Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It wasn't supposed to end like this. Not this way; at least Frisk never meant for any of the events that just ensued to transpire, yet they still made sense in how they led up to what occurred. All of this that had just gone down was due to a scared child who wanted a way out of the mountain after falling while trying to escape a storm.

What followed was a mixed bag of experiences, including meeting Toriel and her kindness, the monsters of the ruins welcoming yet cautious, Snowdin's welcoming atmosphere, and the Skeleton brothers. Even Waterfall was a place of tranquility that they enjoyed traversing through. Of course, all good things must come to an end, and that end was the captain of the Royal Guard, Undyne. At first, Frisk snuck through Waterfall after they first encountered the woman and her soul-piercing spears. Even if they died a few times, they slowly learned their patterns, being cautious and hoarding monster food to keep their HP up. It worked to a degree; there were still some deaths, but they just needed to stay positive—maybe Undyne would realize they weren't a threat. So they trekked on, with some hope in their hearts. If the monster really were merciful, then Undyne had to be like them. Right?

Except when Frisk reached the mountain leading to Hotlands, Frisk got their answer. Death after death, Frisk fell as Undyne chased them down. Sometimes they would sit in the void to catch their breath; other times, they would try to go through their items, anything to give them an advantage. Nothing worked in their favor. The pain of those spears stabbing them followed them to their core. And yet they continued with a new plan. They remember a button labeled "reset," a mysterious feature they had discovered during their previous journeys. Out of curiosity, after one run, they pushed it and found themselves at the very start of the mountain. At one point, they attempted to escape the hill to avoid their fate entirely.

Unfortunately for them, the area they stood on had eroded due to natural forces, and even the slightest movement would cause it to collapse. There was no escaping the underground for Frisk. The next idea was to use the reset to avoid Undyne entirely. They stayed in Snowdin, hoping she would lose interest, only to find Undyne had grown impatient after a few days and had chased them out of Snowdin before their eventual demise. Other resets focused on exploring the Waterfall; they made a mental map of places to hide, rest, and recover. Yet no matter what they did, it didn't work.

All of it led up to what just preceded. At this point, Frisk decided to take the usual route. They had avoided Undyne's spears with ease, minus their searter getting a bit torn up, and were approaching the mountain leading into what they assumed was Hotlands from the one time they saw it on the sign. Undyne was waiting on the top like always. This time, they chose to SAVE after her speech, just in case. And like clockwork, the battle began. Their Soul was now green, and all they had to do was dodge her oncoming spears like normal, right?

Except this time, the spear Frisk had been using to block Undyne's attacks had broken after defending themselves; it had never done that before. They were still green; they couldn't exactly flee freely, not with Undyne having some control over their SOUL. Thinking on their feet, they searched their inventory, only coming across the worn notebook they had bought from Gerson before this. It was better than nothing in this scenario; they had sold their previous weapons to Temmie to help pay for their college.

Regardless, they held the notebook as it was their only shield besides their own body. They hear Undyne laugh at the absurdity of using a Notebook; it was enough for her to lose her control and free Frisk from their place. With zero hesitation, they booked it fast. Frisk pushed past Undyne before she realized what had happened. With a growl, she pursued. That slight advantage had given them more time to run than before, but of course, the sound of heavy armour was quickly heard. You'd think with that much heavy armor, it would slow her down, but Undyne proved otherwise, quickly closing the gap between the two of them.

Frisk kept up the chase, being caught a few times and dodging raining spears from above. Still, the progress they are making is better than past attempts. The neon scrolling light of the Hotlands sign shone brightly, guiding them to a better outcome. Safety is closing in; they know it, but they just had to keep dodging! Those hopes were also blinding Frisk's sight, as they were oblivious to Undyne's more vicious attack this run. Instead of waiting to catch up to Frisk, she also decided to try a new strategy: send spears right towards the Human when they were distracted. The result soon showed as pained screams echoed through the area. Frisk fell against the wall as spears pierced their leg.

Blood began to pool around the spear wound, draining down the dirt-stained pants like a viscous crimson oil pooling around his shoes. The Notebook, trusted in its impromptu guard against the torrent of conjured spears, was sent into the wall, destroyed via impalement by...well, a spear.
Undyne, clad in her armor trudged forward towards Frisk with heavy footfalls of her greaves and sabatons. This did not help with the horrendous pain that racked through Frisk's body...oh, how they yearned to leave this wretched, god-forsaken land to move onto the next. What little hope that was left had been choked and beaten into woe.
Wh-...Was Undyne speaking? Frisk knew she was drawing closer, but they couldn't hear her over their own heart drumming away. All they knew at this moment, right NOW...there had to be a way to either escape, or claim another day through blind, desperate violence...they chose the latter option, of course. But how would they fight!? A rock!? A stick!? Maybe even that spear that was sti-WHY ARE THEY JUST LOOKING AT THE SPEAR!? THEY SHOULD BE GETTING THE SPEAR!
Quickly, Frisk dashed over to the spear that was driven into the wall, using every last bit of gas within their metaphorical engine to have themselves a means of defense and adrenaline-filled offense.

Thus, EVEN MORE SPEARS! A wall of flying implements of impalement that have been sent rocketing towards Frisk by Undyne's will. Barely in time, the young one wrenched the spear that was pierced into the wall, using the weapon as a means of swift defense against the flying spears, deflecting them with jerking motions and held breath.
Frisk's heart, small and overtaxed, pumped audibly like cracking drums within their chest as adrenaline flooded their body. Every bit of their being was dedicated to surviving at this very moment. No need for peace, escape, or understanding.
Frisk must fight or die...simple, and rightly so.

With each hastened thrust and with each desperate lunge, Frisk, by some manner, managed to wedge his spear into the crevices and weak points of Undyne's armor, drawing blood and nearly scraping bone.
Undyne, now on her back foot, still managed to counter with her own measured strikes and practiced thrusts. However, with Frisk uncaring for words and had only the sole drive of survival, dodged every bit of offense delivered by Undyne with some breathing room to spare.
Undyne gave one more strike as her breath waned as she spoke insignificant words to Frisk. An overstep, a minor trip from the weight of Undyne's armor gave Frisk all they needed to deliver the lethal blow.
Undyne buckled under the weight of it all, her breath becoming harder and harder to maintain as she forced her body to stay upright.

Undyne's eye inverted as she spoke muffled words. Frisk did catch a few as Undyne trudged closer, bit by bit. "A-alp-hys...a-as-asgo-gore...Pap-pa-pyrus...N-no..." Undyne refused the embrace of death with spite and honor, her head lifting swiftly to meet Frisk's eyes.
"Th-ey...are count-ting on me...to protect them! I WILL NOT DIE! NOT UNTIL I-"
Frisk delivered another thrust through her armor, twisting it as the spear head slipped into her lungs. Whatever words came out was a garbled mess as her form destorted to a haze, much like the mystery man that Frisk met, once.
It didn't take long for Undyne's form to fall onto the floor, crumbling into dust after the heavy clanking thud of the fallen knight's armor.

Frisl stood there for the longest time thinking about what they had just seen, their mind finally coming down from the adrenaline and slowly realizing what they had done. Their body continued to shake before another wail was let out, this time with a mixture of pain and grief over the events that had just transpired. It wasn't supposed to end like this. Frisk intended to spare Undyne entirely; they didn't mean to kill her.

They just wanted a way out of Waterfall, to befriend Undyne, as they did with the other monsters, and more importantly, to live. And yet here they stood, the pulsing pain in their leg and clothes covered in dust. For a good while, Frisk stood there on the ground letting grief wrack them. They couldn't undo their deaths; they couldn't bring Undyne back, not like a determined human could. And yet there was a thought in the back of their mind. Could a reset undo this? Maybe this was just a bad run; they hadn't tried to reset after killing a monster before, but everything always was back in its place when they did. So maybe there was a chance it could undo Undyne's death.

Without a second thought, they slowly got up, dragging their leg back to that save point. Blood still trailed behind them with each step as it dripped from their injured leg. It was a long and agonizing walk between the pain in their leg and the memory of what had just gone down playing in their mind. It was hard to tell which was worse. They eventually reached an ever-familiar SAVE star and hit it. Immediately, the pain in their leg subsided as they felt their injuries wash away, healing. The ever-familiar box appeared, showing their name, time, and other things, but what was more important was what was below: SAVE, RELOAD, and, of course, RESET. They stood there for a moment to think.
They could reload, but again, Frisk didn't know if the more Vicious version of Undyne they just faced would persist. If they pressed save, they would have to move on from what they did, and in their mind, they couldn't. That only left one Option as their gaze zeroed in on RESET.
It was a crazy thought, but so were most of their idea. With bated breath, they pressed the all-too-familiar button as the world obeyed their command and became white. The white gave way to the forest greens, and they heard the calls of birds and other animals nearby. It had worked. They could feel the rain fall slowly on them, dotting their clothes with each drop. Their eyes locked onto the hole they had previously fallen into. Everything was falling into the standard reset pattern for them until something new entered, and an unfamiliar sound was heard nearby. Quickly, Frisk turned their head only for their eyes to meet another. Yellow, luminous slit eyes observed them with some fascination and curiosity. Before they could say anything to each other, lightning struck close by, spooking them both. The other child rushed from their spot instinctively, running from danger. Unfortunately, they made a grave error of running towards Frisk and the ground, which they knew was already loose, and it gave way, plunging them both to the bottom. Twin screams rang out before they blacked out from the fall.

Chapter Text

Niko grew up with tales of Mt. Ebott all their life. The stories of people being whisked away while exploring the mountain. Or that something was living in it, causing the disappearances. It was mainly seen as a cautionary tale, told to children to keep them from wandering away from the village.
They had asked their mama about it many times. As they grew older, her answer would shift mainly to steer their curiosity away from the topic, knowing full well they would act on that and likely sneak out of the village. She was very much right on that. Frustrated with the non-answer, Niko created a plan: to sneak out of the village and see the place for themself. It would be a short trip. They had seen many adults come and go near the mountain many times, some of whom were only gone for an hour. So surely it couldn't be too far right? If they were lucky, their mama wouldn't notice they were away from home. She would believe that they had just been playing in the village. So with nothing but the clothes they had on their back, Niko took off into the golden wheat fields.

Slowly, the golden wheat fields of their village gave way to the endless greens of the forest surrounding the mountain. The smell of oncoming rain and the earthy scent of the forest wafted to Niko's senses as they climbed carefully, wary of any potential danger. Niko recalled stories of the dangers some adults faced, such as one who came back after being bitten by a snake. Or another who had sprained their ankle after falling into a hole made by an animal. It made Niko watch where they walked for months, afraid a lone snake that made it to the village might attack them. With each step Niko took, they glanced down only to see the occasional bug crawl along the forest path.

It's peaceful here if Niko is honest, they quite like trailing the mountain path and hearing the wildlife around them. It reminded them of when they traveled the Glen last year; the peaceful feeling of walking the marshlands with Alula and Calamus was still ever-present in their memory. Niko hoped they were doing ok. They sometimes dream of being back there again, revisiting old friends and seeing how they were, and how everyone was, including The World Machine. And most of all, they missed the voice of god, the kind person who guided them through it all. Niko remembers vividly their last goodbye; it played out in their dreams as much as in those of that world.

The feeling of water hitting their face jolts Niko out of their thoughts as the storm intensifies. Their clothes are drenched, and they rush towards the trees for cover. The longing to find the entrance soon replaces the beloved memories. If Niko could see it, they could still weather the storm and head home. With a plan in mind, Niko continues through the forest, jumping at the occasional lightning strike nearby. The trees grow denser as they navigate the forest, the overwhelming feeling growing. Then, out of the corner of their eyes, they spot something different than the endless green. Niko slows down to confirm what they saw. With a quick look around, their eyes find what they had been searching for: a blue and purple sweater on another person. Niko wasn't alone up here; someone else had decided to climb the mountain as well. And it wasn't an adult; it was another kid like them!

Niko's face lit up with the thought of approaching the other child, especially in this storm. But the tranquility was shattered by a lightning strike, jolting them into immediate action. Fear gripped them, and they ran forward, using the other child's movements as a warning of the unstable ground. The moment Niko's feet touched the ground, it gave way, and the two plummeted into the darkness below. Screams filled Niko's ears, and amidst the chaos, a very familiar voice called out before the world went dark. "NIKO!"