#CorruptedTale drabble

[mischief-rei]

Observing from afar, Trojan ponders if the end result would be worth it in the end for Rei. The child had a knack for reckless behavior, but this went beyond anyone’s expectations. 

With every continue made, there were residual wounds that wouldn’t heal. Not bloody gashes or bruising, but the feeling of nerves being severed and skin being ripped open. The mind made them remain and the rest of the body remembered. Throughout the pain, Rei still continued over and over again to fight against Frisk. It didn’t matter that they could just pop back into existence too. Until Frisk decided to stop fighting and let the world remain the way she managed to build it, Rei couldn’t afford to give up.

Eventually Rei couldn’t move from the overlapping pain. She still tried to stand, to keep at it, but she wasn’t able to take a step forward. Frisk watched as his determination steadily declined. Sans didn’t look this pathetic when they fought so long ago. Then again, he gave up trying after a while because their determination was just too strong. It didn’t help that Frisk could come back over and over again. It was just delaying the inevitable.  As Rei tried to crawl towards Frisk to continue their everlasting fight, Frisk knelt down and placed the knife down in front of her. “You’ll learn. You’ll find out for yourself that this world above is not any better than the world you came from.”

[mischief-rei]

Truth Of Above

“...wh...what the hell was I just...doing?” Pappy murmurs. His surrounding felt warped as if burning metal slowly oozed down concrete walls. He..just went drinking due to stress overload. Yeah. That was it. Did Molotov slip him something? He honestly didn’t put it past the elemental. When his vision finally cleared, he saw the layout of the underground as it had been in the past; vibrant and filled with monsters. “Ah...reset...” Pappy murmured in a disappointment. “Strange. Usually my memory isn’t that fuzzy when she triggers one...Hold on, I thought she claimed she couldn’t reset anymore!” Once able to steady his balance, he looked ahead towards home to find Rei standing at the door. Her eyes hollow, expression unreadable. “Rei, what’s wrong?” Pappy asks. Rei peered up at him. “I tried to stop Frisk. I found that I shouldn’t have. They were right. Monsters....shouldn’t go up there...” she answered in near monotone.  “Rei, they cannot remain down here forever either. Not only will there be eventual lack of supplies, but it’ll be overcrowded. Even if it may be a safe-haven for a time, it’s not going to be a permanent one,” Pappy explained to her. “It’s worse up there,” Rei argued. “Worse than everyone starving themselves or being in discomfort for whoever knows how long?” Pappy curved, tone becoming more firm. “I don’t believe I need to remind you of what happened to the few timelines that couldn’t reach the surface,” he adds.  Of course she knew. Sonar was still in such a devastated state thanks to the human of his world abandoning him and everyone else. Rei didn’t speak. Instead, she brought out a knife. 

“Would answering matter? You’ll just argue your point into the ground. You always do that,” Rei snaps harshly back. “Above...below...it’s all just...hell..” she cracked a smile, on that shot a shiver down Pappy’s spine. Rei had snapped. She had finally...snapped. “Maybe I will, but truly I wish to understand what could possibly be wretched enough to leave a whole race locked away until they rot. Who knows?...Maybe I might be inclined to believe you. At this rate, however, nether side is understanding each other if you keep this information to yourself,” Pappy pressed on.

[mischief-rei]

Strained Sanity

She couldn’t stand it. The voices were back. They clawed deeply in her mind, egging her on to go through with it so that resetting can be possible again. That would make the pain leave. That would keep everyone safe again. All she had to do was complete that one route. But what was wrong with how things were at this very moment? Everyone survived that ambush the mobswapfell committed. The new queen hadn’t influenced the old king yet. There’s still a chance that everything could go smoothly. The small, irritating swapfell queen, could be positive influence instead! And best part of all, no one had perished. 

‘And how long will that last? How can you trust that snobbish woman so readily? She ruined Noire and Valentine’s lives. Furthermore, you can’t speak because of what Sombre did to you and that fool,’ the voices raked against her brain, opening scars of fear.

‘Shut up..shut up...shutupshutupshutup!’ Rei countered. Her frame shook violently as she laid huddled in a tight ball at the corner of her brother’s room. While in such a feeble state of mind, a hand reached out and lightly laid upon her shoulder. “ey, kid, com’on, calm yourself down. you’re safe,” came Red’s familiar voice. He sounded worried. Probably looked it too. But all she saw was a face she feared and heard the taunting voice of her instigator within her skull. ‘shutupshutupshutup’ Rei rambled in her mind. Reaching into her coat pocket, she retrieved a kitchen knife and lunged at Red.

Red...didn’t have time to react to it. He stumbled back as he felt a flood of pain and the dampness of marrow.  “heh...guess that shows me for bein’ concerned for ya...eh?” he rasped. “though i...suppose i should’ve been more careful...wouldn’t have startled...ya if i had...” he says softly. Rei said nothing. She couldn’t hear him. Couldn’t see the damage she did. When she eventually came to, her sight fell onto a white powder that coated the floor. Red’s coat laid atop it.

LV’d Up!

[mischief-rei]

I Choose To Do This Instead

He stares at the corrupted text along his monitor. At his side is Pappy and Red, unusual considering the trio don’t care for each other. “If she were to reset now, it’d still result in a jumbled mess. Sure, the timeline would be restored after Sombre deleted it, but who’s to say that everyone would remain in their separate bodies or in shared ones? The variables are vastly different than before,” Pappy spoke out. This...stunned both Red and Astrix. While Pappy was attuned and accustomed to the general chaos that was alternate timelines and alternate worlds, nether believed that Pappy fully understood it.

“Might I also add that she’s also not against hacking to achieve her goals. I am certain she’s hid that she can use the reset ability one more time. Her actions are more than enough to declare this factual!” Pappy states firmly. “You’re free to assume whatever you wish, Papyrus. I do not think your paranoia is necessary no matter how much you explain it to me. She knows the risks of resetting outside timelines, especially with the residents scattered around and not in their own world. There’s two examples of what would happen and she wracks herself with guilt of it every single time she sees you and your brother, and even Merlot.”

“She’s careless, yes, but not an idiot,” Astrix huffs back in annoyance. “Then let me ask this: if she knew the risk the second time, why’d she do it? What makes her reasoning NOW any different from then?” Pappy argued. “Because this timeline she finally has a family to call her own. Why would she risk her own happiness for someone else’s?” Astrix asked back.

“Simple. She doesn’t believe she’s deserving of it after fucking up everyone elses,” Red threw in. Red was steadily agreeing with his brother. “Face it, old man, we know your daughter better than you!” Red smirked. “Oh, and, care to explain that if this paranoia is complete bullshit?” he points to the monitor. “You ARE trying to see that damn screen of hers right? The selection?”

Astrix turns silent. He didn’t wish to admit it, but yes that was exactly what he was doing. “Suppose you are correct. Suppose she is planning to do that, what makes you think she’ll do the same thing in the exact same way? If you’re that concerned then you shouldn’t be dwindling here. You should be trying to find her.”

“As I said before, she is smart, gifted even. I wouldn’t put it past her to erase everyone and everything before restoring the area to what it once was because that’d be the most convenient and safest route to take,” he informs.

Both Red and Pappy paled. They didn’t bother bantering back and forth anymore. They teleported out of the lab immediately to seek the youth out. Much to their dismay, what Astrix described was already being done. With no where to hide or go, the majority of the Monochrome timeline were gone. Only Merlot was alive, and he was currently at a bar assisting with a certain someone’s mental breakdown. 

[mischief-rei]

What is Real Anymore? (last part)

There’s a faint nod from Red. She’s surprised, half figuring he’d wish to hear no more of how their timeline used to be. “After the two Fells died at yours and Pappy’s hand, I reset the place. I never used my reset ability with two multiverse people stuck in our home before. I assumed they’d just get pull back into their timeline. When I awoke within the town’s tree, it was as if I leaped into another timeline again.”

“Everyone was gloomy. They’d look towards me with such pity. Every single monster kept apologizing to me. It...felt awkward. They didn’t question their appearance at all, they just focused on that they had treated me poorly along with the few humans that didn’t survive.”

Rei stopped. Red may as well have been statue as he proceeded to process what she had told him. “R..Rei...did we...go beyond just treatin’ ya like a trinket...” he sounded scared. Rei hesitated. That one detail was the one that broke Red before. “Yes. Yes ya did. However, that’s not who you are now. I choose to see that, not what happened several years ago,” Rei gave a patient smile. Red clutched the side of his skull. His shoulders trembled. “..You’re remembering more...aren’t you?” she frowned. “Y..yea..” Red said meekly. “How...Why...why did I forget all this in the first place?” he stuttered.  “Because you were given beta blockers, meds to make you forget certain events. Alphys tricked you into taking them,” she answered. “..Just..just so ya know...we were just tryin’ to protect you...It wasn’t due to not trusting or anything like that at all...” she tried to explain.

“I know that kid. Doesn’t mean I was better off bein’ clueless,” Red scowled back. “...sorry...” Rei murmured. “No..no don’t be...thank you for bein’ honest..” He lightly ruffled her hair. What a weird way of praise the skeleton had. “Last question...I swear...how..how long ago was this?...Whatcha mean by ‘several years’?” Red inquires. “I was 6 when I initially jumped off the mountain. What happened to Merlot’s area was when I was 8. And now I should be 16..if it weren’t for the resets.”

[mischief-rei]

What’s Real Anymore?

“How curious...I’ve always known the child to hide information, but she’d always admit to anything she did wrong. Are you truly in that much disbelief, Sans? It’s already been proven that she has the capability to cheat the system, as well as her own death. You know that better than anyone else.”

Red didn’t look well. And that wasn’t due to him being a Classic now. If his own brother hid something this important, what the fuck else was he hiding? And what about Rei for that matter?! What caused the kid to use her ability in the first place in such a risky way? It didn’t make sense. What made even less sense...was why did not remember it?

He couldn’t recall anything as a Classic Sans. He knew only his Fell life. Was it even true? Or was that just fabricated memories made in place of the jumbled timelines? So many questions riddled the small skeleton’s mind. He was so close to having a panic attack! 

“Does it truly matter? What’s done has been done and you cannot undo it, not even if another reset is triggered. From the point I see it, Sans, you’re still the same half-assed pun uttering annoyance I’ve always known. Papyrus is still the light hearted fool that prefers to befriend others instead of combat them.”

Everything was weird to Red’s mind. Everything. Astrix actually trying comfort him weirded him the fuck out even more! “It’s more than likely how you’re acting that Papyrus was hesitant on informing you. Sure, it’s a drastic change. But dwelling on what ‘used to be’ is pointless and will surely leave you in a further crippled state.” Astrix smirks at Red. They were prodding, trying to get a rise to either get him back to his normal self or providing an outlet for him to yell at. At this point, Red didn’t know which to believe.

[mischief-rei]

Shuffled Lines (pt.2)

Valentine intended to reach out to Rei, to get her to actually talk with him and quit wallowing around. Before he could, however, someone else beat him to it. A young woman with long navy blue hair and calming blue eyes.  Walking up to Rei’s side, she sat down in a patch of grass nearby. “Those past scars are hurting in more ways than one, aren’t they?” the woman asked. Rei, whom sat while hugging her legs close to her chest, slowly peered upward then somberly nodded. “While that pain is difficult to bare, have you asked yourself this? Why is everyone still attached despite all I’ve done? I bet you have a plentiful amount,” the woman carried on. Silence, yet another nod from Rei.

“It’s because they know who you are and what you’re truly like, Rei. There, hidden deep within you, is something they know that makes you a good person. That something that keeps them hooked, even through all the negativity that’s happened, is your ability to empathize.”

“Would a bad person bother with that? Would they care to see through another person’s eyes? Would they care enough to aid that person through their struggles, like you have?” they asked. Rei said nothing. A soft blush rose to her pale face. The woman smiled as she wrapped her arms around the youth in a firm hug. “No. They wouldn’t.”

[mischief-rei]

Coping Mechanism

It’d appear as though Rei was feeling a little better after hanging around Gruff for a while. The two spoke both heatedly and calmly until Rei was able to cope with her internal turmoil for a little while. That didn’t last.  Eventually Rei found herself visiting the Swapfell timeline to mainly occupy herself and hang around Noire. Of the skeleton duo, she tended to get along with him better than Val. There were moments, however, where Rei couldn’t resist checking out the new puzzles and traps Valentine would put out. Despite the conflict with the queen, Valentine still worked hard at his job. Steadily due to his dedication, the majority couldn’t truly believe that he nor his brother were a couple of traitors. Thus, the populous ignored the warrant on both. It didn’t take long for the queen to also give up entirely on her public for following that order. Some things she had to do for herself.

That evening, Rei persisted through the strangest mirror maze she’d ever come across. Each wall reflected varying colored tiles which dotted the path through the maze. Three colors in total. Yellow sent off a strong shock if stepped on. Green provided a small heal, grey did nothing at all. The mirrors made the task of proceeding through the maze pure hell. Rei was determined to complete it, however.

Perched in a high branch the siblings watched the scrawny child. Noire was amused by her insistence while Valentine was slightly disturbed by it; disturbed because the reasoning wasn’t ‘for fun’ on why she continued. Valentine felt as if Rei was intentionally harming herself to distract from her emotions. It wouldn’t be the first time she did something like that. 

“Papyrus, we should probably stop her in a few minutes...once she calms down a little,” Val suggested. “Why’s that? She’s just letting off some steam, Sans,” Noire answered. “Cause, it doesn’t feel right,” Val answered. Noire glanced over to his sibling, confused as to what he meant. “Are ya sure ya just aren’t worried she’ll make it through, thereby making what ya made pointless?” Noire asked back. “Not at all,” Val replied in a surprisingly calm tone. 

This caught Noire off guard. Usually his brother would get annoyed at such an accusation. He turned to look back to view the child once more. Now that Val mentioned it, Rei didn’t look...happy. It was as if she were moving around like a machine, barely emoting, even when zapped. “eh...you’re right...it don’t...” he murmured. 

[mischief-rei]

A Meaningful Conversation

Rei is settled at the end of a snowy cliff that looked on to the river that flowed towards Waterfall. Her mind wondered on the two wretched resets she had performed. It wasn’t as if she could fix the damage done. Resetting again would likely make everything worse. Besides that, would it matter if she did anything at all? Merlot would still hate her. Red would still resent her. Even Pappy, whom acted understand and calm about everything, wasn’t as close to her anymore. 

Was she supposed to endure it? Cope with all those false smiles flashed her way and the pain she caused towards her own family? 

“Are you going to continue to ridicule yourself and abandon what you’ve managed to obtain, human?” came a voice from behind. Rei jumped! She spun around, freezing in place upon recognizing whom leaned against a nearby tree trunk.

There’s silence as the old king looked past to the horizon where the sun was slowly peaking out. Rei didn’t know what to respond with. “Obtain? Would’ve thought you of all people can see a family turning to shambles!” the youth said coldly. Why’d she...say that? That was such a wretched thing to tell them! Just, what the hell?! And yet, she couldn’t take it back. Like the fucked up mistakes when using her abilities, she couldn’t take it back.

“Turning. Would’ve thought you of all people would know that nothing remains permanent unless you give up completely,” he stated dryly. Rei tensed as her gaze shoots down to the gravel she sat upon. “What can I do?! Anything I say makes everything worse!” Rei huffed. The king looks down at her, expression unreadable. He turns away, which Rei took as them not having any advice to give. To her surprise, however, he spoke out once more.

“Are you certain that’s the case? From my standing, I’ve heard banter back and forth, but you leave before witnessing the affect your words have made. It’s when you stop talking that messages are misconstrued,” they replied. That...wasn’t real useful. Seeing the irritation on the youth’s face, the king smirked and shook his head. “Child, there’s not an instruction manual for mending relationships. At least, none that solve all the connections in existence.” He meandered forward, then settled beside her on the frozen soil. “As they say, you can’t fully understand someone unless you’ve worn their shoes.”

Rei’s...fairly certain that wasn’t how that old saying went, but she figured it was close enough. 

[mischief-rei]

Short Drabble: Was It Worth It?

To the Anon that sent the following ask: “How strict is Pappy? I bet the kids around him get their way often.” -Forgive me for Tumblr deleted that ask, and for taking so damn long with it-

I hope this drabble answers your question and gives you insight on how strict this soft-hearted skeleton can be.

-----

Soot littered her from head to toe, from what the taller of siblings could guess to be from the persistent joyriding in the mines. Knowing that the tracks of the carts were often changed around due to humidity rusting the cheap metals or due to the periodic tunnel collapsing, Pappy often complained to Rei about her overall safety. He had warned her repeatedly, over and over, time and time again. Still she didn’t listen to a word of it. 

She’d argue back with simple lines such as; “I am being careful!”, “If I fall in I can easily enough come back.”, or “I wouldn’t set foot in the mines if I didn’t know I’d be fine.” These comebacks were often met with a groan and dismissive shake of his skull. This time, however, when just nearly losing the child to her wretched uncle, he couldn’t let her words by nor the reckless behavior. 

“Is that so? Can you prove that? For as I see it, it’s only a matter of time before you DO fall. And may I add that death by lava is not only slow but not recoverable from even WITH your ability to continue?” As he lectured, he backed Rei into the wall. This caught the child off guard completely. She had never seen him this way before. He reached out and snagged her by the arm. Opening her mouth to speak, he quickly cut her off by teleporting to the exact location he was scolding her about.

Rei looked to the carts in confusion then jerked her gaze upward when he nonchalantly drops her into one of the coal filled crates that were about to be transported. He settled beside her and kept her in place by gripping firmly to her soul with his infamous blue magic.

The mole monster quivered in shock at the peculiar behavior of the captain of the royal guard. He warned them where the coal was headed, but Pappy simply replied with “I’m aware,” and nothing more. He was going to prove a point and by god Rei would listen to him after all this nonsense!

The cart moved, and as predicted, towards the core where one other had already perished to a similar fate. Pappy ports up a ledge near the drop off while Rei clings onto the scorching metal rim of the track. Pappy still had hold of her with his magic, but Rei was too panicked to notice it. He didn’t help her further, just stared coldly down as she tried to find some way to get back up to safety. He did say for her to prove that she’d be ‘fine,’ did he not?

With tears streaming down her face, Rei tried desperately to get back to the quaint cavern,  but her skin melted and fused to the track. Pain shot through her hands and arm, unbelievable pain since every movement tore now blistering skin. She couldn’t pull herself to safety. To make matters worse, she couldn’t see Pappy and she could hear a second cart overhead approaching. 

Unable to keep herself attached, she soon let go of the now blood crusted bar. She fell a bit, but then was halted a foot away from the bubbling magma bed below. Pappy slowly hoisted her up to where they could see each other face to face. Rei was a trembling mess. “You realize had that worker not been there, which he hardly is, and I had not been present, that’d you be dead...correct?” Pappy stated firmly. Rei nodded meekly. “So, will you be doing this again?” Pappy asked. Rei shook her head no. “Good. I do not wish to wonder if you’ll ever return home ever again. I can say the same for Sans too,” he said sharply. He took her home after such a horrendous experience. He even healed the injuries she sustained. 

Rei never visited the mines sense then.

[mischief-rei]

Shuffled Lines

More and more she just couldn’t cope. Everything kept piling up. She felt like a burden to the people she cared for. Asgore temporarily housing her didn’t exactly help in that regard.  She tried to find various activities to distract herself; from visiting Swapfell to tinker around with the traps and puzzles Valentine crafted to periodically joining Pappy with their painting. Those idle things helped a little, but it just wasn’t enough. When approached by anyone claiming that she could speak with them with whatever was bugging her, she couldn’t say a single word. She could only just break down and apologize repeatedly. Naturally people would become confused by this, as it stood she hadn’t done anything wrong to them personally. At least...nothing that they could remember.

Therefore Rei persisted with avoiding everyone. Friends. Family. Acquaintances. She didn’t wish to worry anyone anymore. As if by removing her presence, she thought she could handle being alone and the people around her would move on and no longer give a damn. It’s happened before, so why not now too?

Little did Rei realize, the one person that she firmly believed to hate her, preceded to keep tabs on her from a distance.

“...” While he didn’t understand the distress Rei was going through, he saw a few clues here and there. One major one being the way Rei walked. She shambled about like a wounded animal and her eyes would turn a glow of pink hues.  

[mischief-rei]

~True Colors of the Jester~

* You hear a passing conversation

“Jevil, what about Amour?...He’s going to want his brother back you know...” Rei points out.

“We are sure they will, but they shall remain there still. They will not leave until they resolve their issues without harming outsiders to sate their fails of when they didn’t protect their sibling prior.”

“Can’t we just talk to Amour? This is really a family matter that just unfortunately stretched itself over into our timeline.” Rei fretted that Amour would seek revenge or would collapse from depression. Amour was the most emotional Sans’ she had ever come across! He was also the most unpredictable Sans’ as well.

“If they were capable of swaying Sombre, they would’ve done so before Merlot and Pappy’s capture. Would you have rather them carried on? Beating your family and friends until they’re gone? How self centered Rei is. This was the one solution without adding LV to our status,” Jevil shoots back defensively. He just saved all three of them! He risked himself to make sure both sides made it out alive! And now this little upstart had issues with how he chose to handle the situation?! How rude!

“W-Wait! I didn’t mean it like that!” Rei stuttered as she frantically waved her arms about. “I-I was just worried about his brother. I don’t mind what you did, Jevil...if anything I am thankful it didn’t turn to that!” she explained. Jevil squints at her. “What would Rei have done instead? We think they would’ve lost themselves in bloodshed...” he says harshly. 

Rei went silent for a moment. “Yea. I probably would have,” she admitted. “Almost did until you showed up. Wouldn’t you do the same? If the only people that matter to you in your life were tortured?” she asks him calmly. Jevil blinked. This caught him off guard. “No, we would not. We’ve be upset, true, but we would not lower ourselves to their level...we’d rather them remain in a cell to rot..” he stated in near monotone.

“Slow sinks in more. Slow will likely drill into their skull. Slow gives chance for someone to turn around from their poor choices and break less rules,” Jevil explained. Rei shuddered. Not just from their words, but from how they looked back at her. “Don’t act naive. You’ve done similar, we’ve seen! Holding one hostage and tormenting them into behaving...You’re no different from Sombre when it comes to looking out for your family.”

Rei looked pissed, but she couldn’t argue his logic. What had gotten into him? This was a Jevil she had never witnessed before. “Is there a point here?” she quips. Jevil smiled innocently back at her. “Yes. Point is that you’re not caring about Amour. You sympathize with Sombre. We-Hate-Liars.”

“Y-You’re the liar! I would NEVER sympathize with him! Amour? Hell yes! He didn’t ask for any of this shit to happen!” And yet Rei turned pale as fear encased her whole body. They couldn’t be right. She refused to believe he was right!

[mischief-rei]

CorruptedTale Arc: Graying World

Rei decided to investigate the ruins first, to see if one family problem was still present. During her way there, she found an unfamiliar winding stair case. Her eyes wondered up. The ruins were abnormally taller than she last visited. Perhaps she wasn’t in her timeline at all. Perhaps there wasn’t even a reset that was made.

She took a moment to look at herself, something she probably should’ve thought of first before assuming a rewind took place. She still had her teenage body. She wasn’t an 8 year old. She was 16, like she should be. Suddenly, an eerie laugh erupts above. Her eyes shoot towards the stairs, catching sight of a peculiar woman in grey hues.

Their words were as sharp as nails on a chalkboard, tinted with a passionate cue of adoration. It sent chills down Rei’s spine. Who were they? Were they the reason why she wasn’t at home? Moreover...why’d the woman label her a thief? All these questions flooded her mind at once. A single voice from within answered.

‘That is Brandi, this world’s Toriel. This timeline is the supposed Classic timeline we wondered into and merged with nearly 4 years ago. And what do i mean by supposed? Well, obviously that’d be your assumption. This isn’t a Classic timeline, Rei. It’s not even Blue, Swap, Glitched, or Thrill Seeker. It’s an oddity like our own with its’ own set of rules that go beyond that silent law of Kill or Be Killed.’

‘Welcome to Monochrome; a Mercy-less zone. Mercy isn’t an option from the get go. It doesn’t even show up. The silent law here? Do or Die. Act out your survival instincts. Be creative.’

[mischief-rei]

Modded Life

After what seemed like months of awkward distance, the group had finally come to accept what happened behind the Ruins doors. None bothered to bring the topic up, deciding it was best to leave it back with the antique building. 

It took a lot of convincing to get Pappy out of that reclusive shell again, even more to visit people outside their timeline whom he had feelings for. The one that finally got him to leave home, oddly enough, was Vesper. His other half had threatened to separate from his body, like Rhen could from Rei, just to get to the people he had been avoiding. 

It’s at this point that the observer over the lot decides to tweak a setting or two.

Guided by a glitch and scientist of separate worlds, Rigor erases Vurnan’s option to ‘Continue’ despite death. As for Rei, he permits only 3 Resets. Just 3 chances and no more. It seemed more than reasonable to the serpent. 

One last change was made; the ability to remember the individual that had reset time. From now on, it’d be a completely blank slate where Rei could choose her path from scratch just like everyone else whom held the god-like ability to rewind time.

But he chose the wrong moment to perform such drastic changes. Rigor didn’t account for what Vurnan would do in the lull after Rita Faust’s death...

[mischief-rei]

Love Is War - Part 2

While cameras in some areas fail to function, others were given a brief glimpse before they, too, were knocked offline. 

About the only surveillance that could still be used and couldn’t be tampered with by Vurnan’s gadgets was in an entirely different plane of existence, one within the void which Astrix frequently kept tabs on. Even now he was observing, and the sight he saw made him visibly ill. And yet, not nearly as much as not being able to freely go to his daughter’s side. Nothing felt worse than feeling helpless towards your own child. Nothing.

He was desperate, so very desperate; especially after those altercations were made by Rigor. There wasn’t any room for errors to be made. He had to grasp at straws just to attempt contact with both of his sons, but even still the messages could not be sent. Each one failed to reach their destination. 

Astrix had another idea though, but he was wary of it. The idea of opening a rift, since he could certainly manage such a feat at his current distance. He quickly dismissed that too, however. That’d only cause more chaos to just drop Vurnan off along with Rei at some other timeline. 

Astrix sighs. He supposed he could travel, but only his soul would make it through. He’d be hollow, like a corporeal, and unable to defend himself well. He’d be completely exposed to anything and everything. Wherever he ended up venturing to had to contain reliable people, but also be danger free for the most part for his own survival. 

Sure, he could send Flowey instead and they’d have their full body in tact to defend themselves. Flowey wanted no part of human corrals though, so the monster turned plant wouldn’t cooperate in the slightest for he just didn’t give a damn.

No. It had to be him. And so, he scanned the timelines that he knew his children frequented often. 

----

(If you are interested in having a chance to be part of this story arch and wish for a thread based around it, either IM or Like this post. Please note that I am only accepting those that have had their characters make contact with mine in the past. If my characters don’t know yours, you won’t be accepted. Sorry :/ )

[mischief-rei]

Bittersweet Wisdom

Unease washed over Red. Not just from the news that Pappy shared, about him killing their mother, but from something else that the smaller skeleton couldn’t identify just yet. His brother was still very out of it after that encounter with Rita. Eyelights absent, expression guilt ridden yet vexed at the same time..To top it off, Pappy seemed a little colder than normal and insistently isolated himself from everyone. 

Red didn’t know how to help Pappy. He had suggested for them to speak with his mate or visit a few pals outside their timeline for a while, that maybe just by being around them he’d get to his normal self. 

Pappy outright refused this idea. Not that he didn’t love spending time with them, but what he did to Rita scared the hell out of him! His other half took over! He had no control over the situation! Pappy feared that he’d attack Paps, Time, Random,  or just about anyone he’d usually have no problem getting in contact with! If he had harmed those he loved, it’d ruin him. That much Papyrus was sure of.

Hm. So this was why Rigor played god; why he manipulated the playing field so much! All that effort to get them to find a middle ground with their alternate egos. No matter the reasoning though - it felt wrong. He felt helpless. The voice echoing within him did little to help to boot.

‘Enough of that. You act like its’ the end of the fuckin’ world, ya damn drama queen. Just admit it already; you’re happy she’s gone. Her existence had no value anymore as soon as you learned what sort of person she TRULY was.’ Vesper paused, only to sneer in disgust.

‘I can feel it. You’re wishing to go back. To go back like Rei can. Pathetic. You know it’s not just us that serpent is concerned with, correct? It’s because everyone’s become reliant on that child’s ability to rewind the world.’ Pappy felt a sharp jab to his soul at their words. He didn’t agree. He didn’t agree at all with that assumption. But, Vesper continued onward without remorse.

‘Pappy, think way back. Remember what you told the kid when her personality issue got out of hand? That she’d spaz and reset even before anyone got killed by her blade?’

“...Why are you bringing this up? You know I wouldn’t ask that of her. Turning the clock won’t change my decision nor would the outcome of it be any different...” Pappy sighed in exasperation. 

‘Somehow, I doubt that. And you do too, based on that tone of uncertainty you’re holding.’