Agate can't wear two rings at once, so the player replaces the SnowRing with the FreezeRing. The player is stopping for a snack, so they save their progress and keep their hands off the controls.

Kris feels sick from the actions they're forced to do. Agate feels nothing for this situation. What is their real role in this?

??? (New status!)
Player: AFK, won't monitor as closely! (Attempts to tell Kris directly how to avoid this route will still be perceived as wind)

Susie: Busy adventuring with Ralsei, interactions have a low chance of being noticed and responded to when talking to Susie!

Available to interact with: Me/Player, Kris, Susie

Chapter Text

The player goes back to their laptop, putting their fingers on the controls again.

"Time to continue! Getting closer to the end of chapter 2..."

They make Kris, Noelle, and Agate walk down to another alleyway, where Berdly stands across from the three. Berdly speaks up, happy to see Noelle.

"Oh, there you are, Noelle! Just in time, we can go back to Queen, and-"

Berdly pauses, walking towards the three a bit. Something seems off about Kris and Noelle, and...he wonders who the new person is. But, his focus is on Noelle, that's who he cares for the most.

"Noelle?"

Noelle looks up, but then looks at Kris, sighing. She didn't look long enough to know who was really there, talking to her.

"Kris, it looks like there's another enemy...Should I freeze them?"

Kris wants to say no. They want Berdly to be safe, even if they're not fond of him. They want Noelle to be herself, not worrying about hurting others to her stronger. This feels terrible to them. They want things to go back to how it all used to be.

"...Noelle...? It's me, don't you recognize me?!"

Noelle suddenly looks at Berdly directly, realizing who is there.

"....Berdly...!?"

"Noelle, are you alright? What are you doing with Kris, and...whoever that third person is?"

Agate just stares from a few feet behind.

"Don't worry too much about me being here."

Berdly gets startled by their sudden dialogue, but just nods.

"Okay...so, as I was saying. Noelle, what are you doing with them, especially Kris?"

"I'm just, uh, we're just...getting stronger..."

"Getting stronger...how? Kris, what are you doing..?!"

Kris - ♡ Proceed

"H...huh?! Proceed...where? Noelle, what are they talking about!?"

Noelle closes her eyes, trying to ease her nerves. Berdly looks at Kris, now set on helping Noelle. Dead set, even. I can hear the disappointed sighs, don't worry.

Berdly looks at Kris, preparing for a fight.

"That's it. Kris, I don't know what you're doing, but...if you're hurting my friend Noelle..."

He summons his Halberd.

"...Then I have no choice but to stop you by force! Kris, you better ready yourself!"

Noelle looks scared for Berdly, her voice shaky.

"Wait, Berdly, don't! Just run away while you're able to!"

A battle starts. Seems Berdly really doesn't like backing down when it comes to Noelle and his own pride, huh?

The player looks at the screen.

Kris - [Defend]
Noelle - [Defend]
On Standby - Agate

With this, as well as grazing, it doesn't take long to get to max TP. Just a few turns.

Kris - [Defend]
Noelle - [Snowgrave]
On Standby - Agate

Noelle seems slightly down.

"...Snowgrave? I...I don't know that spell.

Noelle - [Snowgrave]

"I'm telling you, I...I don't know what you're talking about, Kris."

Noelle - [Snowgrave]

"I'm telling you that I don't know, so stop! I don't know what you're talking about...!"

Noelle - [Snowgrave]

"...Fine. You wanna see what happens so badly? Watch what happens when I cast a spell I don't know!"

[Snowgrave]

*Noelle cast SNOWGRAVE!

...

Kris looks at Noelle and Berdly, while the player's vision of the battle is obstructed. They silently apologize to him, promising they'll try to help him once they seal the Dark Fountain.

Agate looks around from outside the battle. So much snow, it's hard to see what's even happening. Are they capable of even knowing what's happening on their own? All they know, is that it's too cold. They feel a sense of...worry.

Noelle falls to the ground after using her magic. She's exhausted, no longer able to handle the mental strain. She trembles, keeping her head down as she speaks.

"What...happened? There was so much snow, I couldn't see a thing...I..."

Noelle stands up, stabilizing herself for a few seconds.

"...I don't feel very well. I think....I'm gonna go home."

And with that, Noelle walks away. The battle ends, and Kris stares straight ahead, where Berdly is frozen in ice. They clench their fists, but upon realizing they can't physically do anything to the player, they sigh and look back at Agate.

Agate seems to be as they always are, but now with a hint of concern...but Kris disregards it. Anyone would have that reaction.

The player seems to notice Kris's reactions, thinking about what it could mean...before writing it down and putting the thought to the side. There are more important things to think about, like getting through the rest of the Dark World and seeing if Agate can enter the Light World. Anything else is a secondary thought to them. Still...it's important.

The player saves, letting themselves process what everything so far may mean.

??? (Status change!)
Susie is no longer busy!
Player is no longer AFK!

Available to interact with: Me/Player, Kris, Susie

Chapter Text

((Kris's POV! :p Cuz we haven't heard much from them on the matter...as usual! Blame the player ig. Anyways, enjoy the mini chapter!))

They forced my hand.
They forced my hand to do those actions.
I'd never have done those things.
And yet, I did them.
Because they forced my hand to move.
They forced my hand to point.
Point right at those enemies.
"Proceed"
What is the use?!
Why must I harm!?
It doesn't make sense to me...!
And yet,
I did it,
Even if it made no sense...
Because they forced my hands.

Soon?
My hand
Will move
By my own will.
They don't understand,
They don't understand that one day,
Without notice...
I'll hurt them.
Why..?
Because they forced my hand.
No longer
Will I be used to harm others.
My hand
Will force theirs
To leave those controls.
To leave this place.
To leave
The grip
They have
On my SOUL.

Soon, they'll understand
That they forced my hand.

Chapter Text

The player sighs in exhaustion.

"Geez, this is a lot to think about...I guess I did want something new, though."

They put their fingers back on the controls, continuing on, until they see a manhole with a ladder. Kris climbs down, while Agate basically falls down after trying to lower themself onto the ladder. Poor motor skills? Yes, thank you for noticing.

As they climb out the other side, Agate has to basically hug the ladder in order to somewhat safely make it out. Kris decides to disregard this, it's probably not important. As they both finally make it out of the other side of the manhole, they both see Susie and Ralsei, with Ralsei being the one currently talking.

"We finally found this world's Dark Fountain..."

Susie nods, slightly in thought.

"Yeah, but where the hell is Kris, and uh...that other person one of the voices mentioned?"

"Susie, they're to our right..."

She turns to look at them, startled. As soon as Susie calms down, which is almost instantly, she runs over to Kris and starts practically yelling.

"Kris, where the hell were you?!"

Ralsei giggles at Susie's tone. He knows she was concerned, it's nice of her. He soon returns his attention to the two, smiling.

"We were searching everywhere for you, Kris! And I see you've found a friend, I'm proud of you! Susie was worried about you...but it seems you and your friend have been doing just fine!"

His gaze wavers a little too long on Agate, who is trying to focus on all three at once....It's a difficult task. Ralsei looks back at the others, while Susie shouts in embarrassment.

"NO I WASN'T!! Just, uh, Kris...let us know if you're gonna...uhm...."

She pauses, noticing the look on Kris's face. Slightly dull, but a hint of distress...?

"Hey, are you okay...? You seem kinda..."

Ralsei interrupts, redirecting the conversation.

"If you or your friend are hurt, Susie can heal you!"

"Oh, yeah! I'm a healing master now, Kris! I'm even better than Ralsei, so...If you get hurt, then I can, uh..."

She scratches her head, thinking. Ralsei was gonna speak up, but Agate did first.

"Just try what you think would fit you best. I'm sure you can figure out what you can do that way. We believe in you."

Monotonous...It definitely fits them, but it's not too helpful in terms of knowing if they're genuine. Susie stares, confused.

"...Sarcasm?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Was THAT sarcasm?"

"No, so let's stop the questioning and just go."

"Okay, fine...no need to be demanding."

Kris leads the way, Agate following behind Susie and Ralsei. The player sighs.

"Hopefully that was enough to get Kris's attention off of Agate. I can't have them finding out."

They have the group enter Queen's Mansion, saving at the entrance and continuing on from there. They enter a hallway with a lot of paths and...eugh, Spamton's face on multiple paintings...

They run into a Mauswheel... honestly, a welcome change from those paintings. Ralsei goes on standby, making Agate go in his place.

"This should be easy, so I'll let you try fighting, Agate!

"How'd you know my name?"

"Uhm...anyways!"

"...Okay."

Kris - [Fight]
Susie - [Fight]
Agate - [Fight]
On Standby - Ralsei

Agate tries to attack with the MechaSaber, falling from how heavy it is. The attack is very weak, and Susie bursts out in laughter.

"Even a SWORD is too heavy for you! HAHAHAAAAA!

Ralsei stares in disappointment at Susie.

"Susie! Agate is trying their best, don't make fun of them!"

"Fine... You're no fun though. I was just telling the truth."

After a few turns, the Mauswheel was defeated. Susie crosses her arms, rolling her eyes while speaking.

"I do think they should find something that's, uh, less heavy though..."

Ralsei nods, sighing.

"That would be best...but you could've said that instead of laughing!"

"Yeah yeah, I know, stop lecturing me."

They soon continue on, walking into a room with far too many pipis ((pipises? Pipii?)) to count. There are a few accidental fights triggered, but they make it to the end of the room eventually, going into the next room, where they all just run to the other end while trying not to get hit. It wasn't perfect, but nobody died.

Not too long after, just slightly after defeating Tasque Manager and her two Tasques, they pass by a labelled room. Susie pauses, gesturing to the door.

"That's Noelle's room! Kris, let's go and help her! And, uh...to tell her to not get in our way."

Kris stays eerily still.

"...Fine, I'll just go in there myself!"

Susie goes in, slamming the door behind her. Ralsei turns to Kris and Agate, smiling.

"So, don't you both wonder how they're both doing?"

No response from either of them. Kris stares at the door, while Agate looks away from the door.

"Uhm...I said, don't you both wonder...how Noelle and Susie are?"

Nothing but the cold breeze to answer his words.

"...I guess it has only been 30 seconds...(I'll just wait a minute first.…)"

After a little while, Susie rushes out of the room, embarrassed.

"ALRIGHT LET'S GO!"

Ralsei jumps, startled.

"Wait- hold on-!!! We were supposed to-"

"C'mon!!!"

"Wait, Susie, what happened in there!?"

"What do you mean?! Nothing happened!"

"Nothing???"

"I, uh, just told her everything is a dream...now she's feeling better. She seemed to...feel kind of down."

"...Oh... Anything else...?"

"No and let's just go...but I'll tell you later, Kris."

"HEY, WHY CAN'T I KNOW? (Hmm...I guess as long as Susie is happy, it doesn't matter...right?)"

The player chuckles a bit.

"Pfft...Susie and Noelle are so cute. I wish I didn't have to take the joy and whimsy out of Noelle's life in this route. Too bad, I already started."

The player makes everyone continue on, dodging sparks falling from wires, just like in the beginning. At least one thing doesn't change, even if it's just those wires!

They soon meet up with Queen, who begins monologuing, which I will write the entirety of because I fucking adore her.

"The Knight...The Roaring Knight...Today, it decided to create this world. Reaching it's hand out, it channeled it's will into the blade it held. It made this world, just after stabbing into the earth, with that very blade..."

She pauses, thinking of how to word her next thoughts.

"Unfortunately, the world they created is trapped within the library. If only we had a way to make more darkness, we might be able to cover the entire world...That is when I realized, this power...the power of will, the power of determination...is this not something that all Lighteners possess? If one was simply determined enough...couldn't anyone make a dark fountain?"

Another pause, this time, not as long.

"If the Knight has taken it's leave, then I'll simply...make a new one. Yet...I'm still empty handed in my quest."

Her head lowers, barely visible from behind her chair, which has floated over to a giant hand.

"Noelle is in no condition to assist me in my goals. She must rest, she must get better. And that bird boy...I haven't been able to find him. I've searched for ages, but my sensors haven't been able to detect him."

She smiles, seeing the group of four nearby.

"How nice of you all to come assist me! Kris, Susie, which one of you wants to be the new Knight?"

Susie, fed up, walks just slightly closer.

"Get out of our way. Noelle needs to wake up!"

Queen, being concerned for Noelle, shakes her head.

"No, she's already awakened too much, she can't handle it...She needs to sleep, to drift away into a dream. Let her do that, won't you?"

With that, she goes into that giant robot of her. Is it odd for a computer to control a giant robot? Not here.

"Now, which one of you wants to help me cover the world in darkness?"

Ralsei stares up at the robot, yelling enough to hear.

"Queen, why do you want to unleash the Roaring so badly?!"

"...What is that?"

"...The Roaring."

"Yeah, what is that?"

Ralsei frowns at the thought of The Roaring.

"If too much darkness is released...Titans will emerge from the fountain and destroy everything. All Darkeners will turn into statues, and Lightners will be lost in eternal chaos."

"@0@ Holy circuits, are you serious??" ((it's adorable. I love the shocked face. Leave me be.))

"You REALLY didn't know?!"

"No..."

She gets out of the giant robot, walking back over to them.

"Well, my plans are shot. My one idea to help Noelle has failed... Go ahead Kris, seal the fountain. I won't stay in your way any longer, I promise."

They walk away, but before they can really leave the room, Susie goes back over to Queen.

"Uh, hey...wait. You don't have to...uh, I mean...It doesn't have to be goodbye, y'know?"

"Error: I have no idea what you're talking about."

"We...have our own Dark World. You can stay there, if you'd like. Who knows, maybe someday, you'll even...be able to meet Noelle again?"

"Really?"

"Uh, yeah...maybe."

"Fatal exception 'sweet' in Oh Hell Yeah.EXE, Susie I knew you were a nice girl!"

Susie nervously looks around.

"Uhh, hey, I'm just...KRIS, GO SEAL THE DARK FOUNTAIN! And uh, Agate...uhm...just do what you're good at...? (Probably just standing around...)"

Agate goes with Kris, while Susie just stares.

"(...Huh. okay.)"

The player walks away from the laptop.
"Time for me to prepare mentally..."

!!! (Ralsei)
You can now interact with Ralsei!

Available to interact with: Player/me, Susie, Kris, Ralsei.

Chapter Text

(Chapter 2 ending, part 1)

Ralsei looks at Susie, concern rising not-so-subtly. Susie silently nods, confirming something unspoken, which Ralsei responds to out loud.

"We'll go now, then...?"

"Yeah...if what that voice said was correct, then...this really can't be good. Berdly isn't likeable, but he doesn't deserve to be frozen."

They start walking, noticing the mansion is now cleared out, but they don't mind, it means no annoying pipis encounters. They exit the mansion, walking around. Ralsei glances at Susie, looking back at the ground soon after.

Susie, of course, notices.

"Ralsei...? You seem...off."

"I'm okay, just...Susie, what do you think caused Berdly to become...uh..."

"A popsicle?"

"That's...a bad way to say it, but yes....essentially."

"Well...maybe he annoyed someone here? I mean, computers freeze, so maybe a darkner that was, uh...a laggy device in the Light World, maybe...had these super powerful ice spells and froze him?"

Ralsei looks up at her, smiling.

"...Yeah, let's go with that, it seems reasonable."

The two continue walking in complete silence, uneasy at how calm and cold everything is. Things seem so devoid of life, with even those once busy streets being a little too easy to cross now. It doesn't take them too long to find Berdly... or, well, the ice crystal he's sealed in.

They both run up to it, trying to look inside it...it's far too thick to see through, but this is the only thing that fits what they were told. Susie tries to strike the ice directly in the middle with her axe, but Ralsei gets in the way before she can land a hit. She backs up.

"Ralsei, what-"

"If you hit too hard in the middle, you could hurt him!"

Susie pauses.

"Right...uhm..."

She adjusts her angle, aiming for a piece of ice where Berdly's limbs are out of the way.

"I'll see how deep I can cut through the ice with one strike. I won't hurt him."

Ralsei nods, stepping out of the way. Susie swings her axe at the ice, but the axe bounces back as soon as it makes contact.

"What the...?!"

She tries again, but the result is the same. Ralsei looks at the ice, noticing how some of it is very slightly chipped now, but regenerating instantly.

"Susie, I have an idea...!"

"Huh? What is it?"

"Try to use your Rude Buster against it! But, uh...try to hold back too, just in case..."

"Why use- Ohhh! Okay, great idea!"

She charges up Rude Buster, firing at the ice crystal. It manages to cut through a decent amount, before regenerating.

"...It's just going back to normal a few seconds after."

Susie leans against a wall, with Ralsei pacing back and forth. They both start to think about what to do, occasionally jumping like they just had an idea, but calming down once they realize it won't work...until one actually does. Susie gets off of the wall, running to Ralsei and shaking him by his shoulders in excitement.

"Ralsei, I got it!"

Ralsei, a bit startled, stares up at Susie.

"S-stop shaking me, then tell me...!"

Susie pauses, letting go.

"Sorry. But, why don't we both just attack? You can do enough damage to keep the spot in the ice crystal from regenerating, and with that, I can have enough time to charge up Rude Buster more and fire!"

Ralsei's eyes practically light up, nodding. They both step back from the ice crystal, putting a small amount of distance from each other. Susie charges up her attack, firing. Almost immediately after, Ralsei starts firing multiple attacks at the ice, until Susie fires an attack again. This repeats over the span of an hour and a half, until Susie manages to make a hole and multiple deep cracks in the ice crystal, just large enough to tear apart the rest of the ice if she pulls enough.

"Ralsei, help me pull apart the ice!!"

He nods, running up and pulling the ice along with Susie's own efforts. After a small while longer, it works, and Ralsei pulls Berdly out of what's left of the ice. He looks at Susie, feeling Berdly's cold body in his arms.

"Susie, he's...not going to do very well for a while. Please, make sure to take care of him, okay?"

Susie nods, looking a bit scared for Berdly...but puts that aside.

"Yeah...don't worry Ralsei, I will."

They slowly walk back to the top floor of the mansion, discussing other things in hopes of lightening the mood.

"Ending of Cyber" - Part 1 of 2.

Available to interact with: Roxy (Player/my new name), Kris, Susie, Ralsei

Chapter Text

It's time. The player, now called Roxy, has had enough time to prepare for the upcoming fight. They have Agate go over to a vending machine, buying enough CD Bagels to fill up their inventory, then saving.

"Well, here goes. I think I practiced enough to not need this many healing items, but, it's better to be safe than to be annoyed over dying!"

With that, Roxy makes Kris and Agate walk over to the Dark Fountain, and the semi-usual dialogue ensues.

"(It was as if your very SOUL was glowing...)"

"NOT!!!"

A large figure appears right where the two were standing, making them be forced to one side. The figure then goes to the opposite side, of course, being revealed as Spamton NEO immediately after.

"LET ME SAY
LET ME SAY [Thanks ]
THANKS TO YOUR [Total Jackass stunts] I HAVE [Becomed] NEO.
AND NOW IT' S MY [Mansion]! MY [City]! MY [World]!
SO WHY ARE YOU BOTH [Stealing] THE [Fountain]!?
TO [$!$!] ME OVER RIGHT AT THE [Good part]!? WHAT ARE YOU, A [Gameshow Host]?!
AH, KID, FORGET IT. I'M AN [HonestMan].
I'LL LET YOU BOTH [Pay] YOUR WAY OUT OF THIS ONE!!"

One of Spamton's arms turns into a cannon/gun-like machine.

[Pay]...WITH YOUR [Rapidly-Shrinking] LIVES!!!"

The battle starts.

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

During the battle, Spamton talks, basically just to Kris. I won't be saying his attacks, I'll just do the duo's battle choices and Spamton's dialogue. Yes, they're still being attacked by Spamton though. Why am I doing his dialogue? I find it fun to type.

"I REMEMBER WHEN YOU WERE JUST A LOST [Little Sponge]
SLEEPING AT THE BOTTOM OF A DUMPSTER!"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

"I GAVE YOU EVERYTHING I HAD! MY LIFE ADVICE!
I TOLD YOU [5 Left] AND ASKED YOU [Buy] OR [Don't Buy]!"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

"I GAVE YOU MY [Commemorative Ring] FOR THE PRICE OF [My Favorite Year]!"

Kris - [Act: X-Slash]
Agate - [Fight]

"THIS IS HOW YOU BOTH [Repay] ME!? TREATING ME LIKE [DLC]?!"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

"NO, I GET IT! IT'S YOU AND THAT [Hochi Mama]! YOU'VE BEEN [Making], HAVEN'T YOU!"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Item: CD Bagel: Kris]

"YOU'VE BEEN MAKING [Hyperlink Blocked]! AND NOW THAT YOU HAVE YOUR OWN SUPPLY, YOU DON'T NEED ME!!!"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Fight]

"I WAS TOO [Trusting], TOO [Honest]. I'VE ALWAYS BEEN A MAN OF THE [PIPIS]. A REAL [PIPIS] PERSON!"

Kris - [Act: X-Slash]
Agate - [Fight]

"I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN YOU WOULD HAVE USED MY [Ring] FOR [Evil]...OH, [Right]. THAT'S WHY I SOLD IT TO YOU."

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Item: CD Bagel: Agate]

"YOU THINK MAKING [Frozen Chicken] WITH YOUR [Side Chick] IS GONNA LET YOU DRINK UP THAT [Sweet, Sweet] [Freedom Sauce]?"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

"WELL, YOU'RE [$!$!] RIGHT! BUT DON'T BLAME ME WHEN YOU'RE [Crying] IN A [Broken Home] WISHING YOU LET YOUR OLD PAL SPAMTON [Kill You]."

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Item: CD Bagel: Kris]

Seems things change here. He, all of a sudden, starts to actually remember Agate exists. He almost immediately realizes he has nothing to say about them though.

"AND YOU, [Greyscale]! ...I DON'T HAVE MUCH TO SAY ABOUT YOU."

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

"YOU'RE TOO [Silent As A Mouse], TOO MUCH OF [A Weakling]!

Kris - [Act: X-Slash]
Agate - [Fight]

"YOU AND THAT [Little Sponge] SEEM SIMILAR. I WON'T [Shout To The Crowd] WHAT I MEAN THOUGH!"

Kris - [Fight]
Agate - [Defend]

He just stops talking after that. A few more turns of this, and Spamton finally stops attacking.

"MY ESTEEM CUSTOMERS I SEE YOU ARE ATTEMPTING TO DEPLETE MY HP! I'LL ADMIT YOU'VE GOT SOME [Guts] KID! BUT IN A [1 For 1] BATTLE, NEO NEVER LOSES!!! IT'S TIME FOR A LITTLE [Bluelight Specil]"

Spamton's attack drops, while his defense raises too much for Kris and Agate to effectively chip away at.

"DIDN'T YOU KNOW [Neo] IS FAMOUS FOR IT'S HIGH DEFENSE!? NOW, ENJOY THE FIR3W0RKS, KIDS!"

Pipis explodes, then that attack ends soon after.

Kris - [Act: Call for Ralsei]
Agate - [Act: Call for Ralsei]

*...But nobody came

"WHAT, YOU'RE CALLING FRIENDS!? YOU THINK YOU CAN BEAT ME WITH YOUR FRIEND'S [Magic]!? GO AHEAD, [Kid]...CALL ALL YOU WANT! NO ONE WILL EVER PICK UP."

Kris - [Act: Call for Ralsei]
Agate - [Act: Call for Ralsei]

*...But nobody came

"GO AHEAD AND [Scream] INTO THE [Receiver]. THE [Voice] RUNS OUT EVENTUALLY. YOUR [Voice]. THEIR [Voice]. UNTIL YOU REALIZE YOU BOTH ARE ALL ALONE."

Kris - [Act: Call for Susie]
Agate - [Act: Call for Susie]

*...But nobody came

"THERE WILL BE NO MORE [Miracles]. NO MORE [Magic]. YOU BOTH LOST IT WHEN YOU TRIED TO SEE TOO FAR.....YOU LOST IT...."

Kris - [Act: Call for Susie]
Agate - [Act: Call for Susie]

*...But nobody came

"YOU BOTH MAKE ME [Sick]! MUTTERING YOUR [Lost Friends] NAMES AT THE BOTTOM OF A [Dumpster]! NO ONE'S GONNA HELP YOU!!! GET THAT THROUGH YOUR [Beautiful Head], YOU LITTLE [Worms]!"

Kris - [Act: Call for Noelle]
Agate - [Act: Call for Noelle]

*You both whispered Noelle's name...

"...HER? YOU'RE STILL TRYING TO [Use] HER!? HA HA HA HA HA!!! YOU THINK SHE CAN [Hear] YOU NOW, MUTTERING HER NAME!? WHAT'S SHE GONNA DO, MAKE ME AN [Ice Cream]?! AEHEAHEAHEAHEA-"

The temperature drops drastically.

"...HEY, IS IT COLD IN HERE OR IS IT JUST ME?"

The sound of ice magic could be heard. Shortly after, Kris and Agate's halves of the soul float up to the Dark Fountain, glowing as the Fountain seals. The surroundings go back to normal, revealing the normal computer lab inside of the library. Noelle is asleep, and Berdly is...well, out cold. (Stop "boo"-ing me!!!!)

Berdly's alarm goes off, waking Noelle up.

"Huh-? His alarm? Everything really was just a dream...!"

She looks over at Kris and Susie, getting startled. She stares at Susie.

"Susie!! What are you doing here??"

"You, uh, asked us to come study, remember?"

"Oh, right, I guess I did! Silly me, haha!"

"...You seem to be in a good mood. Did you have a good dream, or something?"

Noelle pauses, looking away.

"It was a nightmare."

"Oh."

Susie looks a bit concerned, but Noelle's time went back to being happy, like nothing was ever wrong.

"I'm...just happy I woke up. The end was nice, though!"

"What happened?"

"HAHA, well, uhh...OH HEY BERDLY it's time to get up and go!"

Berdly stays there, asleep. Talk about giving Noelle the cold shoulder...

"...Berdly?"

She looks worried, but grabs her books and stands up.

"Gosh, you've been studying too much...it's good that you're getting rest. Sweet dreams!"

She quickly walks to the other side of the room, before looking at Susie. Susie notices, raising an eyebrow.

"...What are you doing?"

"Do you have a tail, or no?"

"N-no way, of course not!!!"

"Alright!"

Noelle leaves the room, leaving Kris, Susie and Berdly alone. Susie turns to face Kris, sighing.

"We should let Berdly rest, he was in a... situation... in the dark world. Some darkner froze him or whatever."

They soon walk out of the library, with Kris gathering everything in the room first. Susie pushes herself off the wall, gazing up at the sky.

"It sure got late, didn't it...? You should get home...I know you don't want to go home by yourself, so I guess if you're MAKING me, I'll go with you. C'mon."

Roxy sighs.

"Well, at least this part is peaceful."

Not much happens at this point. Kris and Susie go to Castle Town, then after a few minutes, they head over to Kris's house. Toriel invites Susie in, smiling as Susie goes to wash her hands to make pie.

"I'm glad you made a new friend, Kris. Susie seems like a very nice girl...but, I heard about her behavior from Alphys. If she, er, influences you...try not to eat any chalk, okay?"

Toriel giggles light-heartedly, earning a small smile from Kris. Susie comes back a few minutes later.

"Hands, uh, washed, ma'am..."

"Wonderful! Oh, Kris, how about you show Susie how to make the pie?

"Wait, Kris, you know how?! Why haven't you made me any, dumbass?! Pie-hoarding piece of-"

Susie gets interrupted by Toriel bursting into laughter, which Susie remembers that she's in front of Kris's mother.

"I mean, uh- 'scuse me, ma'am."

"Susie, you can just call me Toriel outside of school."

"Oh, sweet."

Kris walks away slightly, motioning to the bathroom. Toriel notices.

"Oh, Kris, you need to wash your hands too? Then, I suppose I'll teach Susie how to make the pie for now. We'll start getting ready!"

"Wait, we will? Uhh-"

Before Susie can keep on, Toriel drags her to the kitchen, and Kris goes into the bathroom. Turning on the sink, they rip their soul out...only for it to be halved. Of course, Agate has the other, they needed something to keep themselves alive.

Kris, not exactly caring at the moment, slams the soul into the sink cabinet, shutting the door. They stagger over to the window, climbing out and doing their whole routine involving slashing the tires, taking Berdly to the hospital, then climbing back in the bathroom and putting their half of the soul back in, letting Roxy control them again.

They exit the bathroom, seeing that the pie was almost done. The rest of that scene proceeds like normal.

Once everyone is asleep, Kris rips their soul out and stuffs it in the couch cushions, opening the door. Then, grabbing their knife and stabbing into the ground, they create a dark fountain, just before putting the soul back in them.

Meanwhile, Agate is in the Castle Town, in a hidden room that Ralsei made. He had made sure that Agate had a place to stay, and it seems to be comfortable enough for them...hell, they passed out on the floor.

Ralsei sighs, whispering to himself.

"They entered the Light World, but came here after insisting it had too much color and was too bright...maybe someone here can make something for them, like something to help things seem less colorful?..."

("Ending of Cyber" -Part 2 of 2.)

??? (Status change!)
Asleep: Kris, Susie. They can't be interacted with at this time!

Available to interact with: Roxy, Ralsei.

Chapter Text

Ralsei walks up to Malius, holding two shadow crystals that happened to have slid out of Agate's pocket in their sleep, as well as broken glasses frames with no lenses, which we will not talk about how they broke. That's a story for never.

"Hey, can you help me? I need to make some glasses for Agate, a new person here..."

Malius looks at Ralsei, carefully taking the materials.

"Of course I can! But, isn't using these odd crystals probably counter-productive to helping a lightner see? I've heard Seam vaguely mention them in passing."

"They're more see-through than you think, just..."

Ralsei pauses.

"...I wonder how they'll deal with what the crystals will make them see."

Another voice can be heard behind them.

"I doubt it'd be a good use for it."

Ralsei turns around, seeing Seam.

"Oh, Seam! Yes, I know, but I think it'd be of good use! You see- uh, why are you looking at me like that?"

Seam has his eye squinted in a way that could be perceived as judging or questioning. If you perceive this in both ways, you're correct, but only technically.

"We know similar things, Ralsei, but there's one thing we both don't know. How will these affect Lightners after a long amount of time?"

"Well, Kris says that the images go away pretty quick, so it-"

"I understand, but see this from my perspective. I think we both know Agate isn't supposed to exist, at least, not now. If there's one exception, who's saying that it won't cause a whole stream of exceptions? What if, in the Light World, Agate sees something for far longer?"

Seam's expression is tense, but he slowly relaxes. His tone, previously harsh, drifted into more concerned territory.

"I know you want to care for them, especially given their situation...but it's best that you think of everything first. A prophecy isn't the only thing you need to follow, just keep that in mind..."

With that, Seam goes back to his shop, and Ralsei looks back at Malius.

"...This is still for Agate's good, they're struggling to even be out in the Light World....I apologize for the ranting, do you want anything in exchange for hearing that?"

Malius immediately disregards the situation, which Ralsei understands as a way of saying "Don't worry about it." Ralsei smiles at him.

"Thank you!"

"No problem, now I'll get to making those glasses! Maybe tell Agate to occasionally take these off though if Seam's concerns are reasonable, though?"

Ralsei nods, keeping that in mind as Malius makes the glasses. Once he's done, he hands the glasses to Ralsei, talking once more.

"I'm glad to help you out!"

"And I appreciate your help, Malius!"

Ralsei walks away, going into Agate's room and placing the glasses down on...well, the floor. Their room is just as empty as his, since they haven't really expressed much of anything to help know their interests.

He gets some paper and a pen, writing "Tell me if these help with how bright everything seems to you!" And putting it down on the ground, next to the glasses.

"I hope this actually helps...and that Seam's worries are just, well...worries."

He walks out of the room, going to sleep himself.

??? (Status change!)
Asleep: Ralsei. He can't be interacted with at this time!

Everyone is asleep!

Available to interact with: None (Roxy fell asleep when writing the dialogue, feel free to discuss things in the comments, if y'all want! I'll answer when I wake up. Interactions will be back next chapter!)

Chapter Text

Susie wakes up in the Dark World, taking a moment to adjust her eyes...then becoming immediately confused and startled once she does.

"Huh...??"

Her eyes widen, before she puts her foot on the side of Kris's head to wake them up.

"Kris, hey, wake up! We're in the Dark World!"

Kris opens an eye, before them and Susie roll off the couch. Susie looks around while stretching, her confusion obvious in her voice.

"How the hell did this happen...?"

Of course, no response from Kris.

"...Well, who cares? This means another adventure, right, Kris? C'mon, let's go!"

Roxy puts their hand on the arrow keys, making Kris walk around, with Susie following behind. Kris and Ralsei wander for a little while, before hearing a voice from behind them

"Hey, wait for us!"

Ralsei runs up to them, Agate holding onto his sleeve so they don't fall behind. Roxy smiles.

"I still get to keep Agate! I was so worried that they'd disappear...I guess that Agate disappearing now wouldn't make too much sense, though." ((Of course it wouldn't, dumbass!))

Disregarding that, let's go back to the others. Susie looks at Ralsei and Agate, but only really focuses on Ralsei.

"Ralsei, hi!"

Ralsei glances at Susie happily, about to talk, but Susie interrupts.

"Hey, you're not gonna believe what I did after our adventure! After we basically saved the literal WORLD, went over to Kris's house, almost baked an entire pie, and then marathoned movies all night!!"

Ralsei laughs light-heartedly, enjoying the thought. It wasn't the most descriptive, but he enjoys hearing about what happens in the Light World.

"Aww, Susie, it sounds like you had a wonderful time, I'm glad!"

Susie grins, trying to play her excitement off by acting cool.

"Yeah, it wasn't AWFUL, I guess..."

"I want to hear all about it, just... let's get going first!"

"Oh, uh, right!"

As they walk, Susie has a conversation with Ralsei.

"So, I was thinking about some of those movies last night. Do you think YOU could survive Blood Crushers 2, Ralsei?"

"Uhm, I don't know, I've never seen a movie!"

"Wait, really?! Would you like to?"

"H-huh?..."

"Y'know, come watch movies with us next time."

"Oh! That'd be nice, wouldn't it?"

They do the puzzle thing with the three eyes real quick, making a glass bridge show up. They walk across it, going to the other side. Susie keeps talking.

"And, like...it doesn't have to be just movies, y'know? You could even go to school with us. Kris, he could even do our homework, right?"

Kris doesn't really signal anything to show that they heard. Regardless, the conversation carries on, with Ralsei smiling.

"I'd...love to do your homework, Susie.."

As they do a timer puzzle and the spikes keeping them from progressing disappear, the sound of an applause could be heard. Everyone basically just pays no mind to it, with Susie continuing on.

"And then, like, best idea for last. So there's this festival in a few days, right? And, heh, it kinda sounds stupid, but... wouldn't it be fun if we all went together? Maybe Agate too, even though, uh...even though they haven't talked much?"

Kris just faintly nods, while Ralsei looks away.

"Susie, I...um... I'd like nothing more! I'd love to go, but..."

"But what?"

"...I...I don't think I could go."

Susie gets a bit disappointed, turning away from him.

"I mean...it was kinda stupid. The festival is stupid too, obviously. And, we don't even have to play any games."

Susie grins.

"We could just make a mess. Cause some trouble."

The grin drops immediately.

"Just, could be fun if you...went with us, y'know?"

Ralsei looks up at her.

"No, Susie, I want to! Just...I can't go."

"Did I say something weird?..."

"No, it all sounds wonderful, Susie! I'm happy to be invited! But...I'm a Darkner. I can't go to the Light World, even if I wanted to...

"Uhh...why?"

"Because, I...we..."

Ralsei stops to think.

"...It's hard to explain, Susie...but I'll try."

The narrator is bad at describing the next scene! Please forgive Narrator Roxy for their sin of Not Narrating Very Well. Imagine the scene that happens canonically or just read. It's up to you all.

"Susie, you and Kris live in the Light World, where everything is as you see...as long as there's light. When it gets dark...things become more indistinct. A chair can look like a monster, a poster can look like it's moving; your eyes aren't able to see the truth anymore. And once the light runs out...you see nothing, and of course, your mind can't make anything out of nothing."

He pauses to take a breath, then continues.

"But what if? What if it became even darker? Darker than dark...What if we could take away the light that wasn't there, until we reached another side? If that were to happen...you could start to see things again, hear things again, and feel things again. That's what the Dark World is, Susie. An alternate view of the world, through the lens of shadow, or, in other words...an illusion. The Dark Fountains make everything into a fantasy."

Susie, Kris, and Agate stare at Ralsei, listening intently as he keeps talking.

"In the Light World, in reality....Lancer is just a playing card, and Queen is a laptop. In other words, when the lights come back on...This world is no longer real...the Darkners you meet aren't real...nothing in the Dark World is real. Even I, who's telling you this...I'm not...-"

Susie speaks up, sadness in her voice.

"Ralsei, how can you say you're not real?! I can see you, feel you, and hear you...normal objects don't have feelings and stuff!"

Ralsei nods, lowering his head.

"You're right...they shouldn't. That's why, I don't want you guys to...worry too much about us, okay?"

He turns his back to them.

"It was funny, I was...overjoyed to make friends, and then, selfishly...I started feeling sad, too...because I can't be your friend in real life, Susie. I can't do your homework, or go with you to the festival, or...help you when you really need it."

"Ralsei..-"

"I'm sorry. This is why, if...If any of you ever get too tired of me, or Lancer, or any of us Darkners, because we can't be what you need..."

"Forget about us, okay? Go ahead and find some real friends..."

Susie clenches her fists, looking at the ground, before shaking the hell out of him.

"Ralsei, you...IDIOT!!! HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT?! YOU THINK I CAN JUST FORGET YOU, LANCER, AND EVERYONE ELSE?! I don't care WHAT you say you are, you're my friend okay?!"

Ralsei looks up at her, startled, but still feeling down.

"Susie, I'm happy to hear that, but..."

"SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME!!! No matter WHAT you are...You, me, Kris, and even Agate...we're a TEAM, ALRIGHT? None of us are gonna forget each other! So, please...just..."

Their surroundings turn to pure black, with the only light being cast on Ralsei and Susie, with confetti shooting up into the air. A voice speaks from...who knows where, really.

"Wow, what an AMAZING performance!!! The audience has been brought to TEARS, folks!"

Susie and Ralsei both look around, yelling at the voice.

"WHO THE HECK ARE YOU?!?!"

"Haha, I was hoping you'd ask! MIKE, PLAY THE VHS!!!"

A VHS tape plays, and... honestly, who knows if the others can see the video or just hear it. An introduction plays on the tape. I'm tired, so forgive my lack of flare for Tenna's introduction.

"It's now time for our feature presentation! Coming straight from YOUR house, he's the one, the KING OF only! He's groovy, and never glooby! You can't get this from an EGG! The sensation of your screen, the show that makes you scream, say it with him, folks! Mr. (Ant) Tenna's T.V. TIME!!!"

The introduction ends, with Tenna talking to the others. I can't do the large words, so, bold.

"What LOVELY contestants we got here today, folks!!!"

Ralsei looks up at him, a bit confused and startled.

"Contestants...?"

"YES!!! You three are the STARS of today's SHOW!!! Mr. Tenna's Marvelous Mystery Board...TV TIME!!!

An audience appears, cheering and throwing flowers onto the stage, while Tenna bows in appreciation...a lot. Susie speaks up.

"What...? What the hell are you doing?"

"What am I doing? You should be wondering what YOU'RE doing! You're about to play the greatest game of your life! Answer CRAZY QUESTIONS, pass PHYSICAL CHALLENGES...and you'll all win some TV-Tastic PRIZES!!! FLORAL BATH CURTAINS, A BRAND NEW FAMILY CAR, BIG BRO'S TALKER BACKER, KITCHEN SINK FUR-GUARD, CHOCOLATE CHEWY ROLL-UPS, AND A GENUINE RALSEI PLUSH!!"

If only I wasn't broke as hell, I'd get that plushie. Anyways, back to the dialogue, continuing from where we left off. Ralsei seems surprised but also kind of flattered by the plushie.

"Hey I didn't agree to-"

"And THAT'S! NOT! ALL! Hey, Doctor Tennaville! What's today's prescription?"

It's still just Tenna.

"Why, it looks like a prescription for...one GRAND PRIZE?!

That version of Tenna gets squished by a large container of gacha balls, also called gashapons or just prize capsules. Tenna speaks more...he talks a lot.

"That's right! Today's GRAND PRIZE is this season's most popular item! Encased in our patented MYSTERY BALL...This Dark World's ONE and GREATEST TREASURE! I bet you wanna know what's inside, don't ya, folks?"

Laughing could be heard in the background, like those pre-recorded laugh tracks that old TV shows used.

"Well great news, cadoos and cadettes!! EVERYTHING can be YOURS! All you have to do is...WIN!"

More applause goes off in the background, while a thermometer looking thing shows up nearby.

"WOW, I've never seen the FUN-O-METER like this, folks!!! Now don't touch that DIAL, because TONIGHT, we're going to have one heck of a-"

Susie sighs, crossing her arms.

"Who the hell do you mean by WE?"

"Well, uh, this is a GAME SHOW, and you guys are the CONTESTANTs...right?"

"Let me be a little clearer. We aren't going to be on your STUPID SHOW!!!"

"You...aren't?"

The audience disappears, and the the atmosphere gets just very slightly dimmed.

"Oh. Well, uh...that's just hunky-doody, y'know, you do you! Meanwhile, I, uh...guess it'll just be...me and the logo! Ha..."

The colorful logo, which formerly said "Mr. Tenna's Marvelous Mystery Board, TV TIME!" gets turned monochrome...as well as a red "KILLED" on top of it. Dramatic much, Tenna?

Ralsei starts feeling bad for Tenna...

"Umm, Susie?"

"...What?"

"...Susie, I...I know I can't go to the festival with you, but...I still want to have fun with you and the others! So...let's just play, alright? If we can't watch TV, we can be on it instead!"

"Alright, fine...we'll give it a shot."

Tenna hears this, suddenly hopeful.

"You will? You'll give my game a shot?"

"Uhh...yeah?"

Tenna immediately stops sulking.

"Oh, you will!?!? Oh, you THRILL!? Mike, the lights!! The sounds!! The whatzits! The doo-zits!! Turn them all on! (And get me a cup of coffee.)"

He starts to exit the stage, going over to another area.

"Right over here, ladies and germs!!"

They walk over, with the audience suddenly appearing and cheering, snapping pictures before leaving temporarily. Roxy makes Agate walk up to Tenna, having them tap Tenna's arm. He looks down at them.

"Huh, what is it?"

They motion for Tenna to lean down so they can whisper. Once he does, Agate stares dead at him, whispering as quietly as possible, with that blank face...seems we can't hear them, but Roxy obviously knows. They picked the dialogue.

Tenna seems horrified at what he was told, but tries to act normal.

"T-That's a...very interesting imagination you have!...Let's save it for later though, okay...?"

Agate nods.

Roxy saves at the nearby save point, before taking a break to wake up a little more.

??? (Status change!)
Everyone is awake!

Available to talk to: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei

Chapter Text

Once Roxy was prepared, they had everyone walk up to Tenna, who looked at them all...well, not really. He avoids making any sort of move to acknowledge Agate directly.

"Is everyone ready? Once the show starts, there won't be any bathroom breaks, so make up your mind!"

♡ Yes

"Great! Mike, hit it!"

The lights go off, and Tenna looks at the audience.

"Would everyone please give a warm welcome...to today's STAR contestants!!!"

The flight flicker on, showing the group of 4 beside him, and the audience cheers loudly, with some applause being heard. If I didn't see the audience right there, I'd think it was pre-recorded!

"Everyone, please cheer their names!"

Everyone goes silent...

"Oh, right."

Four podiums fall from the ceiling.

"Names, please!!!"

Roxy looks at the podiums, putting in the names for Kris and Agate...Kris is KRS, and Agate is AAA. The other names are revealed, and Ralsei is RAL, while Susie is...ASS. Yep, sounds like something she'd do.

"Only two people actually spelled their name, but that's okay! Just don't KuRS, and please don't scream!"

Agate was debating on it, and Kris definitely wanted to curse.

"Well, now that we've all been (im)properly introduced...Mike, the board, please!"

The screen behind them shows a pyramid in a desert.

"Today's GAME SHOW will be...A VIRTUAL ADVENTURE though TV DESERT! Each of you will use our CUTTING-EDGE, PROPRIETARY CONTROLLER PADS to control fantasy versions of yourselves in a world that's so real, you'll forget it's NOT! Now, don't touch that DIAL, and don't stop those smiles, because... IT'S!! TV!! TIME!!!

The game finally starts...Well, the game inside the game, since Roxy is, of course, playing a game. The menu screen shows up, and they press a button, going to the beginning of the game.

Once they all figure out what to do by talking to Tenna, they walk around, looking for keys. That's their biggest priority at the moment. They almost immediately bump into two enemies, which are named ShadowGuys. After that fight, they get an S rank for that battle...Listen, Roxy has a slow reaction time, you can't expect us ALL to get T rank!

It takes many minutes of searching, a few battles and quizzes, and one count of Agate falling over and nearly drowning in the small amount of water there is...but they finally find 3 keys, with an additional two, which gives bonus points. Now, time for the mooncloud stone!

Apparently, they have to fight Lanino and Elnina for that, so, they obviously do. Tenna speaks up before the battle actually begins.

"This battle has a SPECIAL win condition for our contestants! All you have to do is say 'I love to watch TV' 99 times, and you will win!"

Agate looks up at him.

"Am I expected to lie? Is Ralsei expected to lie? We haven't watched TV before."

Tenna looks a bit confused.

"Everyone lies once or twice, right? Especially on TV!"

"...Lying must be okay then. Thank you."

Ralsei looks at Agate, shaking his head, which makes Agate the next one to be confused.

"It's...not?"

"Not usually...there are exceptions!"

"So it is?..."

"Not really, Agate...!"

As they go back and forth about lying and the morality of it, with even Susie joining in, Lanino and Elnina look at each other...then slowly back off. The mooncloud stone just sits in the sand as the battle ends.

Tenna nervously interrupts the debate as soon as the battle, which wasn't really a battle, ends.

"Oh, would you look at that! The last item you need is right here!"

He goes over to the door that needs the keys and stone, which unlocks it. The other color behind, keeping the topic from earlier in mind as a discussion for later. Once they go inside the door and enter a tiny pyramid, which leads to another door. Tenna looks at the three.

"Beyond this door is the PHYSICAL CHALLENGE...Are you all ready?"

♡ Yes

After they answer, the lights temporarily are cut off, then come back on after a few seconds. Susie looks at her own outfit, then everyone else's.

"What the hell?!"

Everyone is in cooking outfits, other than Agate.

"Why aren't they also in one of these?!"

Tenna sighs.

"No offense to Agate, but...they seem like they could burn soup at 3 degrees Fahrenheit." ((About -16 degrees Celsius))

Susie laughs, talking in between breaths and laughter.

"They fall over so much, too! They'd probably mess up at this whole thing!"

Agate looks over at Susie and Tenna, not having the capacity to actually feel offended, just confused...you can burn things at such low temperatures? News to them.

As the whole cooking challenge goes on, Agate sits over to the side. Detailing that would just be exhausting, so, I'll spare myself from that. The overall score for board 1 was S rank, and once they went into the Green Room, Agate glares at Susie...not a choice Roxy made, either.

Roxy saves and goes to eat dinner.

!!! (Agate)
You can talk to Agate!
Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Once Roxy is finally back at their computer, they make Kris go into the S-rank room. After finding a controller, they're able to play a minigame located in the S-rank room; the original version of the game Tenna made them all play.

They control a miniature version of Kris, just like in the modified game, but without Susie, Ralsei, and Agate. They walk around for a while, finding a sword.

"If only I could use this on the fucker who's trying to make Agate turn against me...oh well, I can't harm a disembodied voice."

They walk around, stabbing enemies until they reach level 2, breaking ferns along with killing enemies, then reaching level 3. Admittedly, it is very short, but very fun! Then again, minigames are supposed to be short and fun.

"Damn, these levels go up quick. That's probably intentional, with pacing concerns and all that."

They go to the area with two cacti, chopping them down and entering the room behind it They start killing the enemies in that area, soon reaching maximum level, then leaving and chopping down trees. Once they find the Ice Key, the screen turns off, and it's time to go back to the others.

Kris doesn't see much wrong yet, but the voices haven't really been wrong about events like that, so...there has to be more to it. Maybe Roxy missed it? Or maybe it hasn't come up yet...they wish they knew.

Roxy has Kris return to the others, with Ralsei looking relieved that there's no distress on their face.

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

So, facts! These are probably obvious, or things I've stated before, but I'm working on the new chapter rn. This is an OOC (Out Of Character) chapter.

General:

A lot of this story focuses on the actual characters, other than Roxy, who's both the Player and Narrator. The writer is a different person, though! That's why I use (( )) when OOC in comments. It's the writer talking!

This story was originally made to be a full thing on its own, but I found it to be not enough for me to keep writing it. This was actually in drafts for about a week as a regular story...

After this story ends on chapter 4, this fanfic will end up updating after chapter 5 of Deltarune comes out.

About Roxy:

For one, they're a huge control freak. If anyone noticed, they lash out when they feel like something's being ruined! There's two examples I mainly mean by this. Hopefully you guys read the comments fairly often!

Roxy does care for Agate, though, they've only showed this early on. They see Agate as their child!

Roxy was originally going to be a lot less angry about interferences, but I kinda just didn't like how that version of them would be perceived.

Roxy doesn't always pay attention to what you guys ask others. That's how you guys are able to suggest things that Roxy would usually be against!

Even though they're the narrator too, narrator doesn't like player. I wonder if you guys can figure out why?

About Agate:

Agate has poor motor control and body strength, so weapons are difficult for them to use. Any time they are forced to use the Fight option, they lose their balance and fall over for a few seconds. That's what happens when you give someone with toddler-like strength a heavy sword!

They have very little understanding of most things, especially topics that deal with with autonomy, morality, and math. What does the last one have to do with anything? Nothing, I just projected my minimal understanding of math onto them.

They literally can't stand color or bright lights. The Light World and TV World are hell to them if they aren't wearing the glasses that were made for them.

They do look different in the Light World, what you guys see Agate as (specifically in my profile picture) is just the Dark World version! They look more normal in the Light World.

About this story's Susie:

She is almost exactly like the regular one, but she does have more of a habit of picking on Agate, primarily out of concern. Whether she wants to admit it or not, she's worried Agate could accidentally hurt themselves in battle.

Her and Lancer are closer to adopted siblings than just best friends. In the unseen chapter 1 I wrote for this story, Susie declares that Lancer is her adopted brother. They went back and forth on who is actually adopted...it's still not settled between them.

About this story's Ralsei:

He does know about Roxy, and knows that Agate is an oddity. He has nothing to back this up, but him and Kris both knew something was off whenever Agate came into the picture.

He did know about you guys before he was able to be interacted with. Kinda hard not to know when Susie is yelling at the sky right next to him, y'know?

About this story's Kris:

As pointed out in Ralsei's section, they know Agate isn't supposed to be there. They also know unavoidable areas, for the most part!

They're worried for Agate. Kris isn't sure of how to take Agate's willingness to be controlled, but can't bring it up at the moment.

They wish that they could actively kill Roxy, despite knowing they can't do that. A person can have hopes...

Chapter Text

They find Lancer in front of the door they were gonna go through. Lancer's expression becomes extremely happy, more so than usual.

"Susie! Other people!"

Susie looks pleasantly surprised, being the happiest she has been since she entered TV World.

"Lancer, you actually are here! But, uh...if you're here, aren't you gonna petrify?..."

"Don't worry, I've still got some time! Meanwhile, I got a job at the gaming factory...I got my own gamepad, and I've only broken it 4 times! I've gotta go press buttons for pennies now, see you later!"

Lancer slips though the closed door. How does he even do that? Whatever, it's Lancer, so it's chill. Everyone goes through the same door Lancer went through, but actually having to open the door...sadly.

When they go into the hallway, they hear Tenna. Susie immediately points this out, as she usually does.

"Guys, Tenna is over there, let's go ask him about the next board!"

As she enters where Tenna is, Ralsei looks at Kris and Agate.

"Should we close our eyes and think about how Susie is doing?"

Agate shakes their head, while Kris nods. Ralsei looks a bit nervous.

"Uhm....We...kinda need a decision made...!"

Roxy just giggles, staring at the screen. If a certain few of those voices interrupt their plans every time they're not looking, they'll find a way to watch over everyone who has the potential to disturb things! How will anyone disturb things when they're constantly watching?

And yes, this could be achieved just by selecting "Let's just chill," but, what's the point in doing something that doesn't confuse or scare the target?

They keep making the two select different options, until Susie comes back.

"What were you guys up to?"

Kris - ♡ Talking

"Uh, okay then. Weirdos."

They soon go into the game room after talking a bit more, starting board 2. Tenna immediately starts talking once everyone is on stage.

"Today's episode is brought to you all by our sponsor...the gushing pillar of darkness that gives us all form- DARK FOUNTAIN!! Now available in unsettling obsidian and pulsating rainbow! Now, Mike, the BOARD, please!"

The image behind them changes to a beach, as he keeps talking. Agate wonders if killing this man would cause the betterment of society.

"Today's second, and FINAL board, will be centered on a desert island! For this board's goal, you'll be trying to enter the ATLANTIS STADIUM! Legend has it, the best way there is our RAINBOW BRIDGE, but it only appears if TWO LOVERS meet at LOVER'S CLIFF! Don't forget to take lots of PHOTOS while you're there! Now, we're gonna have some real fun in the sun today, SO DON'T-"

Agate glares at him, doing a "shhh" gesture. Tenna looks intimidated. He doesn't really want to mess with Agate, given what was whispered just shortly before board 1.

"...Alright, let's get started!"

Once they start, Roxy makes them go up into KODAKODA SHRINE, grabbing the camera and walking out. This board is super long...writer has informed me via notes app that they don't want me to cut corners, but you guys already know what happens.

Well, you guys are interacting with Narrator Roxy now, hello, it's me. So, do you guys want me to actually narrate the whole board, or do you guys just want a few details and a summary?

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

HEY. I mean, I do count as Roxy, but I don't like Player Roxy, don't lump me in with them!

Frustrated pressing on backspace can be heard somehow, then rapid typing.

Available to interact: (Player) Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate, (ONLY FOR THIS CHAPTER: Narrator Roxy. Attempts to talk to them in the future will not work.)

Chapter Text

Hey guys, OOC chapter. I've kinda been stressing myself out with constantly writing, so I'm gonna take a break, probably just 2-4 weeks. After that, I'll start posting weekly instead of almost daily.

You guys can still comment, I'll respond, but I need a short break. As I said though, after somewhere in that time period, I'll start writing again.

This fic will continue, but along with stress and exhaustion, I am also having to think about how to balance writing out with my irl life.

I'm happy that you guys enjoy this fanfic, and I'll come back soon!

Chapter Text

I'm back from my break! I'll start writing soon. Again, these are gonna go to once a week chapters, so that I don't burn out so quickly again!

Chapter Text

NEVERMIND I'M SORRY My country is STRESSING ME OUTTTTT just give me another month I'M SORRY 3 I'VE BEEN WANTING TO UPDATE THIS SO BADLY BUT I CAN'T FIND ANY MOTIVATION BC OF CONSTANT STRESS

HERE'S FILLER THOUGH I PROMISE I'M STILL WORKING ON THINGS!!!! This will be some of the contents of the unwritten chapter 1, specifically, Kris's thoughts throughout different areas:

(At school, after finding Susie eating the chalk) : "...Does it really taste that good?"

(Finding Ralsei) : "Okay, he seems nice, I guess."

(Seeing Lancer and Susie at random times) : "I want to play pranks on them both."

(Seeing Jevil) : "Oh, he looks ugly. He seems cool though."

(Seeing the King) : "...THIS is what raised Lancer? Horrible father."

(Seeing how Ralsei looks near the end) : "...Nice and looks cool? He's my friend now."

Okay, that's all, I'm sorry again!!!! I'll do filler occasionally so there's proof that I didn't just abandon this! Hopefully this gives some insight as to how my version of Kris thinks though, maybe it'd be helpful? I don't know how much of this you guys could use though!

Chapter Text

HEY sooo... I'm back! But I MIGHT need help with some ideas for things to do. Basically just regular stuff involving dialogue...so yeah! And don't be afraid to get a little evil with it, those moments are definitely going to happen anyways, so fire away! You can also do comfort or just normal and funny dialogue ideas.

So yeah!!!! Sorry for ditching this for a while. Life fucked around and I had to find out but DAMN it didn't do anything severe. Stress, loss of motivation, etc. I've actually gotten back into Creepypasta, so if anyone wants a fanfic about that, just say what type!

That's all, I'll catch y'all later! (RUNNING AFTER YOU WITH EXTREMELY INTENSE SPEED BTW, 1 MINUTE!!! Also in case this is anyone's fear, I'M NOT ACTUALLY CHASING YOU, I'M JUST SLEEP DEPRIVED. I'm in my bed.)

Chapter Text

After board 2, where nothing particularly new happened, they're all back in the Green Room. Everyone seems exhausted by how long things stretched out, so they're all just taking time to themselves right now. Roxy makes Kris go into the S-rank room again, doing the obvious.

They find the sword once again, going around and making Kris fight multiple enemies. In the middle of playing, however, Agate comes in.

"Sorry, the others were wondering what you were doing...oooh, what's that? Looks like the board we were just on."

The game goes into a cutscene mode, so Roxy can't interact. Kris whispers to Agate, then leaves. Agate looks extremely confused, but just as they are about to leave with Kris, they get more curious. Walking to where Kris was standing when they entered, they start playing the game instead.

The sword changes into a knife, and the character on the screen changes from Kris to the (more) small and pixelated form of Agate used in the boards that were set up. They stare at the screen, slightly wondering how it knows who's playing.

Roxy is finally allowed to interact again, very confused, but continuing on anyway. After killing a few more enemies, they make Agate go to a part of the map with a door, using the Ice Key, then they kill more enemies that were in the areas behind the door.

After reaching the part that says "THE FORBIDDEN PATH BEGAN WITH ICE MAGIC," they go upwards and slice down two orange trees, entering a room that has a mage in a white outfit. After leaving the room, the mage follows. Agate seems a bit jumpy about that, but when seeing the mage isn't attacking at all, they calm down.

Roxy keeps on going, using the mage to freeze enemies and using Agate push the ice crystals onto buttons to go into the next room. Once they get the Shelter Key, and after a very small amount of dialogue, Roxy notices the text changes from what it usually would've been, to just nothing. Maybe it couldn't figure out what to say when Agate took Kris's place?

Well, the game console shuts off, and that's that. Roxy has Agate leave, going back to where everyone else is. Of course, Susie has to be the first one to talk.

"Oh, hey! We were waiting for you for a while. What's so interesting back there?

♡ The amount of dirt

Susie chuckles, unfazed by the absurdity. She does and likes absurd things too, after all.

"I guess we all have our thing! Ralsei, Kris, c'mon!"

Ralsei and Kris, who were just whispering to each other, both go over to Susie and Agate. Well, it's time to continue on....later, at least.

Roxy saves, then exits the game. They have a headache.

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Roxy shut off their computer and is using their phone to blast music so they don't hear the voices arguing.

Available to interact: Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Beep...beep... beep...

...

"Huh?"

Available to interact: Kris, Susie, Raisei, Agate

!!!
Status update!
Berdly is conscious.

Chapter Text

Everyone's still standing in the Green Room at the moment, having been too preoccupied with talking to actually do anything. Kris is given the DevilsKnife by Susie, just temporarily, so Kris can ask Jevil a few questions. The others have been told about the plan ahead of time, so nobody will be surprised.

Kris looks at it, sighing.

"Hey, are you listening, Jevil?"

A hint of a sort of smile appears on the DevilsKnife. That's definitely a yes.

"Okay, great. So, I have two questions. May I ask?"

No sign of objection from it. Assumably, that's a yes, too.

"So, first one...Do you know anything about Agate? We randomly found them in a different Dark World."

Jevil's voice comes from the DevilsKnife.

"UEE-HEE! THAT LITTLE GREY FELLOW?"

A nod from Ralsei, who seems a little nervous.

"Yes, Kris is wondering about them..."

Jevil pauses, probably looking at Agate. He doesn't have eyes in that form, so it's just an assumption.

"THAT ONE IS INDEED STRANGE, STRANGE!"

Agate looks extremely confused.

"Is that an insult...?"

"DEPENDS ON YOUR PERSPECTIVE!"

"Ohh..."

Kris, disregarding that small exchange, decides to press on with the questions.

"What do you mean by 'strange,' Jevil?"

Jevil, ever the confusing one, answers in his typical way. AKA, the way that makes the author wonder if they're doing good enough with his speech. Don't worry writer, your best is good enough. (Yes I'm hyping myself up, don't judge me!)

"THEY DON'T BELONG! NOT AT ALL!"

A pause.

"THAT'S NOT A BAD THING, NOT A BAD THING AT ALL! THEY SIMPLY ARE UNUSUAL, NOT UNWANTED!"

Agate sits down, thinking. Ralsei is about to speak up, but Kris asks the other question.

"Alright, I'd ask what you mean, but the other question might solve that one. So, what's the truth of this world?"

A large smile can be seen very clearly on the DevilsKnife, as if it was waiting for someone to ask that question for a long, long while.

"THE TRUTH? UEE-HEE-HEE! A SPLENDED QUESTION INDEED! THE ANSWER IS-"

Ralsei suddenly flicks the DevilsKnife, more out of worry than anything.

"Aha, uhm, let's not...! Loaded question, right?"

Kris and Susie are about to object, but Ralsei gently nudges Agate, who looks up.

"Oh, uh...maybe? I don't really know much about these types of questions, but also, I don't think it matters too much...I think everyone should be happy that we all just exist!"

Everything goes silent for a solid few seconds, but after that, Kris hands the DevilsKnife back to Susie. It probably knew there'd be tension, given that it hasn't expressed surprise. The first one to talk after that exchange is Susie.

"Well, I guess we should just chill for a little while, right? I mean, I know we have to seal the Dark Fountain, but I'm not sure about how ready I am to eventually deal with Tenna again. So, let's just rest for a few more minutes, 'kay?"

Various sounds of agreement. Everyone sits down, talking or thinking.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Available to interact: Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

!!! (Status update!)
Roxy is no longer overwhelmed, and will be back in the next chapter that is posted.

Chapter Text

Roxy, after finishing their dinner, goes back to their laptop. After quickly typing in the password and opening Deltarune back up, they stare at the screen in surprise. Kris is just about to destroy the ThornRing by using their sword, as they were told to by a voice, but Agate grabs the ring before it can be destroyed. Ralsei sees and just drags Susie out of the room.

Kris, trying to be peaceful, holds out their hand.

"Agate, please give me that back. You've seen the harm it could cause, remember? Back when we were travelling with Noelle?"

"You don't want to help anyone be able to protect themselves, Kris! Doing this just to stop the entity from hurting others is selfish, and you know it!"

"I'm not trying to be selfish, I'm trying to protect others."

"So am I, and this ring is supposed to help others, so don't just destroy it! You're getting rid of something that'll help Noelle protect herself!"

"Agate, you have it wrong. I don't know what you were told, but-"

Agate interrupts, covering Kris's mouth.

"You don't believe in doing what's best. From what I was told, sometimes people need to be hurt so others can get stronger!"

Kris looks at Agate, removing their hand.

"We really need to have a talk about who to trust at some point."

"Nuh-uh."

"Very convincing statement...totally.

Just as the argument was gonna continue, Susie comes in, dragging Ralsei along.

"Guys, I'm getting bored. Can we work on not standing in one place?"

Ralsei just kinda stands there, as Agate and Kris look at each other. Kris nods, and Agate does a thumbs up...while putting the ThornRing in their pocket.

Roxy, despite being a bit confused on how all of this happened while their laptop was off, is proud that Agate stole the ring. That makes things less worrisome.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Roxy goes back to their computer, seeing Agate put the ThornRing in the storage. They make everyone continue on, going to the room that Tenna is currently in to tell him that the next game is the last one. Susie looks up at Tenna, sighing.

"Hey, Tenna-"

Just to be interrupted by the ongoing conversation, specifically Tenna still ranting on.

"What do you mean?! Just make. The airholes. BIGGER! What do you think I'm paying your electricity bill for?! And HOW are they not here yet, the Lightners are gonna get bored! If the purple girl finds out about this, it's all OVER!"

Susie squints in suspicion, speaking louder so Tenna can hear.

"Tenna, what are you talking about?"

"OH, Susie, sweetheart! Hey, what's the matter?"

"...What was with that phone call?"

Tenna jumps, quickly turning to face her.

"Oh, that! I can't believe you, uh, heard! We were just, uh, planning a SPECIAL SURPRISE GAME for you! You didn't hear what it was, right?"

She debates on saying something, but just looks away."

"No, uhm...I gotta go, actually."

And with that, they all walk out, stopping in the hallway while Susie talks.

"Man, I hate nothing more than people who don't tell others the whole deal..."

Ralsei stifles the urge to look at Kris and Agate after that statement.

"You mean Tenna?..."

"Yeah. I dunno what, but...he's hiding something, for sure. Let's go take a look around."

Once the conversation ends, Roxy makes them go to the door with a Zapper in front of it, initiating a fight with it. Of course, it just gets beaten up, then the battle ends. They soon go through the door after the Zapper is defeated.

Susie looks around, seeing how different the space looks from everywhere else.

"Where the heck is this?...It's kinda cold."

Everyone just continues on, with Roxy having Kris enter the door codes in the next rooms. Once they're outside, they find Toriel in a gacha ball. She's asleep, it seems. Just as she was found, they heard Tenna's voice, so they hid behind the gacha ball...until it was lifted up.

They're on stage after a moment, with Tenna continuing on with the boards.

"WELCOME BACK to another episode of TV TIME!"

Ralsei looks up at him, startled.

"Hold on a second..."

Ignored.

"Today's board will take place in the beautiful TV CITY! Collect two Q's from each corner of the CITY, and-"

Susie slams on the podium, shouting.

"ENOUGH ALREADY! The game is over. Give Toriel back and let us go home, now."

Ralsei joins in.

"Mr. Tenna, I'm not sure what your plan is, but, we'd like to go seal the Dark Fountain. I think...the show stretched out a little too long, and it's gotten old."

Tenna stays frozen in place for a few moments, talking in a tone that's a mixture of flat and shocked.

"...Old."

"Sorry, it's just-"

"Haha, no, Ralsei! It's fine, I get it! Look, I really do! CLASSIC TV...sometimes just needs TIME to appreciate! So, how about this? We'll just keep playing...until you LIKE IT."

The four of them get stuck in gacha balls, with Susie immediately protesting.

"H-hey, what the hell are-"

"GAME OVER!? THE GAME's never OVER!!! And if YOU don't wanna play anymore...then it's time for ME to take control! MIKE, crank it all up to MAX!"

This part is long, so I'm going to summarize it. Essentially, there are a whole bunch of quizzes and fights, until a Zapper shows up during one battle and enough TP is gathered to press the "turn off" option in the ACT menu, since there's no FIGHT option on that part.

After it's done, they are free from the gacha balls, continuing on their way...but, there's another long part...so, I'm just gonna summarize that, too. So, after a bit of running around and multiple shenanigans, they're back in the Green Room. It's empty, and the atmosphere is tense.

Roxy saves, walking away from the computer again. What? They're very busy!...No they're not. They have no life.

Kris and Agate look at each other, trying to see what the other will do. As you can imagine, they aren't able to figure out much from that when they're both standing in place.

---------------------------------------------------------

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Well, it's 8 AM on a Monday. Nobody's doing anything serious because...Alphys is late to teach her own class. Really is a shame, she seems to be missing out on the ton of confetti on the ground. Why is that there? Well, SOMEONE (Kris and Susie) brought a lot of it and started throwing it at each other, but missed a few times, getting it everywhere.

Everyone else is hiding under their desks, trying to avoid the confetti war that had started. Roxy occasionally gathered pieces of purple confetti, Lancer was cheering on Susie, Noelle is looking amused and nervous at the same time, and most others are either shocked or laughing, even joining in once they gathered up enough confetti.

Agate is, unsurprisingly, not doing either. While confetti sometimes lands on them, they're using some stickers to decorate the whole classroom. Don't ask where they got the stickers from, nobody knows.

Ralsei is currently watching everything, making sure nothing gets out of hand, with Dess yelling advice to Kris.

"Kris, your arm is leaning too much to the left, you'll end up hitti-"

It hits Dess. She stands there, shocked, but grins soon after

"Oh, it's on!"

She rushes to get a box of pencil shavings she has saved (supposed to be for an arts and crafts project, don't question it) and balls it up, throwing it at Kris's shoulder. Agate sees this, quickly stealing some of the confetti off the ground and throwing it at Dess, with Roxy and Lancer joining in.

It's only around 12 PM that people notice how exhausted they are, slowing down. At that point, Alphys had already walked in, but just decided to let everyone do their own thing. After all, the time for the lesson was already cut short, so why not just make it a free day?

---------------------------------------------------------

Available to interact: Everyone (In filler chapters only)

(Class is still going on, feel free to do y'all's own thing here! Remember, the story logic I've set up barely applies in filler chapters now!)

Chapter Text

Roxy walks back to their computer, making Kris go into the S-rank room, with Agate following behind on their own out of curiosity. After talking to Ramb, who is turning to stone, they both head into the console room. Once Kris picks up the controller and plays, Agate decides to stand nearby and watch.

Kris's character is followed by Susie and Ralsei's, with Agate's following just slightly off path from where Kris walks. After finding the sword, Roxy tries to make Kris attack Ralsei and Susie's characters, as it works that way in the original version...but, it seems it doesn't work like that in this altered version. They pause, trying to move Kris's character move around, but it makes Kris themself move.

"Ohh...I get it now. Okay, good to know."

Roxy makes Kris hand the controller over to Agate, even if their steps are hesitant. Agate takes the controller, noticing a hint of fear and anger in Kris's eyes, but disregarding it. They go over to the console, with the character that moves being Agate's instead of Kris's. They make their character walk closer to the other three, killing Susie and Ralsei's, then handing the controller back to Kris.

After Kris checks to make sure that the two weren't in the doorway to see that, they go back to playing.

Skip ahead a few minutes, and there's a version of the Shelter. The Shelter Key was used, and once they enter, it's abnormally dark around them. Someone starts talking to Kris.

"Kria...oh, Kris...Is it fun, Kris? Playing around like this...that's why you're searching for the shadow crystals, right? And...the Shadow Mantle that I'm holding! Do you honestly think it'll get you what you want?...No, part of you is just...enjoying this, isn't it? The same part that enjoyed yesterday, knowing you could say that it wasn't really you. Oh, don't make that sour face. I can see in the dark, you know! But, the question is...can you?"

The screen brightens just enough to see the map in the game, which is a closed off room with a weird creature, named Eram, in the middle of the room. A battle starts, and in summary, Roxy lost about 3 times before actually being able to win. Once they win, Eram talks again.

"There, that's what I wanted to see! Flickering red, like pretty little flames. Your eyes can't hide it, Kris. Without play...the knife grows dull. Haha...well, enough of all that, we both have work to do! If you want this Mantle, hurry up and take it...if you can reach it!"

A path at the top of the room opens up, and after going where it leads, there's a red chest above where Kris's character now stands. Roxy makes it move to the side, somehow coming out from the screen, startling Kris and confusing Agate. They both back away from it, with Kris immediately dropping the controller. Roxy makes it swing at them, which makes Kris fall over...while Agate kicks it away in fear. Where did it go after that? Who knows? Not any of them.

After getting the Shadow Mantle, Susie comes into the room.

"Hey, Kris!..What the hell are you doing?"

Susie looks at the screen.

"Being a tryhard, Kris? You seriously enjoy this?"

♡ Of course. Games are fun.

Susie just shrugs at that, then looks at Agate.

"And what are you doing?"

"...Emotional support?"

"Uh...I guess that works. Well, anyways. I stole a couple of drinks. Stop making me and Ralsei wait around already."

After placing two down, Susie leaves the room. Roxy equips Shadow Mantle onto Agate, then makes the two go back to the Green Room.

You'll never guess what Roxy does next. Yep, they leave for a little while. Why? To pet their cats and refill the food and water bowls.

---------------------------------------------------------

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Ralsei is unavailable due to stress...well, more stress than he usually has, lol.

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Agate

Chapter Text

After the others helped calm Ralsei down, which luckily didn't take too much effort, Roxy comes back from taking care of their cats..and drinking lime juice. They sit down, making the others go out to where Tenna is. Just after Ralsei points out where the Dark Fountain is, Tenna suddenly appears.

"No, no, no!!! WHAT are you doing?! WHERE are you going?! There are still games to play!! Shows to watch!! Just wander back to your seats, and we can..."

Susie swings her axe at Tenna, startling mostly everyone. Agate actually seems kind of bummed out by Tenna not dying on the spot. Anyways, Susie glares at him, raising her voice.

"Enough of your dumb games! Why the hell do you want us to play so bad, anyways?!"

Tenna lowers his head.

"Kris...they know why. Kris, do you remember? When everyone came over for the holidays?"

He pauses for a moment.

"Back when I was just a little old TV, everyone used to gather around me to watch the specials, smiling. Laughing. Eating butterscotch pie. Wasn't that so much fun? But...people stopped coming, one by one. Nobody wanted to watch TV or play games anymore. I've been alone...until now. When the Roaring Knight appeared, I was told that if I keep you all busy, I'd have as many people watch me as I want."

Agate does a small glance at Kris, who shrugs in response, while Tenna keeps talking.

"I've been having so much fun with you all, and I just don't want it to end! So, please, just say it with me...IT'S T.V. TIME!!"

Susie runs over to Tenna, deeply annoyed.

"Enough already!!"

She swings her axe at him again, only for him to duck.

"H-hey, what are you doing?! I just had this suit DE-AXED!!"

"We're done messing around. Give back Toriel, now."

"Alright. I get it. I GET IT! I REALLY get it! I've been doing too much...TALKING!! No more questions! What you need...is another PHYSICAL CHALLENGE!!"

A battle starts, and while mostly everyone fights, Agate sneaks off. They get the ThornRing out of Storage, putting it in their pocket, then running back to the others. Not much to really say about this, so, the battle ends soon after. Tenna shrinks, looking at the ground.

"I just wanted you to look at me, one last time....Since a little while ago, all I've been broadcasting is the same reruns on repeat. I don't have anything anyone wants to watch anymore. I'm irrelevant junk, but I don't want to be thrown away..."

Ralsei speaks up, frowning.

"Mr. Tenna...I understand how you feel. Wanting to be important...and useful. You may not be watched much anymore, but, it doesn't make you a failure! You've brought smiles to Lightner's lives...to Kris's friends and family, for so long! There's nothing to be ashamed of if that ever comes to an end. After all, all of us Darkners become obsolete eventually."

Ralsei sighs, trying to regulate his emotions while speaking.

"We aren't real, Tenna. We shouldn't make Lightners worry about what'll happen to us. It'd just...make them unhappy."

Tenna shrinks more. Really putting the "Ant" in "Mr. Ant Tenna," isn't he? (I am SO SORRY. Kinda.)

"..Maybe you're right...But, I..."

Susie interrupts, going beside Ralsei.

"You wanna know what I think?"

She walks up to Tenna, partially focused on something else.

"I think that you don't have to be thrown away. Let me tell you something...I've never been able to make friends. I was always the scary girl, or the bad kid. The only times people have ever gotten close to me, were as a joke. Even when I did start to make real friends...I'd always end up moving away. When I moved here, I thought it'd be the same situation. I felt like you. One day, Toriel saw me. I was crying on the bench in the graveyard...She asked me what was wrong and...told me everything was going to be okay."

She smiled a bit, more genuinely than some other times.

"She took me to the diner nearby and talked to me. She told me I'd make friends, and...that gave me hope, even if it was just a small bit of it. And, recently, that hope's been growing, because I have friends now. Friends I want to keep. I thought I was broken, but I just needed to find the right friends...y'know? So, don't worry dude. Someone out there wants you. I promise. Kris, you'll help me ask around, right? Someone's gotta want a TV."

Kris nods. Tenna lifts his head up, excited.

"You'll..actually help me?! Susie, you're incredible! You're AMAZING!! MARVELOUS!!"

He grows back to his normal size, absolutely ecstatic. While he goes on with his rant, Kris goes to find the ThornRing in Storage, just for it to be gone. They wonder if they somehow still had it in their pocket, but, they didn't. They rush back to the others, arriving just in time to see Tenna's arms get sliced off. Susie and Ralsei jump, while Kris and Agate have different levels of visibly expecting this. Susie sees someone in the distance, pointing at them.

"Who...who the hell are you?! If you don't tell us who you are, then..."

The person who she was pointing at, The Roaring Knight, turns around. It seems like it's crying at first, then tries to take Toriel...just for Susie to intervene.

"Oh, like hell we're letting you take her!"

It turns into a ball shape, flying slightly farther away before doing something which I don't have the words to describe, and then summoning a bat and turning it into some sort of sword. It tries to do a cutscene in battle, but it cancels out due to Agate starting one by dragging Kris out of the battle, making the Knight very slightly distracted. Roxy, who's basically been just sitting there, just stares at the screen for a moment.

Ralsei, Susie, and The Knight all just look at the two as some sort of silent debate breaks out. Agate shows Kris's own phone, which they'd apparently gotten while Kris was distracted, while Kris glares and mouths something which can't be understood from the angle that they're doing it at. Agate takes a moment to understand what's being said, but when they figure it out, they look very offended.

This goes on for a few moments, until Susie decides to just act on impulse and attack The Knight. As she does, it quickly blocks with it's sword, with them both struggling until a piece breaks off of the sword. The Knight turns back into a floating ball while Susie laughs mockingly.

"Not so tough NOW, are you?!"

Just as she says that, she gets swooned, with Ralsei being the next one to be swooned. Agate stares at The Knight, confused.

"Hey, why'd you do that? Seems kinda rude-"

Swooned. The Knight goes over to Kris, doing a motion similar to when someone is knighted, before Kris acts like they've been swooned too.

Count how many times I said "swooned" in this chapter, just for fun. In fact, take a shot for every time I say it. Only if you're legally old enough to, though. I do not encourage underage drinking.

Anyways, skip ahead a little, and Undyne was taken to the Shelter. Roxy has already equipped the BlackShard onto Agate, as well as picked up the Shadow Crystal. Kris and Susie are outside of the Shelter, with Agate slowly following behind after making sure Ralsei was alright. Since it's nighttime, they take off the glasses they've been wearing.

"...So...what do you guys plan to do?"

Susie sighs, walking away.

"We should seal the Dark Fountain. There's not much else we can do right now..."

Agate nods, pulling Kris along as they follow Susie. Roxy closes their laptop and jumps over to their bed, going to sleep...at least, they really hope they can sleep.

---------------------------------------------------------

Available to interact: Roxy, Kris, Susie, Ralsei, Agate

Chapter Text

Hey, so, there will be a bit longer of a delay until the next chapter is posted. I've been really tired and having to take melatonin just to get a decent amount of rest, and I don't want the (already really bad) quality of this fic to decrease just because I'm working myself to exhaustion.

This doesn't mean I'm really taking a break, just that the next chapter will be delayed. I'll probably have it posted around the 10th or somewhere close to that. I'll respond to comments still, so don't worry about that part.

When I actually start writing chapter 4 scenes, there will be much more of a delay in order to get the intensity of some scenes to have the affect that I want them to. As I said earlier though, I'll still be responding to comments, so feel free to still do that.

No idea how to end this, so uhhhh....I'll talk to y'all later or something??? Wow how did I ever manage this. Okay for real now, cya.

Chapter Text

I've started writing the chapter, but I've been having trouble with writing things exactly how I want them to be. I'll post within two or three weeks though, I swear.

I am really sorry for the delays! The basic parts of the chapter are set up, I just need to get everything else to sound decent without it being too long or too short.