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pidayforpi · 1 month

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So...there is this UNDERTALE story idea I have here...

Yes. You heard right. UNDERTALE.

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Okay.

I actually never thought I would have the chance to share this to...virtually anyone.

And by "never", I really mean it.

When I came up with this idea, I had prepared to die without anyone else knowing this madness I have in my head (to be honest I still have a lot of crazy stuff in my mind that I am not sure if I will ever share with anyone).

But...uh...now that I am (technically) involved in fandoms, and have already spread my cringe, even in completed story forms, I think...maybe I will share this one as well...

(Sequence of discussion: Creation Background → Story Settings → Plot → Explanation)

[Also spoilers for Undertale, if you haven't played/watched the game yet. Like, total spoilers.]

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Background

Back in 2015/2016, I was a...rather big Undertale fanboi.

Also I was a kid. Put two and two together you get a really cringy fanboi kid.

To be honest, Undertale really had taken my heart for a while. I remember I started playing the game in autumn 2015, and I was quite literally captivated by it. I actually played the demo first in October, and then later went on to play the full game in November.

I can't pinpoint what attracted me the most, or what attracted me at all. I still can't. Perhaps it was the music? I bought the soundtrack as well, and I think the songs are something I still love to this day.

But without a doubt, Undertale had truly given me many happy memories, especially that winter.

I first beat the pacifist neutral ending (which is my favourite), and then the true pacifist ending (pacifist neutral is a prerequisite for the true ending for a first playthrough anyway, iirc).

I specifically remember that I beat the true pacifist ending on 24 Jan 2016 (Sun). I specifically remember that because that day was also an exceptionally cold day for my old home (around 3°C, which is very uncommon for there).

I would say Undertale made that day extra special for me.

("Screenshot" I took of the true pacifist ending, on my old laptop. [24 Jan 2016])

I left the game alone for some time, before deciding to try the genocide ending in February. And no, it was nothing personal.

It was just a usual routine of me when playing RPGs: I try to see all the endings that the game provides, whether they be good ones or bad ones. I want to see them all. I want to see all the content the game has.

And...knowing how bad I am with video games...I got stuck at Sans.

And I have never touched the game since then. (also don't ask me what "aslan" means I am too embarrassed to explain)

Seriously, it wasn't even rage quit. Sans is literally impossible for my pathetic gaming skill. I am still surprised I somehow cleared Undyne.

I did, however, watch the rest of the genocide route past Sans.

...and I am glad I gave up.

Now, I am not here to give a review of Undertale. Long story short of my feelings towards Undertale: Subjectively, it did give me wonderful memories, and become a significant symbol of a period in my life; Objectively, it's okay.

Even after putting the game away (to this day), I did think a lot about Undertale for the first quarter of 2016 (before something else occupied my mind for an even longer period of time, and affected me much deeper). Now that I think about it, Undertale might be my very first fandom.

And being young and new to fandoms...I did some stuff that I didn't even know were "fandom stuff" (relax those were all normal stuff): Fan art browsing, fan fic reading, comic dub watching, fan animation viewing (Seriously, some Undertale animations were SICK)...

Back then, I didn't think of producing something (i.e. writing a story) for a fandom. Probably because I didn't have time/talent/determination, or simply because my interests shifted too fast (my interests started to become stable only since Disney Ducks).

One thing edgy, cringy young me did sort of "produce", was a story idea.

And before you ask, no. I am never putting it on paper. Because of multiple reasons, and it being too edgy is not one of them actually (otherwise I wouldn't be sharing it).

First and most importantly, I am no longer in the Undertale fandom. I know what it is, but I am no longer interested to the point of producing something for it.

Secondly...well, you see...The reason why I say "story" idea instead of "fic" idea is because...it isn't a fic idea actually.

When I daydreamed about the idea, I actually imagined it being played out like an anime (told you I was cringy). Technically I could write the idea out in a story format, but it would be very hard to convey the plot and the message. And no way am I ever animating/drawing it out.

But I actually like the idea, so that's why I am writing this down in a descriptive format.

To be honest, I don't know how young me thought of such a "woke" message for a story. I am not sure if there was any "post-production" tinkering to the idea, because it seems too advanced for kid me. At least, the story plot is (mostly) unchanged, that's for sure (because I really had written it down in 2016, albeit a very simple version).

What struck me the most about Undertale was the concept of "morality" (again, I have quite something to talk about this one, but this is not a review).

One thing I noticed was the hypersensitivity of morality when it comes to you, and you only.

That monsters can kill you infinite amount of time without any guilt, but you immediately become a total trash person for killing just one monster. Gameplay wise, you are immediately locked out of the true, "good" ending of the game if you dare kill one soul. In the neutral "phone call" endings, characters literally feel betrayed/heartbroken/furious when you kill just one random monster, and even more so if it is a named NPC.

But no one mentions the fact that it is the monsters who initiate aggression, and attempt murder.

It is as if the concept of "self-defence" is unheard of to monsters.

Or, it is unheard of to monsters only when it is applied to you. Monsters can self-defend alright.

As a player sitting in front of a computer, it is easy to just "spare" everyone, as the game is "intended" to be played. Sparing or attacking is literally just a difference of a button. It isn't a hard decision at all, even sparing monsters.

But think about Frisk: A literal child. Alone. Stranded in an unfamiliar, dangerous territory. Lost in hostile terrains. Surrounded by actual, literal monsters who want to literally kill you and take your soul. Also their ultimate goal being invading your homeland.

Even the seemingly "most friendly" monster is a skeleton boi who literally proclaims he is going to send you to the guillotine just so he can get a promotion.

How would Frisk feel? What would he do? I have heard about "fight or flight", but "spare"? Would "spare" even be an option to him? Could he even comprehend "spare" in his situation?

And somehow, the burden of morality has fallen on the shoulders of this distraught, desperate child.

Notice how it is always Frisk sparing monsters, but never monsters sparing Frisk? Think about how bizarre that sounds: A child sparing a monster? A prey sparing a predator?

Killing with kindness is good, but sometimes it is too good to be true.

Especially, when there are people who don't understand you, who don't want to understand you...or who want to take advantage of your kindness.

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[Okay. Now we get to the actual story components. Just a heads-up: In general, the story is dark, violent, somewhat depressing, very edgy. And I am also going to make some characters you love look bad. Like, real bad.

Also certain characterisations/plot points may be altered for the sake of storytelling and message delivery. And it has been 8 years. Please don't challenge me on lore-friendliness orz]

Settings

These are the story settings I have as background/world-building. Kind of like a "list of headcanons used".

→ The story is essentially a retelling, alternative universe of the genocide route.

→ Frisk enters the monster world by accident.

→ Frisk actually has very powerful supernatural abilities. His weapon is a wooden stick (the default weapon in-game). I imagine his main ability taking form as psychokinesis (after a character I am also too embarrassed to explain), the magnitude of which is much more powerful than Sans'.

→ Another ability of Frisk is his "Determination", which allows him to revive infinitely as long as he is determined. Therefore, he essentially can't die how many times he is killed, as he will be resurrected in a nearby place afterwards (a reference to "reloading" after a game over). This "Determination" ability is also what prevents Frisk's soul from being taken when he dies. Frisk does, however, retain memories of his "past lives", and can feel pain. This "samsara" can also end if Frisk is no longer determined. When that happens, Frisk's soul can be taken, and he will truly die. What Frisk is determined about in this story is leaving the Underground alive. (When Chara is in control, what he is determined about is protecting Frisk.)

→ Since an early point in the story, Chara appears alongside Frisk. Chara is (sort of) a ghost, and shares Frisk's body with Frisk. Chara's weapon is a knife. He is very skilled in physical combat, and does most of the fighting in the story. However, when compared to Frisk's power, Chara definitely cannot compete.

→ Some rules apply in this "shared body" situation:

☆ Only one person can control the body at one time. "Wrestling" for control will lead to the stronger one gaining control.

☆ When the person is in control, the body will shift to that person's appearance. Since Frisk and Chara look very similar, the main difference is the shirt colour. The weapon will also shift to the corresponding one (stick for Frisk, knife for Chara).

☆ Only the person in control can actively control the body's physical movements. In return, only the person in control will feel pain inflicted to the body.

☆ Abilities are also exclusive to the person. It means that even when Chara is in control of the body, he cannot use Frisk's psychokinesis ability.

☆ The only shared ability is the "Determination" reviving ability. It means that no matter who is in control of the body when it dies, the body (and Frisk and Chara) will always be revived.

☆ The person not in control cannot influence the body's actions (unless he is strong enough to overcome and gain control of the body), but he can still see and hear what is going on.

→ Frisk here cannot reset the timeline whenever he likes (otherwise he would do that in a heartbeat), because his soul is not powerful enough. Only a strong enough soul, possible only by absorbing other souls, can reset the timeline.

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Plot

(This is the "raw" plot of the story. Explanations and themes are in the next section. Some plot points/details may seem weird, but they will be explained in the next section.)

Frisk, a child, falls into the Underground (monster world) accidentally.

Alone, hurt, cold and scared, Frisk wanders around the entrance of the Underground, trying to escape via where he came from, without success (the "boundary" between the human and monster worlds exists in both the entrance and exit. Not even Frisk can break through with his powers).

Frisk cowers in fear and despair on a flower bed, crying alone until a sentient flower suddenly emerges. Flowey introduces himself with that fake friendliness, to which the desperate Frisk really believes. Shortly afterwards, however, Flowey breaks that trust and attacks Frisk, who then runs away even more terrified, while Flowey laughs and states that he will continue watching Frisk from the sides.

This time, Frisk does not meet Toriel immediately. In fact, Frisk does not meet Toriel until after a long time in the Ruins. During that time, Frisk wanders around the Ruins aimlessly, still searching for a way out.

Shortly after running into the Ruins, Frisk has his first monster encounter. Monsters here literally want to hunt down Frisk and take his soul. Frisk tries asking for help, or "talking it out", but monsters either are too mindless to understand, or simply don't care. Although Frisk is powerful (he knows he is powerful too), the gentle human child does not want to hurt anyone. The only option he has is to keep running away from monsters.

However, trapped in a monster-ridden dungeon, there is really no place to run. Frisk is soon cornered, injured...and when the damages accumulate to maximum, his body succumbs, and Frisk dies for the first time.

Frisk is surprised to find himself awaken in another part of the Ruins, as if nothing has happened. The damages are all healed, his clothes and stick are still there with him. It is as if Frisk has had a dream.

However, as the process inevitably repeats, Frisk dies again, and again...He soon realises it is not a dream. He really died, and somehow lives again.

Trapped in this endless loop, Frisk starts to lose hope, but he never loses his kindness. He will still run away from monsters; and, when he can't, he will just let himself get killed and revive later.

He doesn't need food or water to live too. Even when the monsters don't get him soon enough, so that the hunger and thirst kill him first, Frisk will just revive feeling okay. The pain of getting attacked or starving is still there, and it hurts like hell, but Frisk is starting to get used to it. After all, there doesn't seem to be a way out.

Until after who knows how long, a once again dying Frisk is found by Toriel in the Ruins. Toriel expresses pity, and brings Frisk to her home. For the first time since falling into the Underground, Frisk experiences love and kindness, and breaks down in front of Toriel. Toriel promises to take care of Frisk as if he was her actual child.

Frisk is finally happy and safe after uncountable time of torment. These happy days go on for some time, with Toriel really fulfilling her promise. She really takes good care of Frisk, provides a home for him, and protects him from danger.

However, at some point, Frisk asks Toriel about how he can leave the Underground and go back to the human world. At first, Toriel feigns ignorance, brushes it off, or otherwise ignores his questions. When Frisk keeps pressing the issue, Toriel angrily warns that he is not going anywhere, before quickly reverting to her "gentle" demeanour, saying something like "mother knows best" and "there are dangers outside, I am just trying to keep you safe".

After that exchange, Frisk decides not to bring up that topic, but instead secretly searches for a way out. He thinks Toriel is nice, and the home is safe, but he really wants to go back to his own world. He couldn't possibly stay in the Ruins forever, could he?

Eventually, Frisk discovers the exit of the Ruins, located in the basement of Toriel's home. Toriel finds out, and, expectedly, is furious. She reiterates that she just wants the best for Frisk, really treats Frisk like her own son, etc.

Frisk thanks Toriel for her kindness. He really means it, for Toriel is the first person to show him compassion since he was stranded in the Underground. However, Frisk, although scared and somewhat guilty, insists that he wants to leave and go back to his actual home.

Toriel isn't having any of that. Seeing that the easy way isn't working, she forces Frisk to fight her, as Frisk "needs to prove that he is strong enough to survive on his own". Of course Frisk is unwilling, but Toriel still insists.

This conflict is locked in a stalemate for some time: With Toriel pretending to attack Frisk, actually attacking and hurting Frisk, and then crying and showing guilt and the "look what you've made me done" expression. Frisk, on the other hand, is 200% unwilling to hurt Toriel, and only keeps dodging or withstanding.

At the end, Frisk starts to really believe Toriel is thinking for his good. Combined with the fear of the outside world, and the despair that he may actually never go home, Frisk is about to give in.

When suddenly, Frisk feels that he has blacked out and lost control of his body. When Frisk comes back to his senses, he finds out his wooden stick is now somehow a knife, and is stabbed into Toriel.

Frisk cries, and tries to remove the knife. However, he finds out that his voice isn't going out, and he can't move his body. The knife is only plunged deeper, as Frisk can't do anything but watches in confusion and fear.

Toriel is visibly shocked, and even more shocked when she looks at "Frisk's" face, as if she recognises him but as another person.

At her last moment, Toriel still says that she just wants to keep "you" safe, and "mother knows best". She wishes "you" all the best, before saying goodbye to "you, Chara".

When Frisk finally regains control, Toriel is dead on the ground (and fading, because monster). The knife has returned to a wooden stick, but it is bloodstained.

Before Frisk can comprehend what is going on or even break down, he hears another person calling his name. It is a boy's voice, but when he looks around, there is no one there. Frisk hears it again, and he starts to "see" the person.

The boy introduces himself as Chara, a child looking just like Frisk, but with a different shirt pattern and a knife in his hand. Chara looks transparent, and Frisk can't really "touch" him. Chara explains that he is a human child spirit roaming the Underground. He is the person who took control of Frisk's body, and killed Toriel "for him".

When confronted by a devastated Frisk, Chara calmly states he is trying to save him. Frisk scolds Chara for killing Toriel when "she just wants to protect me", to which Chara rebuts, saying "I am the one who wants to protect you". He wants to say something about Toriel, but seeing Frisk's heartbroken expression, he decides not to. Instead, Chara asks rhetorically if Frisk wants to stay in the Underground forever. Frisk pauses, as he wonders if there really is no way of escaping without killing Toriel. Chara states that he has seen several human children meeting their ends in different parts of the Underground, and Toriel is just one of the obstacles. This time, however, Chara is strong enough to intervene and saves Frisk.

Chara then promises he will protect Frisk from now on, before leaving the Ruins together with him. Seeing Frisk still grieving and distraught, Chara vows to himself that he won't let anything or anyone hurt Frisk anymore, physically and mentally. He will do anything to protect Frisk's innocence, even if it means doing all the dirty works himself.

The following story is as linear as it gets (or I haven't thought it through). Chara leads Frisk to navigate to the Underground exit, in the same route as it is in-game.

When there are monsters in their way, Chara will take over and exterminate the threats for Frisk, so that Frisk won't get his hands dirty or get hurt. At first, Frisk still tries to talk it out and/or run away, and Chara lets him try that. But when communication isn't an option and/or there is no place to run, Frisk will despair, allowing Chara to take over and fight their way out. Eventually, Frisk loses hope in doing things the pacifist way, letting Chara engage in combat when there are monsters picking a fight. However, unlike the in-game genocide route, they don't actively seek out monsters to kill (because they have no reason to. No one has a reason to, to be honest).

Outside of combat, Frisk is mostly in control, and the two boys can communicate with each other. Over time, Chara explains to Frisk most of the background/settings of the story (e.g. what are discussed in the previous section), such as how his "Determination" ability works, the monsters' plan to get to the human world, Chara's own backstory (which is the same as it is in-game. Chara has been wandering the Underground since his (and Asriel's) death), etc.

The named characters they meet are mostly the same. In this story, I only highlight some characters of interest. Mini bosses (e.g. Muffet), side characters (e.g. Monster Kid), and a few "bosses" (e.g. Mettaton, Alphys) are omitted.

Below I will list only those characters of interest, and Frisk/Chara's encounter with them. The significance of each of these characters will be discussed in the next section.

Papyrus and (technically) Sans are the first characters Frisk meets.

Sans is very elusive at this point, almost like a background character. He only observes Frisk from behind Papyrus, but the story makes it obvious that Sans is not a simple person, and is very interested in Frisk (but not Chara). It is also implied that Sans knows there are two people in Frisk's body, as well as Frisk's hidden abilities, showing Sans' extraordinary perception and potential powers.

(It's very hard to describe these "animation effects" in words. In short is that Sans does nothing apparently, but is heavily hinted to be important/powerful later on. Also his interest in Frisk (and Frisk alone) is shown, and is a significant plot point. You will see why later on.)

Papyrus does what he does in-game, trying to "arrest" Frisk as part of his "duty" as a royal guard. At first, when they are still in the snowy wilderness, Frisk tries to ignore him (and Sans), as Papyrus isn't really much of a threat (and is doing a very bad job at "stopping" Frisk). This frustrates Papyrus (in a comical way. Papyrus is the only comical/lighthearted character here).

These "Papyrus encounters" repeat for a few times. Chara refrains from attacking immediately, as Papyrus is annoying but pretty harmless. Especially when Sans is also present, as Chara senses that Sans is not as simple as he seems. Chara just (tells Frisk to) ignores Papyrus' traps and stuff, and eventually arrives at Snowdin Town.

It is at there when Papyrus shows up alone, and really tries to stop Frisk. Papyrus is convinced that Frisk is an evil/dangerous individual, even though his only evidence are the words of Undyne and general propaganda on humans. He "ensures" that Undyne is a friendly person, and all they are going to do with Frisk is to send him back to his own world. Chara tells Frisk that both of which are false: Undyne will kill him without question and harvest his soul for Asgore (but Papyrus really believes what he is saying). Papyrus rambles on about how being a royal guard means "fighting injustice" and "helping the weak", further showing his ignorance.

Still refraining from attacking, Chara allows Frisk to try to talk it out (because even Chara hesitates on outright killing Papyrus). Frisk takes over, and explains to Papyrus his situation. Papyrus, of course, doesn't believe Frisk at first. However, this rejection once again triggers Frisk's hopelessness, leading him to cry.

Seeing Frisk's pitiful expression, Papyrus softens. He comes over to comfort Frisk, and listens to his pleads once more. After Frisk settles down, Papyrus decides to believe in what Frisk says (showing how gullible he is, although Frisk is telling the truth). Papyrus then begins to lead Frisk to the Waterfall.

When Frisk (and Chara) thinks he can finally settle a conflict in peace for once, Papyrus says that he will bring Frisk to Undyne to ask for help (because she is his "superior"), and that "Undyne will definitely understand". Papyrus keeps reassuring Frisk that there is nothing to worry about, and how things will go smoothly for Frisk (in an unrealistic way, such as allowing Frisk to cross the barrier when it is technically impossible to do so).

Frisk stops in his tracks, realising Papyrus still doesn't understand the whole situation, and is leading him to his death (albeit unknowingly). In fact, Papyrus will never understand. Frisk's willpower plunges, as despair fills his heart once more. Subconsciously, Frisk allows Chara to take control. Chara, knowing that Papyrus will never change his mind and never let Frisk go (also evidenced from Chara's previous witnesses of Papyrus' encounters with other human children), makes a hard decision.

In a swift attack, Chara swings his knife at Papyrus.

The next boss they encounter is Undyne, at the end of the Waterfall. Undyne is, as Chara described, hellbent on destroying Frisk at all cost. This is partly due to Undyne knowing Frisk (Chara) has killed monsters before (without knowing the context, nor does she want to know the context), partly due to wanting Frisk's soul for Asgore's plan, and partly due her ultimate (blind) hatred for human beings.

Frisk doesn't even have the chance to explain this time (nor does he want to, at this point). Frisk quickly lets Chara take control and fight Undyne.

Undyne's battle is the first tough one they encounter (reference to the in-game boss fight). Chara has a hard time facing Undyne, especially after she has "powered up". He even dies (and revives) a few times, but he insists on being in control and doing the fighting himself.

Undyne notices Frisk (Chara) reviving as well. Although taken aback at first, she quickly remembers that previous human children had displayed this "Determination" ability before. She then states that she just has to fight harder, and strike Frisk down how many times it is required to completely kill him.

Undyne's insults towards Frisk anger Chara. He stands up for Frisk, saying that he is just a lost child wanting to go home. He has explained and sought help numerous times, but the monsters just won't listen to him. Instead, they treat him like nothing, or worse than nothing. They keep ignoring, attacking and taking advantage of him. Now pushed against a corner, Frisk is only attacking in self-defence. He just wants to survive and see the light of day again, and somehow this makes him the villain? What is so wrong about it?

Undyne actually didn't know that Frisk is in the Underground because he got lost, or that Frisk is attacking monsters because monsters attack him first. Actually, she didn't know anything about Frisk in the first place (not that she wanted to know anyway).

After hearing Chara's plead, however, Undyne immediately hits him with an "USODA!!!" (LIES!!!). Undyne cannot and does not want to believe that Frisk is innocent. That Frisk is actually the victim. That Frisk is not killing monsters because he is sadistic. That Frisk is not the absolute piece of trash she thinks he is. She is fixated on believing Frisk is completely the guilty one, and that she is the "justice one" ridding the world of a total garbage human being.

Undyne's words set Chara berserk. He attacks with even greater power, fighting in revenge of Frisk for the pain he has endured. The monsters' hypocrisy pisses Chara off, and he is done letting yet another human child fall victim to those lies and manipulations.

Chara finally fights neck-to-neck with Undyne. At the end, Chara defeats Undyne, but she stabs herself with her spear before she can be killed by "a filthy human". Chara stabs his knife into her fading ashes, crying out in a fit of rage. Frisk only silently watches and listens as Chara lets his anger out on his surroundings.

Past the Hotland and the Core, Chara and Frisk arrive at the "Last Corridor" to meet their final enemy: Sans.

Sans has been awaiting Frisk, but frowns when he sees Chara instead. At first, Sans still puts up his facade. He proceeds normally, same as what he does in-game, judging Frisk/Chara's actions and such. He comments that somehow what has happened to Frisk throughout the Underground - taking many monsters', Toriel's, Undyne's and even his brother Papyrus' lives - is still "not enough". (Also showing that Sans doesn't care about monster casualties)

Chara throws his knife at Sans in rage, telling Sans to cut the crap. He tells Sans to give up, and that he "will never let Frisk out". He "will not let Frisk get hurt by trash like you". Sans will be fighting Chara, and Chara alone.

Doubting and amused, Sans accepts Chara's duel. However, soon it is very obvious that Chara is no match for Sans. Sans easily overpowers Chara, killing him over and over again. Chara's determination to protect Frisk and not let him get hurt allows Chara to revive after each death, but the pain and exhaustion still get to him. At some point, Sans even purposely hurts Chara as much as possible before killing him off, just for Frisk to see, because "I know you are there, watching your friend Chara taking all the suffering for you".

During the fight, Sans reveals (to Frisk) that he actually knows everything from the start: The reason why Frisk came to the Underground. The fact that Frisk is just an innocent lost child. The fact that Frisk is desperately asking for help. The fact that Frisk actually does nothing wrong.

And most importantly: Sans reveals that he knows about Frisk's hidden power.

At this point, Chara, knowing what Sans is trying to do, fights with all his might to stop Sans, but he is still no match.

Sans taunts Frisk, that if he doesn't want Chara to keep suffering because of him, he just has to "come out and play for a little while". Chara becomes desperate upon hearing Sans' "invitation", causing his attacks to miss a lot more, and himself to get hurt even more. He yells that he will not let Frisk fight Sans, but Chara's willpower has faded a lot along with his physical strength. Chara still tries to get up and continue the battle, supported only by his resolution, but at this point he isn't in any condition to fight any longer.

Annoyed by Chara's "stubbornness", Sans cripples and trips Chara, such that he cannot stand up anymore. Still, Chara uses his remaining energy to keep his consciousness from fading, and tells Sans to kill him without ever seeing Frisk. That "even if I cannot protect Frisk's life, I will at least protect his innocence".

All the while, Frisk has been watching everything. His heart aches every time Chara gets hurt and killed because of him, and he is terribly upset to hear that Sans actually knows everything but does nothing. Still, he obeys Chara's request to "never come out", despite how painful it makes him feel to see Chara doing everything to protect him. Frisk only sits in the void, hugging his legs as everything unfolds in front of him.

Seeing as Frisk isn't coming out no matter what, Sans takes his last resort.

He spares Frisk.

Sans says that he surrenders. Everything he has been doing is only to test Frisk's determination. Now that Frisk has "passed", Sans has no reason to continue fighting.

He even says he is "sorry" for everything Frisk has had to gone through. He understands Frisk's pain, sorrow and despair, and he knows a way to undo everything Frisk has experienced, and give him the happy ending he deserves.

Knowing very well it is a trap, Chara cries for Frisk not to fall for it. However, Chara can no longer retain control.

In the body, Frisk looks up at Sans' offer with teary eyes. A monster sparing him is something Frisk has been dying for since he has fallen into the Underground. No one ever spared Frisk, no matter how much he cried and begged. He just wants someone to truly understand and empathise with him. Hearing a monster sparing him makes him drop his guard immediately. At this point, Frisk's heart is too broken and damaged to think rationally or have any sense of deception.

At Sans' words, Frisk finally takes control of the body. He slowly walks towards Sans, who is welcoming Frisk with open arms. Teardrops keep falling, as Frisk recounts all the ridicules and hostilities he has encountered. Now, he will finally be spared and saved. He can finally return to being the innocent, helpless child that he is.

Frisk rushes to Sans in an embrace, crying over Sans' shoulders, completely defenceless. Frisk cries that he never wished for any of this, and he only wants to go home. He is just a scared child, after all. Sans does "comfort" Frisk for a while, stroking his head and patting his back.

Before...

"geeettttttt dunked on!!!"

Sans attacks Frisk in point-blank range, killing him instantly.

But he makes sure Frisk knows damn well what he has done. That Frisk will remember what he has done.

Sans gained his trust and betrayed him. Then made a joke about it.

Gained his trust and betrayed him.

Betrayed.

And this completely breaks Frisk.

To Chara's fear, as this is what he has been trying to prevent.

To Sans' entertainment, as this is what he has been trying to achieve.

"Liar..."

When the boy revives, it is finally Frisk that appears. Sans laughs in excitement, as the boy's hand is now holding a wooden stick, and his entire figure enveloping in a different, much more powerful kind of magic.

Then immediately, Frisk overpowers Sans (much to Sans' own surprise). In an instant, the battle turns entirely. None of Sans' seemingly devastating abilities proves effective to counter Frisk's overwhelming magic. Frisk awakens his long hidden ability to maximum, holding nothing back as he silently but brutally attacks, throwing Sans around and throwing things towards Sans with his psychokinesis power (like what Sans did to Chara).

(I imagine it to be Frisk directing his psychokinesis vector with his stick, same as how Sans throws Chara/the player in-game around with his hands.)

The attack begins and ends as quickly as a storm. By the end of Frisk's assault, the entire corridor has been completely destroyed, and Sans is completely incapacitated. Chara watches in shock, as he witnesses what Frisk is capable of, and what he doesn't want to witness in the first place.

Sans is just as shocked and puzzled. Now heavily wounded, Sans lies against the crumbled wall of the corridor, unable to move. He looks up at Frisk standing at where he revived, hasn't moved a step.

Then, Frisk slowly walks towards Sans. His steps are unsteady. His eyes are unfocused. He says nothing and makes no sound, but anger as deep as the sea can undoubtedly be felt.

Realising Frisk is going to finish Sans off, Chara shouts for him to stop, and leave the killing to him. Chara has been preventing Frisk from hurting anyone (and getting hurt by anyone) at all cost, because he knows that once Frisk kills someone, it will be the final nail to the coffin. His innocence will forever be tarnished. That's why Chara has been doing all the killings for Frisk.

However, Frisk has already been broken. Seeing as Frisk is no longer listening to him, Chara resorts to taking the control by force. But with his injuries and Frisk's now super-determined (and violent) willpower, Chara only succeeds for a second before losing the control. Chara tries again desperately, only to win and lose repeatedly.

(I imagine this process to be one "switch" per step. That is: They take one step → Switches to Chara → They take one step → Switches to Frisk → [Repeats])

The last step is Chara, and he immediately swings his knife in an attempt to finish off Sans for Frisk. However, Sans dodges that attack with the last of his strength. When Chara desperately prepares for another swing, the knife has become a stick again. Frisk has regained control.

With a violent slash, Frisk kills off Sans.

And Chara knows Frisk will no longer be the same.

In a mindless rage, Frisk stabs, punches, tramples, kicks the fading remains of Sans. Until there is nothing left of him.

Then, Frisk slowly walks out of the ruined corridor, continuing towards the exit of the Underground.

Since then, Frisk is always in control. Chara loses all influence on the body (except talking to Frisk, but Chara is also completely hopeless and distraught now).

Frisk has completely changed. He talks no more, cries no more, and holds back no more. All monsters (if still any) in his path are violently slaughtered without a word.

The first monster Frisk still encounters is the ecstatic Flowey. Flowey has been watching Frisk all along, including his previous fight with Sans. He "congratulates" Frisk on finally becoming the violent killer that he always is, "providing him (Flowey) with a good show".

Flowey then tells Frisk that he can do an "encore": Frisk can take the human souls that Asgore has collected. With that power, Frisk can reset the timeline and do it all over again, while Flowey will be watching once more. Flowey also wonders if Sans has told Frisk about the ability to reset timeline, as he learned it from Sans as well.

Before Flowey can talk any further, however, Frisk approaches him, much to Flowey's confusion and uneasiness. Flowey didn't do anything to Frisk, did he? All he did was watching. There's no reason Frisk would despise him, right?

Those are Flowey's last thoughts, before Frisk violently kills Flowey.

The next and last monster Frisk faces off is Asgore. Well, not really "faces off", because Frisk just one shots your personal favourite goat dad. Frisk won't listen to or believe in any monster anymore.

With Asgore dead, Frisk takes the human souls, and uses their power to break through the barrier.

Frisk escapes.

He returns home to his very surprised parents, who thought he was dead after missing for who knows how long. After a very emotional reunion (to his parents at least, because Frisk no longer feels anything, but his parents are too happy to notice that their son is already broken), life starts to return to "normal".

Frisk is finally back to being a child, but he is no longer an innocent one.

How many days have passed since he left the Underground cannot heal the wounds Frisk has suffered. That traumatic experience has completely changed him. He smiles no more, trusts no more. It is the worst outcome, the outcome Chara had tried his best and failed to prevent.

After many seasons have passed, and Frisk is still the same emotionless being, Chara speaks to him in his room one night, as one last effort to try to fix everything.

He asks Frisk to consider resetting the timeline.

Now that he has the power of all the human souls, Frisk has the ability to reset the universe as Flowey stated. With this reset, Frisk can do everything all over again, and make everything "right" this time.

Chara tells Frisk of what could happen in this timeline, which is what would happen in an in-game pacifist run. Chara shows Frisk the happy ending that he, and all the monsters who could be his friends (for real this time), could achieve. That this time, everything will be what Frisk had wanted.

The "screen/animation" then visualises scenes of the pacifist run, such as the end credit scenes of the pacifist ending. In those scenes, everyone is genuinely nice to Frisk. Everyone understands him, helps him and treats him with kindness. Together, Frisk and the monsters escape the Underground, into the human world where everyone miraculously accepts the monsters immediately. In the end, everyone, monsters and humans, live together in harmony, just as what Frisk had wished for. A happily ever after straight out of a fairy tale story, except that it could be reality. If Frisk would just press the reset button...

To which Frisk smiles, and replies:

"No way."

The scene cuts to black, and the story ends.

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

Okay.

So, WTF does all the insanity above mean?

Again, I have to reiterate that I am really not sure if I thought of the following message at the same time I thought of the plot, or after I had thought of the plot.

Because I really cannot imagine ~12 y/o me thinking of such an edgy message that makes sense. Young me had so many edgy ideas that made no sense, but this one somehow made sense. And deep sense. At least, enough sense for me to write it down in words logically. Therefore, I suspect I might have thought of an explanation "post-production". That is, after I have...you know, grown up a bit and be less cringy.

But either way, this is the message of the story.

Explanation

Apathy induces apathy.

This is the message of the story.

Just like how empathy induces empathy, apathy can also induce apathy. It's the same teaching that "life changes life", but for the worse.

Frisk is originally a very empathetic person. At the end of the story, his empathy has completely been replaced with apathy, apathy even stronger than the monsters'. The most pure person is the one who can become the most broken.

(One character that this weeb author has taken inspiration from is Gon Freecss)

Apathy is the main theme of the story. Many of the monsters' actions are driven by apathy, or, to put it more simply, "don't care".

Frisk could have got the help he needed if someone would have just lent him a hand. The "pacifist ending" vision at the end of the story represents what could have happened if the monsters had done something. Chara is not trying to give Frisk the choice to do over, because there's nothing more Frisk could have done. Chara wants to bet another chance that the monsters would do the right thing in the new timeline, and give Frisk (and the monsters, as a side effect) the happy ending he deserves.

Think about it: If you kept on sparing monsters (first of all, why are you sparing monsters to start with???), but the monsters showed no response/ignored you/took advantage of you, would Frisk be able to get the happy ending that is the "pacifist ending"? It's never only the choice of you.

Frisk has done his best, in such a desperate state. He has done what he could have. Even with a reset, Frisk would once again ask for help, and try to fight hostility with kindness. What leads to the tragic end for both Frisk and monsters is the monsters' apathy.

And apathy can be because of many reasons. Each of the "significant characters" in the plot above represents one of the reasons for apathy.

I have divided the characters into 2 categories, based on whether their intentions for apathy are relatively "good" or "bad". Emphasis on relatively, because ultimately all of them choose not to help Frisk and instead watch him die / kill him. Some reasons are more acceptable. Some reasons are just pure evil.

(Also this is the point I am going to get burned lol)

Characters with relatively acceptable reasons are:

(A1) Papyrus

(A2) Undyne

(A3) General Monsters

...in decreasing morality (i.e. More and more evil).

Characters with absolutely horrible motives are:

(B1) Flowey

(B2) Toriel (yes)

(B3) Sans

...again in decreasing morality.

I will explain each of these characters in the following time. Aside from character analyses and symbolism explanations, I will also cover plot points that may have seemed "weird" in the above [Plot] section (e.g. wtf is Sans' deal).

(A1) Papyrus

(I really can't taint the best skeleton boi can i)

Papyrus represents apathy because of ignorance.

He is the most innocent monster of the entire monster cast in the story. And therefore, also the most tragic monster casualty.

Papyrus is naive. Period. And this is what causes problems.

He believes everything everyone tells him. He believes everything at first sight. Very deeply, too. Without challenge.

He believes humans are all bad guys because Undyne tells him so.

He believes monsters are the good guys because Undyne tells him so.

He believes Undyne is a good person because that's his own impression.

He believes Undyne will understand Frisk because that's his personal wishful thinking.

I could go over all of Papyrus' mental gymnastics (that's actually what I did in the first draft), but that would be too verbose. In conclusion, what I am trying to show is how dangerously simple Papyrus' mind is, both for himself and those around him.

He really thinks he is doing Frisk a legitimate favour. He really thinks Undyne will immediately pity Frisk as Papyrus does, and help Frisk as Papyrus wishes for. And then everyone will immediately understand Frisk, and with the power of friendship, they can do anything and achieve a happily ever after.

That is simply not possible.

You can say he is "stupid", and I will have to agree. But this stupidness, or ignorance, is what makes him a culprit and a victim.

This ignorance causes him to believe in a lie that leads to many humans killed.

This ignorance causes him to deny a human salvation.

This ignorance causes him to unknowingly send a human child to his death.

And this ignorance is taken advantage by those who wants to push their own agenda.

Ignorance itself is innocent, but ignorance can be manipulated into committing terrible acts of evil.

===

(A2) Undyne

Undyne represents apathy because of stubbornness.

Another way of describing Undyne's attitude is "the unwillingness to change (a concept)".

Undyne has believed humans to be literal scum of the earth for so long, she doesn't (and quite frankly, cannot) believe otherwise. She doesn't believe she has been killing the wrong people this whole time. That the humans killed all had emotions, dreams, memories and families like this child (Frisk) in front of her. She refuses to believe so.

Also, her pride plays a part to her refusal to accept the truth. She is the noble, righteous knight of the Underground. How could she admit she was actually the villain here? What would others think of her? (And more importantly) What would she think of herself?

Therefore, upon knowing the real truth behind Frisk, she really believes that it is a lie. She has to believe so: This is what keeps her going. The belief that humans are evil, and it is her duty to eradicate them from the face of the earth.

This extreme stubbornness is what causes her apathy. If she helped Frisk, how would she explain to herself? About her belief? About what she had done to many humans in the past? She would rather just be wrong her entire life, rather than owning it up and accepting the truth. That would make her life easier.

Undyne is not evil per se. She has just believed in an extreme ideology for too long to let go. Now she can't let go anymore, because her entire meaning of existence now depends on it: Her apathy towards humans. She can't change anymore.

Not for Frisk. Not for any other pitiable human.

She can only bring that apathy to her grave.

===

(A3) General Monsters

General monsters (like the "random encounters" in-game) represents apathy because...just cause.

In other words: "Why should I care?"

This is the most common cause of apathy, and it is exemplified in those "general" monsters.

Rather than having a reason not to help, they don't have a reason to help.

They see Frisk in trouble, and then they think: "Why should I help him? How does that benefit me? And moreover, why should I help him? I don't have the responsibility to."

At best, they will ignore him.

At worst, they will bully him, because...hey, easy target, am I right?

Notice how all of those general monsters, no matter how "flashy" and unique they may be, attack you for seemingly no freaking reasons? They aren't even seeking out your soul. They are just being annoying and a nuisance. And you suffer for it.

And to an already troubled individual, this is not "just a prank, bro". This is humiliation.

======================

The next section of characters are the "bad" ones. They all display apathy for absolutely terrible motives.

To summarise, all of them represent apathy because of selfishness, with different selfish "reasons" for their (in)actions. And by "selfishness", I mean inflicting absolutely unnecessary pain for absolutely unnecessary personal pleasure.

(B1) Flowey

Flowey takes pleasure in watching Frisk suffer and break.

Flowey is right: Really, he didn't do anything to Frisk. Well, aside from that little skirmish when they first met, but that was just to "teach" Frisk about "stranger danger".

(That's a lie. It was used to elicit the dark side of Frisk's personality, which had been suppressed pretty well because of Chara. Had been.)

In other times, Flowey doesn't even appear near Frisk. Flowey doesn't intervene with Frisk. Doesn't sabotage him nor help his enemies. Flowey is just...watching from afar.

And this is the problem. If Flowey didn't appear to Frisk near the end of the story, he wouldn't be killed, honestly. Frisk probably wouldn't even remember him. But Flowey's appearance and comments show Frisk that he is being watched like a freak show. His suffering is viewed as pleasure. His breakdowns, cries, pain, despair...they are all enjoyed by someone.

Imagining how someone can be smiling in ecstasy while he's literally dying inside and outside, that rage drives Frisk to brutally murder Flowey for his schadenfreude.

===

(B2) Toriel

Alright. This may seem a shock to you, and I can tell you it is intended.

Toriel takes pleasure in keeping Frisk.

In a nutshell, Toriel's mindset can be summarised with a quote from someone and something you may or may not know.

"You're funny. I'm keeping you."

~ Doofus Drake, "Day of the Only Child!", Ducktales 2017 (S01E14)

It is hard to convey via text, but what I want to show with Toriel is that she views Frisk as a possession rather than a person.

When things are going smoothly, these two nouns can seem pretty synonymous. But when things go down (i.e. when Frisk wants to leave), that is when these two words start to show contrasts.

Toriel loves Frisk, and wants to keep Frisk. Period.

She doesn't care if he likes it or not. She doesn't care if he loves her back or not. She doesn't care if he is happy or not. As long as Toriel has Frisk in her home, she will be happy. And that's the only thing that matters.

To keep Frisk, Toriel will do anything to make him stay. The most prominent (and heinous) thing is emotional manipulation.

In other words: Guilt-tripping.

This is why Toriel wants Frisk to fight her, even though Frisk is terribly unwillingly and that is mentally unhealthy for Frisk (imagine your parent asking you to fight them???) She knows this, and this is why she is forcing him to do it.

Because Frisk is going to feel extremely guilty for having to hurt Toriel (after everything she has so "graciously" done for him), and Toriel is going to exploit that guilt. The only way Frisk is going to leave is over Toriel's dead body. Don't wanna hurt Toriel? Can't leave then, kid.

And when Frisk is feeling more determined (i.e. when he actually tries to "fight" Toriel to escape), Toriel ups her guilt-tripping game: She purposely hurts Frisk, and then feigns guilt/regret. Making a "look what you've made me done" face, and making sure Frisk sees it. This makes Frisk feel like the scum of the earth for ever wanting to leave the Ruins, and Toriel wants that.

This is why Chara intervenes and immediately kills Toriel without questions. Chara has seen so many human children fallen trap into Toriel's manipulation, thus staying in the Ruins until they eventually lose their determination (soul) and die.

He has seen so many incidents of that guilt-tripping happening; and when Toriel is "bored" of that child, she just "I don't want to play with you anymore" and lets them die.

And he's not going to let Frisk be another one.

This is why Chara says he is the one who truly wants to protect Frisk.

Chara thought of telling Frisk about the true nature of Toriel, but seeing how Frisk is still so innocent (at that time), he decides to keep it to himself.

Of course, by the end of the story, Frisk probably has deduced that himself.

===

(B3) Sans

I know Sans has a lot of fans (apparently he is a "tumblr sexyman" without me even knowing??? I even learnt this fact outside of fandoms), and I am probably gonna get gaster-blastered for saying what I am going to say.

But Sans is the absolute piece of shit in my story.

If I have to swear to comment on a character, Sans is that character.

To really summarise, Sans takes pleasure in fighting Frisk.

But what Sans enjoys is general sadism.

Sans loves to fight (and defeat) strong people. This is his primary motive. And he will do anything to have an "exciting" fight. I realised afterwards that Sans' character is quite similar to Hisoka Morow (afterwards, because I didn't know HxH at the time I was thinking of the plot).

When Sans first sees Frisk (or rather, when he first senses Frisk, because Sans often visits the exit of the Ruins), he knows at once that Frisk has a very strong power hidden. Sans wants to fight Frisk in his "awakened" state.

To his dismay, however, Chara is there to protect Frisk. To make him awaken his powers, Sans will do anything to break Frisk.

Sans purposely makes Frisk (Chara) murder everyone in the Underground, just to awaken his "dark side". Sacrifices include Undyne, Toriel and even his own brother Papyrus (and especially Papyrus. Because he is pretty much innocent and his death will deteriorate Frisk's sanity by a lot, and Sans knows and wants this).

Think about it: Sans is literally there in the second area of the game, and he knows you are a (supposedly) violent individual. Why the hell doesn't he stop you right then and there??? We know Sans is strong af. He is definitely more than capable of stopping you from continuing your genocide route at that point. Why, then, does he do nothing, and even lets you kill his brother?

My reason for this is to break Frisk. He purposely lets Frisk undergo all the suffering, pain and traumas throughout the Underground, just so he can make Frisk unlock his potential and have a good fight with a broken Frisk. And monster sacrifices don't matter, because Sans knows about the timeline reset ability (not that he cares about casualties anyway, he just cares about himself having fun).

Sans is so confident in his ability that he can definitely defeat Frisk and make him submit (thus losing the "Determination" revival ability). He is so arrogant that he thinks he can "have fun" fighting even an awakened Frisk, and win. And then he can take his Soul and reset the timeline with it, saving everything and everyone. And doing it all over again for the thrill.

(This is why it's important that Sans is the one to bring up the topic of timeline reset, because this is the mechanism he intended to exploit.)

When he sees that Chara has been doing a very good job at keep Frisk (barely) sane, Sans takes advantage of Frisk's most vulnerable: Despair.

When a person is desperate, they would do anything to achieve what they want, even things that would be deemed irrational otherwise. And this is what Sans uses against Frisk: He knows very well that Frisk is innocent all along and just wants to be spared, so he gives him what he wants and then immediately betrays him. Not to mention making fun of his despair and helplessness.

That is the final breaking point for Frisk. And Frisk does break, much to Sans' excitement for 1 second and then shock for the next.

Sans didn't know just how powerful Frisk really was. He thought he was the strongest fighter in the entire world. He didn't know how exactly strong an awakened Frisk was, but he was so arrogant in his ability, he thought he could beat him anyway. Of course he was wrong.

This is why Sans gets rekted immediately after Frisk takes over, because Sans didn't expect Frisk to be this strong. He doesn't even have the chance to fight back (and so he isn't having any fun at all).

In the end, Sans pays his price for his psychopathic behaviour, but the damage to Frisk has been done. A damage that not even a timeline reset can erase.

======================

To add on one last bit: The ending of the story is meant to showcase Frisk's complete transition from empathy to apathy.

What Chara shows Frisk (i.e. The True Pacifist ending) is real. If Frisk chose to reset the timeline, he really would achieve that ending.

Notice how I said in the [Settings] section that "Frisk would reset the timeline in a heartbeat"? At the end of the story, Frisk finally attains the power to do so, but he no longer chooses to.

Even if Frisk would not retain the memories (traumas) of what had happened in the previous timeline, he still wouldn't choose to reset.

This is because Frisk's happy ending is no longer the issue here. He doesn't care if he is stuck in the worst ending possible. What matters is that he doesn't want the monsters to have their own happy ending.

The monsters didn't give Frisk a happy ending, why should Frisk give them one then?

In the end, no one is happy.

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

(7-2-2023 ~ 20-3-2023)

#It has been (exactly???) a year and I still can't believe I have done this #This is one of the biggest project I have worked on #I don't know where I got that motivation from #(and the courage to share)#But I really need to do something like this again #Have been writing random/short stuff to get myself writing again #Ah

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