Underearth/Book 2/Chapter 1

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The roar of a thousand hell-bound beasts rang out against the dark walls as Frisk ran through the corridors, a great, half-melted serpentine creature with many teeth charging him. As he ran, Frisk reached a turn and took it, taking him into a room with many beds, a room he'd passed through earlier. Frisk slammed his back against the wall nearest the doorway he'd just come through, hoping the creature would pass him by. The creature, upon reaching the same turn, came to a halt, sniffing at the air as it advanced toward the room Frisk was hiding in.

Now you may be asking yourself: "How did Frisk find himself in a situation that's certainly going to end in him being eaten alive?" That is a very good question, and one that has a somewhat long answer. It all began soon after Frisk RESET.

If you read the last book, you know that Frisk had woken up in a cavern filled with Monsters. Wanting to leave and seek vengeance, Frisk cut through all the Monsters that got in his way and posed a threat to him as he traversed the Underground, sparing very few that opposed him. After killing the King of all Monsters and a murderous flower, Frisk reached the Surface, and immediately sought out his brother William, a dangerous murderous psychopath whose favorite pass-time was the murder-raping of lonely women. Once Frisk found William, he proceeded to kill him with a dagger he'd found in the cavern. Soon after, a phone he'd received in the cavern began to ring. About a minute after ignoring the call, he'd received a message. It was Sans, a Monster Frisk had met while escaping the Underground. Sans had left a message telling Frisk of the aftermath of his escape; of how Toriel had reclaimed the throne, but was soon dethroned by a population angry of her Human-friendly attitude and policies so soon after a Human had killed many Monsters, including their heroes and King. After the message finished, Frisk reflected on his actions, and immediately regretted everything he'd done in the Underground. Seeking a way to undo all his actions, he'd found the answer in an old pocketwatch he'd found after first waking up in the Underground. The pocketwatch offered a RESET, and Frisk took it.

Upon waking up once again, Frisk found himself inside the Underground, upon the very same bed of golden flowers that he'd first woken up on.

Frisk looked around at his surroundings. He was back. Back in the Underground. Back on the bed of golden flowers. But back before he ruined everyday life within the Underground? Frisk stood up, there was only one way to be sure. Flowey. If Flowey was back, was alive, then he would be sure. Frisk walked through the alcove to the archway on the other side. Once he reached the archway, he saw it, the pillar of light where he first met Flowey. Frisk ran to the pillar, stopping just before he reached it, then he closed his eyes, and waited. Waited to here Flowey say "howdy".

But nobody came. Nothing even made a sound. Frisk opened his eyes and looked around. Everything *was* as he remembered it, all except for the fact that Flowey was absent.

Suddenly, footsteps could be heard approaching where Frisk was. He looked up at the source of the footsteps and saw, in the shadows, the dark appearance of Toriel.

"Hello..." Toriel said as she got closer. "Are you all right?"

Frisk stared at Toriel, remaining quiet.

"You must be so lost and confused..." she said. "I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. I pass through here every day to see if anyone has fallen down here. You are the first Human to come here in a long time. I will do my best to protect you during your time here." she turned around and started walking towards the archway she'd walked through. "Come! I shall guide you through the Citadel."

Frisk stepped towards Toriel, away from the pillar of light and into the darkness of the Citadel.

From there, things proceeded just the same as before. Toriel guided Frisk through the Citadel, teaching him about puzzles and what to do when encountering a hostile Monster. Frisk put this specific skill to the test when the Froggit that he had originally punched into oblivion once again fell from the ceiling, nearly landing on him. This time, however, instead of instantly punching the Monster, Frisk complimented the Froggit, which seemed to do the trick, as Toriel returned to find him conversing with a Monster. Upon spotting Toriel, the Froggit leapt away, seemingly out of fear.

From there, the two continued forward just like before. Toriel left Frisk behind at the end of the long hallway, giving him her spare cellphone before leaving, to which Frisk was surprised he didn't have already. After Toriel left, Frisk waited about a minute before following. Being separated from Toriel, Frisk made sure to actively avoid encountering any wandering Monster, running from those he encountered. The only exception to this is a Froggit that approached Frisk and gave him a small leather pouch containing about 100 small gold coins before jumping away.

The pattern of running from approaching Monsters continued until he reached Napstablook, the lonely ghost that lives in the Quiet Village of Waterfall Caves that likes to visit the Citadel from time to time. Frisk worked to cheer him up just like he did before. Eventually, Napstablook left, and Frisk continued forward.

"Goodbye, ghost-friend." Frisk said as Napstablook phased through the floor, clearing the bottleneck. With the bottleneck clear, Frisk passed on through, coming to two doorways, one to Frisk's left, and the other directly in front of him.

*This place again...* Frisk thought to himself. *Before I went left, but I wonder... what's through here?* Frisk approached the door ahead of him. Before entering through the doorway, however, he looked around the room. The room ahead was dark, *much* darker than anywhere else he'd seen so far. Stepping into the room, Frisk felt something press onto his back and pull him to the center of the room. Upon reaching the center of the room, some fires were lit around him, lighting the room, revealing the entire room to be filled with spiders. These spiders, while not as large or numerous as the ones Frisk encountered on Mount Hot, were still quite big and many.

Upon seeing the spiders, Frisk froze up in an attempt to remain calm, hoping they wouldn't devour him. Eventually, four spiders lowered themselves from the ceiling holding a heavy-looking cloth with two pictures and some numbers sewn into it. The left picture was a picture of a donut, and the right picture was a picture of a jug with purple stuff inside it. Below the donut was written "7G", and below the jug was written "18G".

Frisk stared at the cloth for some time. *Are they trying to sell me something?* he thought. Eventually, some spiders lifted a sign with strange symbols written on it, symbols Frisk recognized as some he'd seen before, such as in places throughout the Citadel. Looking back to the cloth, he decided to point at the donut. Almost immediately, some spiders brought out a light purple donut and a box with a slit on the top. Realizing what the box was for, Frisk reached into his pocket and pulled out the leather pouch, reached into it, pulled out seven gold coins, and slotted them all into the box. Once the last coin hit the bottom, the box was pulled away, and a small silk bag was given to Frisk with the donut inside. Upon taking the bag, Frisk exited the room.

*Interesting. So they really* did *just wanna sell me something, and not eat me. How nice of them.*

From there, Frisk continued through the Citadel, evading Monsters and solving puzzles. Eventually, he finally made it to Toriel's home at the end of the Citadel.

"Oh dear, that took longer than I thought it would." Toriel said as she came out of her house, pulling her phone out. She dialed in the number of the phone she gave Frisk, though she didn't realize that he was standing very close by. When his phone rang, she finally saw him, hanging up and running over to inspect him for injury.

"How did you get here, my child? Are you hurt?" she said frantically. "Not a scratch..." she said after a bit, "Impressive! But still... I should not have left you alone for so long."

"It's fine, Toriel." Frisk said. "Now you don't have to come get me."

"Even so, it was irresponsible to try to surprise you like this." Toriel responded before suddenly going silent.

"Surprise?" Frisk said, trying to sound like he didn't already know what was happening.

"Well, I suppose I cannot hide it any longer. Come, small one!" Toriel said as she walked back into the house she'd exited a few minutes earlier, Frisk following close behind.

The inside of the house was quite cozy, lamps around the foyer gave off a warm yellow light. The overwhelming aroma of cinnamon and butterscotch flooded Frisk's nostrils as soon as he entered.

"Do you smell that?" Toriel asked.

"Yeah, I do."

"Surprise! It is a butterscotch-cinnamon pie. I thought we might celebrate your arrival. I want you to have a nice time living here. So I will hold off on snail pie for tonight. Here, I have another surprise for you."

Upon finishing the last sentence, Toriel went down the right hallway, followed by Frisk. Both stopped in front of the first door in the hallway.

"This is it... A room of your own. I hope you like it!" Toriel then stroked Frisk on the head for a few seconds. She then sniffed a bit. "Is something burning...?" she asked herself before looking back down at Frisk. "Um, make yourself at home!" She then said before running off to address whatever was burning.

With Toriel gone, Frisk entered the room. The room was clearly the bedroom of a child; toys lined the wall behind the bed, a toybox lying at the foot of it, and various other things such as a wardrobe and nightstand. Feeling tired, Frisk approached the bed, set the silk bag containing the donut on the nightstand, laid down and soon drifted off to sleep.

Frisk felt his eyes begin to open, seeing three dark silhouettes standing next to the bed.

"Looks as though they are finally waking up." a silhouette with a deep voice said. "Human! Are you able to speak?"

Frisk felt himself mumble something.

"Speak up!" the silhouette barked. "Start with something simple, what is your name!?"

"Dad," came a new voice from another one of the silhouettes, this one much smaller than the other two, "I already told you. They said their name was—"

"Silence, son!" the deep-voiced silhouette barked again. "I was asking the Human!"

Frisk felt himself say something again.

"Chrysanthe, huh. So tell me, Chrysanthe, are you of the Aristocracy?"

Frisk, even though he was very confused, felt himself speak again.

"Charaktiras!? Like Ebott? ANSWER ME!!!" the deep-voiced silhouette shouted even louder, approaching Frisk.

"Leave her alone, dad." the smaller silhouette said, running to stand between Frisk and the deep-voiced silhouette.

"Get away from them, Asriel, they're dangerous!!!"

"No, they're not! If they were, why didn't they use one of their blades to attack me?"

Silence fell around the room.

"Please, dad. Just give them a chance. Maybe not all Humans are as bad as you say."

Frisk began to feel very light-headed, and soon, his eyes closed once again.

Frisk's eyes snapped open as he shot up-right in the bed gasping for air. Once his breathing was under control, he noticed that he was now under the covers of the bed, his boots were to the side of the bed on the floor, and the light was off. The smell of the butterscotch-cinnamon pie was no longer as overwhelming as it was when Frisk first entered the house. Looking around the room, he noticed a slice of the pie sitting on the nightstand right next to the silk bag that held the donut.

*Toriel must have tucked me in after I'd fallen asleep.*

Frisk set his legs over the edge of the bed. The room felt chilly now. He then grabbed the fork that came along with the slice of pie and started eating it. The taste was unbelievable; a perfect blend of the butterscotch and cinnamon flavors, as well as traces of the other ingredients all perfectly melded into a most excellent taste. Once the slice was consumed, Frisk put on his boots, and exited the room.

Once outside the room, there was the faint sound of water flowing and the turning of a water wheel, though as Frisk walked towards the foyer, the sounds stopped, and Toriel soon entered the foyer as well.

"Ah, up already, I see?" she said.

"Yeah. Thanks for the pie, by the way, it was delicious." Frisk said.

"I am glad you enjoyed it." Toriel outstretched one of her arms. "Come, walk with me for a bit."

Frisk approached Toriel, and they both exited the house. Along the way, Toriel made conversation.

"Um, I want you to know how glad I am to have someone here. There are so many old books I want to share. I want to show you my favorite bug-hunting spot. I have also prepared a curriculum for your education."

*An actual education? Nice!*

"This may come as a surprise to you... but I have always wanted to be a teacher... actually, perhaps that isn't very surprising. STILL. I am glad to have you living here."

As she finished her last sentence, they had finished their walk around the front yard and had reached the front door again. "Well, come talk to me if you need anything." she said before walking back inside.

Frisk sat down beside the dead tree that decorated the yard. "Now what am I going to do?" he asked himself. "Living with Toriel shows great promise, and everything that I never had on the surface. A warm bed, consistent mealtimes, a proper education, and a loving mother. But no father... or friends…" Frisk sat in silence for a bit longer. "On the other hand, if I leave the Citadel, and Toriel, I could find a way to give all the Monsters a happy ending."

After a few more minutes of silent contemplation, Frisk stood up.

"I know what I have to do now."

Frisk went to his room. On the nightstand still sat the silk bag. As Frisk went to grab it, the wardrobe that was next to the nightstand caught his eye. The moment he saw it again, he was drawn to it like a magnet. It wasn't long before curiosity got the better of him, and he opened it. Inside were a few shirts, pants, jackets, and a backpack that lay at the bottom. Of all the clothes inside, however, only one specific piece held Frisk's attention; a very simple green jacket with a single yellow stripe running horizontal around it. Frisk grabbed the jacket. It was the softest thing he'd ever felt, and it looked very warm as well. Pulling it out of the wardrobe, Frisk tried it on. It fit perfectly, and it was indeed warm. Frisk turned to close the wardrobe, but before he did, he pulled out the backpack at the bottom as well. He then stored the silk donut bag into the backpack, put it on, then left the room.

The hallway outside was empty, though he could hear the rocking of a rocking chair down the hall in the living room. Trying his best to go as quietly as possible, Frisk tip-toed over to the stairwell at the back of the foyer.

*This leads to the exit of the Citadel.* He thought.

As he went down the stairs, one of the steps made a strained groaning noise as Frisk put his weight on it.

"My child?" Frisk heard from above.

*Oh no.* he thought as he hurried down the rest.

"MY CHILD!!!" Toriel screamed as Frisk hit the bottom.

Too late. Frisk was sprinting down the hallway at the end of the stairs.

*I just need to make it to the door!*

Frisk came to the turn in the hallway, and the door came into sight. Just as Frisk was about to reach the door, however, it suddenly burst into flames, along with the entire wall the door was on.

"M-my child. W... What are you doing?" Toriel asked from the turn, quite out of breath.

*Crap. Need to think of something...* he thought.

Frisk turned to face Toriel. "Look m— Toriel, you're a great person, a great mother, and I wish I could stay, but there is something that must be done beyond the Citadel."

"What?" she asked, exasperated. "There is nothing out there, only death. Asgore has twisted everyone into believing murdering you is good for the Kingdom."

"I know, Toriel, but not everyone is murderous, I know it. And I am strong enough to survive against those that do seek my SOUL."

"Strong enough to survive? You are a child, they, Asgore, will kill you."

"I am strong enough. Let me show you. Attack me."

Toriel opened her mouth as if to argue further, then closed it. Suddenly, fire appeared in her hand and flew at Frisk, who rolled to the right, dodging the flames.

Frisk looked back up at Toriel, who had lost all compassion in her face. It was the face of a killer.

More flames were let loose at Frisk, who weaved through the fire, getting singed just a few times. Once the flames stopped flying, Frisk noticed that the entire room was now on fire, burning bright. Toriel stood, unmoving, at the mouth of the room, her arms engulfed in flames, her eyes lacking any sense of mercy. He may have imagined it, however, but as Frisk looked into her eyes, Toriel appeared to have looked away in shame.

"Stop looking at me that way." she suddenly said as she let loose more flames.

Frisk didn't even have to move to avoid this attack. *Is her will finally breaking?*

Toriel brought her arms up, and then together, leaving a small space between her hands. In this space, a bright orb began to appear, growing larger by the second. As soon as it was about as big as Frisk's head, Toriel fired it at him. Frisk looked for a place to move to avoid the fireball, but found that he was completely surrounded in fire, as the floor and even the ceiling had now been consumed.

Frisk looked straight into the fireball. *So, this is it, huh...* Closing his eyes, he opened his arms wide to embrace the flames and his coming death.

But it never came. Every second felt longer and longer at the anticipation of fiery death. Eventually, Frisk opened his eyes.

The room was no longer engulfed, and Toriel was on her knees, crying.

Frisk walked over to Toriel.

"Toriel?" Frisk said, concern overflowing in his voice.

"I am sorry, my child." Toriel said through the tears. "You... you remind me of someone… so very dear to me." she looked up to see Frisk's face. "You are strong."

Silence fell between them. Eventually, Toriel wiped her eyes and stood up.

"If you truly wish to leave the Citadel... I will not stop you. However, when you leave... Please do not come back. I hope you understand."

Frisk suddenly hugged Toriel. Holding the embrace, neither Frisk nor Toriel wanted to let go, though all things must eventually come to an end, and soon, Frisk exited through the door.

Beyond the door, as you should know, is a long hallway. Beyond that is where Flowey stood in wait before, waiting to taunt Frisk for his selfishness. When Frisk reached where Flowey had been waiting before, he was greeted by nothing, simply darkness.

*For once, I'm actually worried to not see Flowey around...*

Frisk walked across the room to the door at the end, then looked back.

*Is... is everyone I killed before still dead?! … No, the Froggit was there, just like before. So, where the hell is Flowey!?*

Frisk looked back to the door, dread weighing down on his soul, sapping away the hope he'd gained from the knowledge of the RESET. The only thing that drove him to push the door to the Snowdin Province open was simply pure DETERMINATION.