Chapter Text
Frisk opened their eyes. Something pressed against their palms. The ground wasn’t stone. It felt strangely soft beneath their fingers. A crash pad. One of several scattered across this small spot where sunlight could reach.
Frisk got up and looked around: The walls were too steep, too smooth… no way back… their stomach tightened. They had looked around the entire mountain for a sign. This was the only spot they hadn’t looked at yet… just to trip over a root…
There was a tunnel. Step by step, it widened and the darkness gave way to another chamber. They stopped as the ceiling disappeared into shadow.
Before them, a patch of green stood out against the stone. A white flower slowly turned around! Wilted petals surrounded a round stem with eyes and a mouth. It began to speak, its voice echoing through the entire hall:
“Oh, another one.“
Frisk tugged at one of their sleeves.
“Nervous already?“
Frisk immediately let go.
The flower continued:
“Most people scream.“
Frisk remained motionless. Then they asked softly:
“Who are you?“
“I am Fleur. Among other things.“
Both eyed each other for another moment, then Fleur broke the silence:
“You’re taking the talking flower remarkably well, I presume.“
“No, I’m not.“
A smile covered the wilted white rose:
“Ah… excellent.“
Frisk glanced around the hall:
“Say… do people come here often?“
“Sometimes.“
“And?“
The flower turned whatever it had for a head sideways:
“You are looking for someone, aren’t you?“
Frisk froze:
“How… how do you know that?“
The flower tilted slightly:
“Most humans don’t come here for the scenery.“
Frisk clenched their fists.
“My sister.“
Fleur tilted his stem. He kept studying them. Frisk continued:
“Do you know where she is?“
“Most stories start with somebody looking for family.“
“That’s not an answer.“
“No, it isn’t.“
His smile lingered longer than it should have:
“Keep walking and you might find what you’re looking for.“
Somehow, the constant smirk made his words worse:
“Or maybe you’ll wish you hadn’t.“
Frisk opened their mouth, was about to say something when Fleur disappeared into the ground.
For a moment, they weren’t sure whether he had been joking.
In the distance, they saw walls. And the distinct sound of footsteps.
Frisk walked up one of the two sets of stairs when they saw it: A tall figure donning a white robe matching the color of his face. Did he just knock with his knuckles against his robe? His eyes studied them. He bowed lightly:
“GREETINGS, HUMAN! I, PAPYRUS, CURATOR OF THE OLD HALLS, WELCOME YOU TO THE UNDERGROUND!“
Frisk was about to flinch since Papyrus had a loud voice. Still, it wasn’t that bad…
“Hello, Papyrus. My name’s Frisk.“
He put his right hand on his jaw:
“FRISK? WHAT A NICE NAME. PLEASE, FOLLOW ME, I’LL SHOW YOU HOW THINGS WORK AROUND HERE.“
They had nowhere else to go, so it wasn’t like they had a choice anyway. The next room had nine tiles on the floor that stood out. There were two switches, one green, one red. Papyrus stood in front of a door:
“WE MONSTERS LOVE PUZZLES! YOU CAN’T PRACTICE THEM ENOUGH! HOW FAMILIAR ARE YOU WITH THEM?“
Frisk eyed the tiles, then him:
“I’ve never solved one.“
Papyrus’ jaw dropped:
“WHAT?“
He took on a heroic position:
“WORRY NOT, FRISK, FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM NOT ONLY A PUZZLE FANATIC, I AM ALSO A CERTIFIED PUZZLE DRILL INSTRUCTOR.“
He made a grand gesture:
“AS DICTATED BY TRADITION, THERE HAS TO BE A CLUE NEARBY! LOOK AT THE CEILING!“
Right above them there was a mirror with red rectangles that highlighted three of the tiles.
“GOOD! NOW WALK ON THE HIGHLIGHTED TILES AND THEN USE THE GREEN SWITCH! THE RED SWITCH RESETS THE PUZZLE!“
Frisk shrugged, did as they were told, and the door opened.
“GOOD JOB, FRISK!“
He walked into the next room and waved them to follow. There were different prop weapons and a training dummy.
“NOW: WHILE I MUCH PREFER A PEACEFUL SOLUTION, SOMETIMES YOU MIGHT HAVE TO DEFEND YOURSELF, SO FEEL FREE TO TAKE ONE OF THESE PROP WEAPONS AND TRAIN WITH THE DUMMY!“
Their fingers curled into their palms as they tried to walk to the weapons. They looked down at them, then at Papyrus, and shook their head:
“I… I can’t…“
They shivered:
“I vowed to never use violence… it’s… can’t we just talk about this?“
Papyrus looked at the dummy, then back at Frisk:
“OF COURSE! I, PAPYRUS, UNDERSTAND YOU PERFECTLY! LET US FOCUS ON YOUR PUZZLE PROWESS INSTEAD!“
He came over, offered them his hand. After a moment, they took it.
The dummy remained motionless.
Then one of its cotton eyes twitched.
Suddenly, the dummy’s eyes turned red. It rose into the air and hovered in place, before its outer shell turned crimson. Its mouth opened, showing rows of razor-sharp teeth:
“NO TRAINING?! YOU THINK YOU ARE ABOVE VIOLENCE?!“
Frisk hid behind Papyrus who was just as surprised as the apparition continued:
“Pathetic. PATHETIC. PATHETIC!!“
The skeleton was about to say something, when the Mad Dummy interrupted him:
“I AM OFFENDED! FROM THIS DAY ONWARD, WE ARE MORTAL ENEMIES!!“
Enraged, the Mad Dummy flew away.
Frisk hesitated.
They were still here. They had run into a talking flower, a talking skeleton and now… a talking mad dummy…
Papyrus laughed nervously:
“THAT… THAT IS NEW! BUT FRET NOT, FRISK! YOU ARE SAFE HERE! I KEEP THESE HALLS IN PRISTINE CONDITION!“
Frisk still shivered. Papyrus put a hand on their shoulder:
“I AM HERE FOR YOU, FRISK!“
He looked sideways, then back at them:
“YOU NEED ANOTHER PUZZLE TO HELP YOU RELAX! COME!“
The next chamber looked almost identical to the previous one. Polished stone. Spotless walls. Every puzzle component arranged with obsessive precision. Then they ended up in a hall with a small bowl filled with sweets.
“YOU MUST BE HUNGRY FROM ALL THESE PUZZLES! PLEASE, HAVE A SWEET! NO! HAVE TWO!“
Their hands slowly reached inside. They wrapped one open and put it in their mouth. Milk. Suddenly, a ring. Papyrus walked to the side, picked up the call. Frisk took their second sweet, this one was strawberry. Not as good, but acceptable. Meanwhile, Papyrus only gave short answers like YES?, AND? and GOOD!.
Then he pocketed his phone and pulled another one out of his robe, walked right to them and got down on one knee:
“I AM SORRY, FRISK! I MUST TAKE CARE OF AN URGENT MATTER! BUT DON’T WORRY, IF SOMETHING’S GOING ON, JUST CALL ME!“
They pocketed the phone. Then they saw him open his arms as if he offered a hug. Frisk wrapped their arms around him tightly. Neither of them moved for what felt like minutes.
“EASY, FRISK!“
He slowly let go and got up. He stopped next to a small wooden sign that looked like it had been a stageplay prop:
“JUST FOLLOW THESE SIGNS AND YOU’LL ARRIVE AT MY HOUSE! UNTIL LATER!“
The further he walked away, the more Frisk stared at the phone in their hands. It was warm, just like the memory of their hug that still lingered. Somehow… this was scarier than what Fleur had told them.
After a long corridor filled with posters of different plays, a huge hall awaited Frisk. In the center stood a pedestal. On it, a statue of a grey blanket with eyes. Frisk narrowed their eyes to read the inscription: Mettaton…
Standing in front of it was a small dinosaur monster wearing a violet sweater, dark jeans, and worn sports shoes. She was scribbling something into a notebook.
Frisk slowed their steps. The dino wore glasses and the sleeves of her sweater were too long. They looked back at the statue. Like the rest of these halls, it was old, but in good condition. Some smaller parts had fallen off but it was still recognizable.
All of a sudden, something beeped. The dino closed her notebook, tucked it into her sweater, pressed a button, then turned around. Only to let out a startled shriek.
Frisk took a deep breath:
“Hello.“
The dino gulped:
“H-hi… y-you’re new, right?“
Frisk nodded:
“I think so.“
“Oh.“
Silence.
Only interrupted when the dino adjusted her glasses. Then again. Then a third time.
“I-I had planned something for when another monster showed up, b-but not a human.“
Frisk wasn’t sure how to respond:
“You did?“
“Y-yes.“
Even more silence. Frisk’s eyes wandered to the statue:
“Who’s Mettaton?“
The dino monster froze, then stared at Frisk as if they were the ghost:
“WHO IS Mettaton?!“
Frisk froze where they stood. The dino immediately seemed to shrink into herself.
“S-sorry…“
She pointed toward the statue:
“He was the greatest playwright in history.“
Dramatic pause.
“… in my o-opinion.“
Another dramatic pause.
“… and p-probably in general.“
More silence. Frisk broke it:
“You were writing something.“
“W-what? …oh…“
The dino looked away:
“I do that a lot.“
“About him?“
The dino stared at the ground:
“Y-yes… somebody should remember him.“
Frisk tilted their head:
“People don’t?“
Alphys sighed and let her eyes wander across the empty halls:
“Not like they used to…“
Another beep. The dino jumped:
“Oh no.“
Another beep.
“Oh no no no!“
Frisk simply looked at her:
“What?“
“O-oh my gosh! The shop! I need to go!“
“The shop?“
“Y-yes. P-please… come with me.“
Suddenly, the dino monster turned and walked away. Frisk followed. Around a corner, they saw a huge sign that said: Spider Sales Shop. The dino had just turned the sign on the door from CLOSED to OPEN.
Frisk had seen enough bakeries on the surface. Still, none of them had ever felt like a museum: Everywhere they looked, they saw posters, small figurines, and other merchandise about this grey ghost called Mettaton. That made the white ghost merch stand out more.
It dwarfed the selection of bakery goods by far. The dino had put on her name tag: Alphys. Putting on a smile, she started:
“H-hello. H-how nice of you to come here. How can I help you?“
Frisk pointed at the huge poster that covered the showcase:
“What can you tell me about Mettaton?“
As if she had waited to be asked that question, Alphys’ energy changed:
“He was the greatest playwright in history. When his plays were on, the entire Underground stopped. He produced and performed dozens of plays, starred in several successful TV shows that everybody quotes even to this day like his most famous ’Until next time!‘. He gave hope to the entire underground, so much so that he initiated a peaceful revolt and…“
Frisk soon lost track of what Alphys was saying. At one point, they looked at the white ghost figure nearby where another name was scribbled: Napstablook.
They couldn’t tell how much time had passed when Alphys took a deep breath, then sipped on her tea that had gotten cold during her explanation.
Frisk tugged on their sleeves. They almost dreaded the answer to their next question:
“Thank you… and… who’s Napstablook?“
Alphys gave them a warm smile:
“… his partner. They were always together.“
Frisk looked at one of the donuts:
“And… what happened to them?“
Her expression faltered. She looked at the two partner figures that were dressed like a bat and a circus artist:
“By some miracle, Mettaton could pass the barrier with his partner without the use of a human SOUL. He returned but… mortally wounded… and fell. He never got to finish his Magnum Opus.“
“Did you know him?“
Alphys looked down:
“No… I wanted to.“
Frisk eyed the book stack:
“Did anyone ever finish this Magnum Opus?“
Alphys touched her tea cup:
“No… “
Then she took a sip:
“Nobody knows where it is.“
“Do you have an idea where it might be?“
“...maybe… but… it’s probably far away from here.“
…
Frisk looked at this huge pile of fan merch once more:
“Why don’t you look for it?“
Alphys froze. Her fingers tightened around the cup:
“Because… the clues all lead outside the Old Halls…“
Silence. Frisk broke it:
“And?“
Alphys adjusted her glasses:
“I’ve never left.“
“Never?“
“…never… “
Frisk’s eyes wandered across the Mettaton merch, then back to Alphys:
“But… if you know where to start, then you already did the hardest part.“
She stared:
“What?“
“When people are looking for something, most times they don’t know where to look.“
Alphys looked at a folder on the counter:
“The last clue points to Autumn Farms…“
Pause.
“I could deliver the sales report personally…“
Another pause.
“… and maybe check something while I’m there.“
She gulped:
“I-I’ll think about this!“
As soon as Frisk had left the spider shop, their phone rang. Pocketing the donut – Alphys’ treat – they picked up:
“FRISK? WHERE ARE YOU?“
“At the spider shop.“
There was a short pause:
“SO YOU MUST HAVE MET ALPHYS. VERY NICE… JUST A LITTLE… TALKATIVE ABOUT METTATON.“
“Yes.“
“I AM PREPARING DINNER AS WE SPEAK, SOOO… INSTEAD OF WALKING THROUGH HONOR HALL, HOW ABOUT YOU TAKE THE SHORTCUT? IT’S RIGHT DOWN THE SPIDER SHOP TUNNEL AND THEN OVER THE WALKWAY.“
“I’m coming.“
“EXCELLENT! I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!“
“...likewise.“
After hanging up, Frisk continued through the corridors of this mausoleum. They couldn’t find any sign of dust. How much time must Papyrus have spent keeping it that way? All in honor of this Mettaton and his partner… the monsters really missed them just as Frisk missed…
They saw the set of stairs leading upwards. It took them a few minutes to climb up. Just to be overwhelmed by the sight of honor hall: a wooden walkway held by ropes over a huge mausoleum with several theater props. It reminded Frisk of Alphys’ shop but on a much greater scale.
At the other side of the bridge, they could make out a corridor leading down. The walkway creaked with each step they took. They heard something move above them… tiny red eyes stared down from the beams. Suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream as the Mad Dummy showed up right in front of them:
“THERE YOU ARE!“
Frisk froze as the dummy flashed a smile:
“ALL ALONE! NO PAPYRUS IN SIGHT!“
They suddenly felt very small:
“Please… can’t we talk about this?“
“NO!“
Then it stomped the walkway right in front of them:
“NOW, LET US SEE SOME VIOLENCE!“
Frisk froze as the dummy rushed towards them. They waited until the last possible moment to dodge to the right, only to lose balance and grab one of the ropes to stay on the bridge.
Then they heard gnawing. Above them, mini versions of the dummy ate at the ropes.
A loud snap. Frisk fell on the planks and tightly held on to them. More snaps. The walkway collapsed.
They fell.
…
The world spun. Frisk saw stars. They had landed on a huge crash pad that quickly deflated. They looked around. Honor Hall was almost as overwhelming as Alphys’ museum. Posters of some movies starring the greatest playwright of the underground. Several props and old costumes were on display here: pirates, judges, ninjas, plumbers, several pictures, mostly of Mettaton, then Napstablook.
The scream of the Mad Dummy got them out of their stupor. It came right from above!
Right down the hall, there was a huge sign labeled EMERGENCY EXIT.
They got up and ran as the screaming dummy smashed through the other props. Then they heard something huge.
They turned their head: A giant stone head of Mettaton, wearing a stylized bat mask, rolled toward them!
To their left, rubble. To their right, a stage.
Frisk jumped right. Wrong move.
The Mettaton head hit them.
Frisk was crushed with great pressure.