#this is moving at a snail's pace now and I fear for my sanity

[tirorah]

I'm going to leave it here for tonight. Fortunately we're about to hit the more action-y part of the episode, so I'll have slightly less words to type. ...I hope.

Oh, and I made a mistake in the previous post: the score is 4 - 4. I momentarily forgot that Minako got a solid last word in during her previous scene with Rei.

For now, I leave you with this collage:

[afarcryfromfine-blog]

Chapter Three: “Are you my Mom-Friend?”

Word Count:1,492

Warnings: 

In the end, I couldn't just call him. I felt too odd. I sat there staring at the computer screen just willing myself to tap that stupid pad. I decided that I'd go to my cell phone company tomorrow and add on international texting. I'd find some way to afford it.

I'd managed to do a repeat of the night before. But this time I had a hangover on top of it all. Staring at the computer made me depressed last night. I wanted so badly to see him and be in Korea again. But we were an ocean apart. It would have been too hard to hear his voice or see his face, knowing he was so far. I'd had a full bottle of wine to myself. I sat there in my PJs, flipping through old photos of him and I together; my laptop open to the side just waiting for me to hit the green button. It shouldn't be this hard. At least what I had told myself over and over again. I totally missed my study group because I'd gotten so lost in loose photos of my Korea memories. I'm sure I'd regret that come midterms. So now here I am. Standing in line in a not so grand part of town at Sprint. I wore flip-flops with long loose-fitting jogging pants and an oversized hoodie. My purse was strung over my shoulder and across my chest. My hair was in an impressive mound on top of my head with strands sticking out everywhere. Kind of mimicking a sea urchin in the water. But they look cool, me- not so much. The line seemed to be going slower than a snail's pace. I was becoming impatient. Something that, granted- was a pretty common occurrence. But between a screaming child that was demanding she wanted to leave, to the woman in front of me who I swear to you, took a bath in perfume- my hangover- well, wanted to hang me. My head was throbbing from the noise, the lights, and the walking perfume bottle. I nearly ran over a child when I heard a sales representative to my left say he could help someone. Get the fuck out of my way, was my only thought. I had been here for forty-five minutes. I needed to get moving. Slamming into the counter a little more aggressively than planned because someone's loose minion was in my way and I nearly busted the kid in the face with my knee. Not on purpose, I assure you. So it was more of a landed trip, than slamming into the counter. He gave me a weak smile. "What can I do for you today, Miss?" I smiled as best as I could, "I need to add international texting and calling to my line, please." He nodded and gathered information, confirming my name, address and account PIN number. It only took about 15 minutes for everything to be 100% set up and verified. I learned that I'd be paying about $20.00 more a month for this, which shocked me. I would have thought It'd have been at least $50.00. Not that I'm complaining. As I turned to leave, the child that'd I'd nearly bashed in the face- his mother was glaring at me. I ignored her. Not my fault you have a child who wants to run around and get into shit. Or the fact you don't care to actually watch him. Now, I realize these things make me sound like an awful human being, and I assure you I love children; and can't wait to have my own. But all in due time. Finally, I made it onto the crowded sidewalk and headed back to my apartment. I opened my contacts and tapped the number that'd been testing my sanity. 

To: +82-555-0011-1234 I'd like to offer $5.00 ransom for the green sock, you're holding captive.

Send. If he didn't get that- I was going to have to smack him next time I saw him. After hitting send I realized that it was 4 am by him right now. Whoops. But knowing him, he's snoring with no fucks to be given, drool dripping down one cheek and his hair in a worse state than mine could ever be in. As I droned mindlessly back to my apartment- my phone vibrated. 

From: +82-555-0011-1234 And if I refuse...?

I laughed and stopped in my tracks to reply. Yes, don't judge me. I can't text and walk, I'm not quite that magical. Yet. I quickly tapped back-

To: +82-555-0011-1234 You Feind!

I resumed walking hearing people grumble, I assume because I'd come to a complete stop in the middle of the sidewalk. Sorry man, would you rather I walk into you with your fancy business suit and make you spill your coffee because I was trying to multitask, where I can not? Wait..

To: +82-555-0011-1234 Excuse me- What exactly are you doing awake...?

Yes, I double texted, sue me. I have no fear! The rest of my walk home my phone remained quiet. Maybe he'd woke up to use the bathroom or something and fell back asleep...? I rummaged through my purse coming near the steps. "Common, where are my keys-!" I was grumbling to myself so dead set on finding them, I hadn't noticed someone coming out of the main door. I slammed into them. "Ah-! I'm so sorry!" I looked up, "Oh. Just you." I said monotone. The person just glared back, "Excuse me, Bitch?" they snapped back. Silence passed between us, and we both started laughing. "Girl, you look like shit, what the Hell happened to you...?" she said eyeing my homeless style. "Ohh, you know. Boys, lack of sleep, working overtime." I nodded it off like it was so simple. But she knew. "Honey, at least take a shower!" she said pinching her nose and waving her hand in front of her face. "You smell like you had sex in a bottle of perfume." I busted up laughing, "So sweaty and 100 gallons of old lady musk?" I questioned, she nodded, fanning still. "Stop that!" I laughed, "Some old lady at Sprint bathed in the shit- I didn't think I smelled like it though." I said smelling my hoodie. Mistake. "Good Jesus, Maybe that's why people were grumbling as they passed me," I said feeling my eyes water, and nose hairs curl. In case you're lost- this is a normal conversation between my best friend and I. Harley. She's a Phycology Major at the same college as me, and also my study buddy. Ohhh... "Ahh, sorry about missing the study group last night. I found myself trapped at the bottom of a wine bottle, buried in old memories." She only looked at me, studying me. "That explains the bags..." she said pointing at her own under eye. "I look pretty rough, don't I?" I said pitifully. She only nodded, with a look of 'get yourself together'. We mother each other constantly. I think that the only reason we're actually able to survive college life. We are each other's, mothers. "Did you lose your keys again..?" she asked, seeing I was elbow deep in my purse, still not grabbing hold of my Anime themed lanyard. "Potentially..." I mused quizzically. That earned a laugh. "I've got your spare, hang on." she opened her purse and dug into her wallet, yanking out a dingy silver key. "Ahh, you blessed angel," I said opening my arms for a hug; to which she abruptly stopped me. "Shower, then we can hug." I chuckled and nodded. "Fair enough." Finally, in my apartment, I realized how absolutely messy it was. Company always makes you aware of these things. Now I get why my mom always rushed around after learning we'd be having guests. Completely get it now. Sorry, Mom. "Jesus Christ Katrina!" she scolded as she passed the threshold. "Yes mother, I'll clean today." I waved her off. "No ma'am, now. This place looks like a landfill, and smells like one too!" she said squishing up her face in disgust. I whined but understood. "You get the living-bedroom and I've got the kitchen. And do I even want to look at your bathroom...?" she said looking slightly queasy. "Shockingly, I'll have you know- it's rather clean," I said happy with myself. "Because you haven't showered in a month I bet!" she basically screamed. I gave her my best-offended face, "Two weeks and one day I'll have you know," I looked away, "thank you very much." Not helping my case. "Kat, why didn't you just move into the dorms like everyone else, you pay the same here as you would there," she questioned me as she picked up empty Ramen cups and threw them in the garbage. "We've been over this," I warned, she only shook her head and urged me to actually clean. To which I obviously protested. But she won.

[storywars-r]

1/24 - Nomad

(Xinjun Zhang)

Chapter 1 by R

It's probably one of the prettiest views this half of the city, one of the sole windows in the grand wall, looking out upon the other half. It's telling that the prettiest view is through a window, that even the beauty here is looking out at somewhere else. For now, this is where the Traveler makes their home.

No, not a home, because home implied permenancy, and above all else the Traveller was fluid, constantly moving. There were some this side who claimed a place their own, but it was dangerous workings.

Staying on your feet, ready to abandon everything you own, that meant survival. Hells, in this part of the city, you sacrificed pieces of yourself to keep on moving. The Traveller was missing legs, others arms and chunks of chest. A few had soul-traded, though the legitimacy of that was highly dubious.

An alarm sounded, echoing through the great wall. A door was opening, which meant someone was entering. The Traveller made their way down the ladders of the inner side of the wall, peeking over the edge to find the opening, where people rushed to see who or what had entered the slums.

Chapter 2 by Yusuf Usususf

The city guards had burst through the doors, unsurprisingly. It was another one of their damned raids that the people of the slums despised with a flaming passion. These guards never failed to make life in the slums more miserable then it already was.

The Traveler has made many questionable choices throughout their time in the city. You could say they've a small reputation of getting in places where no one else can but that's all pub speak. No one's actually been able to contact the Traveler because, as expected, they're always on the move, hidden away somewhere.

A part of the reason the city guards conduct these many raids on the city's slums is, of course, to find the Traveler and imprison them. Someone like the Traveler is too dangerous to be left alone to roam in the deepest, darkest corners of the city. That said, the city guard is a corrupt institution hell-bent on terrorizing and subduing the people of the slums and keeping them from rising up.

However, today's raid was extremely different from the rest.

Chapter 3 by BluNerd

"Disarm yourselves or be sent to the Chambers!" yelled the city guards upon barging through the doors. At this, all of the present city dwellers dropped all of their weapons without a word.

The city guards had a unique power, one that could not be explained by 21st century science. In fact, it could not be explained by any science other than that of the creator of the city guard.

"Dwayne B. Howard", a member of the guard droned in its monotonous voice. "Charged with the theft of two loaves of bread from the Central Market", it continued. "You have been read guilty".

At this, a smaller, but equally as fierce-looking guard picked up the man buy the collar of his falling-apart shirt and carried him through the door that the guard had entered through.

"Off to the Chambers with him!" said one of the guards happily. It's tone showed that maybe it still had enough human left in it to feel emotions. Evil emotions, but still emotions.

The reason that Dwayne B. Howard did not react to his (true) accusation was because he knew it would do nothing but worsen his sentence. To an outsider, it may seem there was no worse sentence than the Chambers, but they'd be easily corrected.

As this played out, the Traveler simply watched from atop a roof. At this moment though something that the Traveler did not think possible happened, something the Traveler did not think the guards were capable of doing.

"Subject T within 100 yards from here." said a guard in an unnervingly monotonous voice.

"City scum! Find the Traveler! He who finds the Traveler is rewarded with ten pounds of rice!" commanded a guard who appeared to be in charge.

The Traveler was astonished. She quickly racked her brain for any idea that could rid her from this situation. What astounded her more was when the city folks simply stood there, as if they were completely oblivious to what the guards had just said.

"Hmm. Oh well, guess you'll all be sent to the Chambers." said the guard that appeared to have some human left in him. The human left in him clearly wouldn't last long.

The traveler was amazed that tens of people just gave up their sanity to the City Guard for her. Taking advantage of this, she disappeared to a whole different corner of the city, to wait for the next time she needed to move.

Chapter 4 by BluNerd

A man is somehow surmounting the great wall that separates the utopia from the dystopia. He somehow finds footholds on the seemingly impossibly smooth stone. His grip is incredible. This man is searching for the Traveler. Not to turn her in, like most of the drunken searchers intend to do. No, this man needs her help. He knows how to find her, too. He was sentenced to the Chambers by a lone guard patrolling the street, a rare sight in the "utopia". Not knowing what to do, he ran, for surely those robotic legs couldn't keep up with him. Now thousands of posters with his face and the word "wanted" hang in the streets. And now, certainly, even a distopian city guard would arrest him.

He effortlessly climbed over the top of the wall, and then began the climb back down the other side. Easy, but time consuming he thought to himself.

Once he had reached the dystopia- not a feat many intentionally accomplished -he immediately began sprinting for what was left of the Akseller Building. The man, preferring to be called "Rocky", threw himself up the stairway as fast as he could, as the elevator was of course out of order. He knew exactly which floor- the 34th.

"Angela?" yelled Rocky.

"You know I don't like to be called names, Rocky." said the Traveler, sliding down the banister.

"Oh haha, very funny, I appreciate the pun", remarked Rocky extremely sarcastically.

"So, what do you want?" asked the Traveler.

"How do you know that I want something? Maybe I just wanted to come check up on my sister!" said Rocky, knowing how obvious that that wasn't true.

"Yep. Seriously, what do you want?"

"Err... So I kinda got sentenced to the Chambers. But then I ran away from the guard. And now I'm wanted." he said, ashamed.

"Sentenced?!? What for?!?" remarked the Traveler.

"Don't pretend that you aren't being hunted by the city guard on a daily basis. And err I'd uh rather not share why I got sentenced" mumbled Rocky.

"Hmm. Then I guess there'll be no help for you." she said, turning her back and walking in the opposite direction.

"Fine!" yelled Rocky.

"What was that?" said the Traveler without turning around.

"I'll tell you why I got sentenced."

She turned around, a smug look on her face. That trick always worked on her little brother.

"I sneaked into a dictator's house while he was sleeping and killed him." he said, embarrassed.

"How many dictators do they have over there, again?"

"'bout a hundred"

"No wonder you weren't wanted immediately" said the Traveler.

"What should I do?" asked Rocky nervously.

"Kill more dictators." said the Traveler matter-of-factly.

"How? I'm just one guy and anyone who sees my face'll-" Rocky tried to say but was interrupted.

"I'll help you." said the Traveler.

Chapter 5 by NapoleonDyna_fighttherussians

The traveler liked "they." "They" was less complicated, they had less expectations. They didn't have a specific way to walk, a specific way to laugh, a specific way to act around those of the opposite sex. The same went for the Traveler, the Traveler didn't have any obligations, any places to be.

Rocky, however, had many expectations

"...and I said to mom 'you know Angela, she'll talk to you when she's ready' and of course the woman starts crying..."

Rocky was getting on their last nerve.

"...so this guy—must've been seven feet tall—he comes up and swings at me, right? And so I grab his fist, stop it mid-air, and this brute he just gives me this look like 'what do you think you're doing' right before I flip him over the table..."

The sewer tunnel they were crawling down had great acoustics, and the Traveler could hear Rocky's voice coming at them from every direction. Both of them were constricted by the space, covered in things the Traveler didn't want to think about. They had maybe two feet of space in this shaft, and couldn't stand up any higher than being on their hands and knees. The steep angle of the shaft also meant that they had to focus very hard to keep moving forward at their snail's pace without slipping. All of this conspired to make it so the Traveler could not shut out Rocky and his ridiculous stories no matter how hard they tried. It was enough to get on anybody's last nerve.

"...and what does the woman do but slap me straight across the face, says—"

"Shut. Up." grunted the Traveler.

"Well you're not great company yourself, Ms. I'm-too-stoic-and-mysterious-to-hold-a-conversation," Rocky replied, in spirits far too good for someone who was covered in excrement.

"Shut up, because we're almost there, and I'd rather they didn't get a ten-minute warning that someone's coming because your nasal voice carries so far," they deadpanned.

"My voice is not nasal," protested Rocky, outraged.

"Shut up."

Rocky mumbled something indiscernible.

"Please."

"Fine."

They proceeded in silence from there, only the squish squish squelch squish sounds of their progress and the occasional scamper of a rat in the distance breaking the quiet. The Traveler thought maybe the stories hadn't been so bad.

Finally, they reached a grate. Squares of golden light filtered through the bars—sunlight had never looked so good. Taking a pair of heavy duty pliers from their belt, the Traveler clipped the edges of the grate until in fell with a slosh and a clatter into the tunnel below.

They clambered out. Rocky's eyes were wide with a look of fear that they had seen too often in their childhood. The Traveler pressed a hand to his shoulder, and a finger to their lips. Now was not the time.

This was a forgotten part of the city, for most. The warehouses here used to be full of amazing things, in another time. Crates of spices filled a few, beautiful, cutting edge fashion filled others, and amazing technologies that were the envy of the rest of the world filled the rest. That time was gone. Parts of warehouses were caved in. Many of those that offered shelter were filled with addicts, hooked on the latest drug. Next to the Traveler and Rocky, the word BIRTH was scrawled, taller than they were.

The Traveler led them down a winding street to a large iron door that seemed no different from the rest. Written in uneven lettering on the door were the words "loose cannon." The Traveler removed two screwdrivers from their belt, passing one to Rocky. Silently, they began removing the hinges of the door.

Eventually, the only thing holding the door in place was its own inertia. Things at rest tend to stay at rest unless acted upon by an external force. The Traveler was happy to provide that outside force.

The Traveler rammed the door down with a massive kick. Inside, the room was filled with thugs and miscreants, who started and reached for their weapons, one falling off his chair in surprise. Never let it be said that the Traveler didn't know how to make an entrance.

The Traveler strolled into the smokey haze of the room, ignoring the weapons pointed at them until they arrived at a desk at the far wall. Sitting behind this desk was an enormous man, maybe seven feet tall. Rocky recognized him as someone he might've inflated stories about, maybe someone whose fist he'd claimed to have stopped in mid-air.

The man's face was impassive as the siblings strode towards him. It only changed slightly as the Traveler slapped two large, ancient-looking coins onto the table.

"I believe you owe me a few favors," they said.

Chapter 6 by Shasta

The man took them, continuing to chew on his cigar. He examined them, turning them this way and that in the light.

The Traveler didn't have time for this. She had already spent to much time here. People knew her brother, and her mother. She had allowed herself to get too attached to a place.

The man grinned, chumming at his cigar. "What type of favors?"

"A pardon for a sentence to the Chambers," they said. It was not a question, nor was it a suggestion. It was a command.

The man was shocked. His eyes widened and his cigar dangled lifelessly out of his mouth. "Y-You think I have that type of clearance?"

The Traveler leaned over the table, eyes smoldering. "I know you do. The question is if you can. I've heard that you're on a leash-- can't do to much without having it cleared--"

"Silence!" the man yelled. "Of course, I can do it! Who's it for?"

"Him," they said, jerking their thumb back towards Rocky.

"Him?" the man asked incredulously.

"Yes."

"You know who he is?" the man said, opening a box.

"Who?"

"Head of the milita. He don't have nothing on him. He's not going to the Chambers, Traveler."

Rocky smiled. "Of course, I'm not. But you are, dear sister. Grab her!"

Around the room, everyone surged towards them.

[volpereborn]

ZooDystopia Chapter 2

Part 2

Still feeling a bit miffed, Nick decided that it was best for him to try to unwind before he got to work. Turning on the car radio, he cycled through the usual static until he found what he was comfortable with. It was a light and airy song about people trying to find the best parts of life. It made being stuck in traffic almost bearable, almost. No sooner had Nick left downtown did he encounter the all too familiar experience of traffic. Checking his watch, he decided that he wouldn't be that late to work, he put on his sunglasses and got comfortable.

Fauna City was pretty, that was for sure. The way the buildings all have this almost organic feel to them. Each one unique in it's own way and seems to dazzle and amaze more than the next one. Every building eclipsing and encompassing you, making your feel that you were being simultaneously hugged and looked down upon...well at least if you cared. Being a fox meant having people look down on you all the time and not always because of height. Nick averted his eyes from the scenery around him and focused back on traffic.

Running a mental checklist of today's tasks, he was astoundingly ahead of schedule. Yet still, as much as he had accomplished already, he still had work to do. Nick was snapped out of his daydreaming when the car in front of him moved slightly. Getting filled with hope, Nick nudged his foot on the gas, only to have to release it immediately as the car in front stopped abruptly. Feeling his grasp on sanity start to be weakened, Nick started fidgeting to pass the time. He tried to find a radio station that didn't play repetitive music, he tried counting all of the individual hairs on his paw, he pretended his fingers where the legs of a man skating on the tops of cars. Eventually his forehead became friends with the steering wheel as he found himself literally being bored to sleep.

Nick was brought back to sanity when the cars behind him honked at him. Looking up, he saw that traffic had started to move and with a tear from his eye he sped up. Going over the large bridge over the bay of Fauna City, Nick could just make out his "office building". Or at least that is what he called it. Almost exiting the bridge, Nick could see the parking lot where his office was located; more importantly he could also see that a large and sizable line had already started to form. Nick cursed to himself. As he exited the bridge and took a quick turn left, he entered the parking lot. Rounding the corner he could see that the line had actually gone down the block and under the bridge. Feeling his stomach drop, he hurried and parked his car in the parking spaced labeled "THE BOSS".

As Nick walked up to the small building in the middle of the parking lot that had a modest sign stating "CLINIC", he could see that the crowd had already started to get restless. Predators of all sizes and backgrounds where waiting in line, some of them patiently while others where going mad from clawing at their collars. As he entered the small clinic a fat bespectacled cheetah wearing a lab coat tackled him.

"Oh my god thank goodness you're finally here! Nick I swear I thought these animals were going to attack me. I thought there was going to be a riot!"

"Clawhauser,"

"Its just that its almost 4 and the doors aren't even open yet. I saw people checking their watches and tapping their foot. Some people were even looking though the window to see if there was anyone there and I got scared."

"Clawhauser,"

"I mean what am I going to do if they try to break in? I'm just one person-"

"CLAWHAUSER!"

"Yes Nick?"

"Couple things, one get off me, two don't worry I am here now, three its only 3:30 we don't open till 4:30 so how about you calm down and let's get this show on the road?"

"Oh yeah…sure…right with you boss!"

Clawhauser got off of Nick and helped him up. He was large for a cheetah, well actually any animal really. Years of stress eating and a sedentary life style had gotten to him. In spite of his shortcomings, he was a valuable and trustworthy companion to Nick as he knew his way around people. His collar was tight and caused his neck fat to bulge around the band. Nick brushed himself off and watched Clawhauser poke around the medicine on display.

"Hey Spots! I just said be ready for work tomorrow, I didn't say come in costume."

"I don't know I thought it would make this place look official. Oh here we go."

Clawhauser found a small pill bottle on the shelf and pulled it out. There was a series of clicking noises and the whole of the back wall swung in, revealing a tunnel going down. Taking off his sunglasses, Nick told Clawhauser that he would message him when to open up and descended down the stairs. Using his phone flashlight, Nick walked down further and further into the earth. Each step down the tunnel made a creaking noise that edged Nick's teeth. Nick knew that he had reached the bottom when he could see bright lights coming from the end of the tunnel.

The bottom of the stairs opened up into a large room that held the true nature of the clinic and if by chance you were not able tell from the sight alone, a large wooden sign hung in front of the entrance proudly stating "WILDE TIMES". There in this great room was a theme park, by predators for predators. This was a place where no predator had to worry about being judged, a place where predators from all over the city came to relax.

This was Nick's life's work and this was the only place in the city where he truly felt happy.

"Daddy's home" Nick whispered as he walked passed the attractions. There was everything that a stressed predator could want here. A roller coaster, a maze entirely in the dark, a huge and twisting water slide that went up to ceiling, you name it, this place had it. The employees of Wilde Times who Nick fondly nicknamed his "Wildlings" waved to him as he passed by on his way to his office. There all mostly requited from Clawhauser, many of them being his friends, but some of them had to come from more unsavory sources. But hey, when you are running an illegal theme park in the middle of the city, you take what you get.

Nick's office was located at the very back of the park inside of a bungalow. He slid his keys into the door and pushed it open. There inside waiting for him was a Dhole named Sky, who was the resident repair woman who kept Wilde Times running. Upon seeing him, she immediately started talking about all of the problems that had been fixed and what still needed to be done. Nick listened but he was tired so most of what she said went in one ear and out the other. For the most part Nick just smiled and nodded occasionally when he thought appropriate. Sky finished her report and then left leaving Nick alone in his office. Nick slumped into his chair. He let out a long sigh and opened the safe underneath his desk. He took out a device that was the same model as the one the doctor had and placed it behind his head. With a click, Nick removed his collar and placed it on the desk. For many years, Nick had imagined a future where predators were free to live without being collared. Nick could remember what life was like before, back when he was a child. He hoped to return to that not so distant past, the one where predators never worried about their speech or emotions. Creating Wilde Times gave him and everyone else the opportunity to experience that hope every day. Even though it was the riskiest and most dangerous thing he had ever gotten himself into, he never once regretted getting into it. He gave himself a minute to rest and then he stood up...Checking his watch, Nick took the device in hand and left his office.

" It's Show Time!"

Nick gathered his employees in a circle for the tradition of the manager's pep talk.

"Alright you guys know the drill, we've got a long line of predators out there looking for a good time. I want you all to give it your best out there. Sky is fixing the roller coast right now and it should be operational in...?"

"2 hours sir," said Sky.

"In about 2 hours from now, until then direct people to do something else. We've got a new shipment of snacks from our friends in Tundratown so we should be good for now. Tiny you are on guard duty tonight because Jeff is sick. Tiny, it is important that everyone who leaves has to put back on his or her collar; we don't need anyone being arrested for our mistake. Nor do we need them to blab about it to the police. Are we clear?"

With the speech finished everyone went to their prospective stations. Nick handed the collar device to the large bear named Tiny and then he went back to his office. It wasn't long before the park had become packed and the gleeful shouts of delight from the patrons came through the walls of the bungalow. Nick turned on the radio and started to look through the stack of papers on his desk. Time went by at a snail's pace but eventually he started to see some progress. Nick had just about finished the last financial report when he received a message on his phone. Looking down at it he could see that it was from Finnick, a long time friend of his. Unlocking his phone, Nick read the message...

"Drinks later, after you are done with work?"

"Sure, I'll come over."

"Good, make sure to bring some."

Nick was about to respond when he received a call. After seeing who it was from Nick nearly fell out of his chair in order to answer it quickly enough.

"Kozlov! Big K! Man with the golden voice! How are things?"

"Enough of the Frivolities Nicholas, I have business vith you. Vhat do you know of government goons?"

"Nothing, well nothing important, why do you ask?"

"This morning vhen I have men send supplies to you they vere stopped by government goons. Asking about things like permits or vhat nyat. My men managed to talk their vay out of the situation but I fear they got look at license plate."

"Well that sounds…that sounds bad."

"It is TERRIBLE Nicholas, if they snoop around and find theme park, you vill go to jail and even vorse than zhat you park vill be shut down and I vill lose out money from park."

"Now, lets not get…too worried here Mr. Kozlov sir, there is no way anyone would come looking here sir. We look like a legitimate business from the outside heh .. my buddy Clawhauser even makes use of his medical degree to make the clinic look legit. Plus let me remind you that were are in the middle of what looks to be an abandoned fish cannery underneath a bridge. No one would come looking here."

Nick tried his best to remain calm. There was a long silence on the phone. Nick thought that Kozlov had hung up on him for a second before Kozlov responded.

"Dah, you're right Nicholas. I'm sorry for troubling you. It's been long day and Tanya has yet to finish dinner."

"See nothing to be worried about Sir, you just need to eat and you'll feel better about it ok?"

"Dah Nicholas Dah, I vill call you tomorrow and ve vill discuss tomorrow."

And with that Kozlov hung up the phone. Nick slumped into his chair and rubbed his eyes. Today was just not on his side. "First the ram and now this, give me a break" Nick said aloud. Feeling the onset of a headache, Nick reached behind him to a mini fridge and pulled out a soda. Pressing it to his temple, he tried to think of a response to Finnick. Not thinking of anything Nick just decided to leave it alone and deal with it later.

Later that night after the park had closed and the patrons had left. Nick left his office and greeted the line of his employees, making sure to nap his collar back on on his way out. After counting through the considerable amount of money that was on the table, he took out and divided up the employee's payment for the day. He took his share and then put the rest into a briefcase that was handled by a bear only known as "Kozlov's assistant". The bear took the money and headed out the door with the rest of the employees. Nick took out his set of keys and walked towards the door to the tunnel. As he passed by the attractions he couldn't help but look around one last time for the day. He waved to Sky as he went through park security. Nick felt a small bit of pain in him as the lights behind him turned off one by one. He had the same feeling every time he closed for the night; he always hated it. Ascending the stairs now, Nick walked slowly, savoring every creak of the staircase. He didn't want to go but he couldn't live here, he preferred to keep his work and private life separate so as best to hide in plain sight. As Nick reached the top of the stairs, he could see that Clawhauser was still in the clinic waving good-bye to the last of the employees.

"Boy, it sure was busy today wasn't it Nick?"

"Yeah it was Spots, hey listen what are you planning to do tonight?"

"Nothing really, I was just going to go back home."

"Do me a favor pal, drive around for a bit before you do."

"Well…sure but why?"

"Nothing, just…it's nothing forget I even said anything"

Nick left through the open door, which Clawhauser locked behind him. Nick went into his car and watched his friend leave. After making sure that no one was following Clawhauser, he turned on his car and left the clinic's parking lot. The drive to Finnick's apartment took Nick through the city. It was late enough where he didn't have to worry about traffic. The highway was empty for the most part and Nick sped along quicker than usual. Taking an exit, Nick focused his eyes on the road, not daring to look around him. Finnick lived in Sahara Square, which was outside of Downtown on the right side of the bay opposite of Savannah Central. The only way to get there was by going over a bridge that over looked one of the small islands called…Happytown. Originally just a small neighborhood of predators and prey, it would become the center of a major controversy which resulted in it becoming a predator only slum. Nick's grip tightened on the steering wheel. Happytown wasn't always a slum; at one time it was a beautiful neighborhood that flourished. "All good things have to come to an end" he thought. Nick pushed it out of his mind..best not to dwell on bad memories.

Nick reached Finnick's apartment in Sahara Square and knocked on the door. He heard some banging inside and a couple moments later the front door opened. Nick took the opportunity to have some fun at Finnick's expense. Playing dumb at first Nick pretended to look around at the interior of the apartment. He did this for a while until he felt a swift kick to his shin. Nick bent down to clutch at his knee, bringing himself eye level to Finnick. He wore a basic white tank top and sweat pants; his collar comically large against his small body.

"Ah! How is that any kind of way to greet your friend?!" Nick said.

"It's the 'over-used joke' greeting, I thought you would appreciate it."

"(gasp) Fair enough, fair enough."

"You brought the drinks?"

Nick held up the six-pack of canned cold brew coffee, Finnick's preferred drink of choice which Nick regularly brought him from work. Upon seeing them, the diminutive in size (but not attitude) fennec fox grabbed them with glee. Finnick then let Nick into his home. Finnick's bachelor pad was immaculate, furnished with all of the most expensive items he could buy.

"I take it your auto body shop is doing well? "

"Quite well" he said as a proud grin stretched across his muzzle. "What gave it away, the new sound system?"

"Well there's that but I was mainly referring to the painting on the wall of you as a viking holding a woman."

"Tch, don't be jealous because you don't have one."

"What makes you think I don't? I could have the best painter in the city on speed dial and you would never know it."

"Shut up, yes I would because you would tell me as soon as you got it."

"Ahhhh, you got me there."

The two foxes sat on the couch, watching television, discussing the day, Finnick's women troubles, as well as politics. The last one is more accurately described as Finnick ranting about Mayor Swinton and Nick letting him talk because it was funny to watch the little guy get worked up. Finnick drank can after can of the coffee, much to Nick's alarm. He couldn't possibly comprehend how a guy so little managed to drink so much of the stuff and still function normally. Nick once asked Finnick, to which his only response was "You don't understand, I need this, if I don't drink it my body will go into a coma to make up for not sleeping". Nick resolved to not bring it up again.

"Are you still having to deal with Kozlov?"

"You know I have to, the park wouldn't be able to be run with out his funding."

"Man that's BS you can do it without him."

"No I couldn't, I don't know any where to get the supplies I need and I don't know where I could get power without his generators."

"Man whatever...you could do it."

"No I couldn't, He might be a pain but he's manageable."

"I still don't get it."

"What? Having dreams with costs? Much like you can't find clothing your size and you have to look in the children's section?".

Nick got a pillow thrown at him.

"Shut up, no man I mean why you put up with it. If I was you, I would take the money and run."

"That's not an option for me," Nick said as he reached up to scratch at his neck.

The two friends talked for a long while and watched more television. They even ordered pizza, getting one so big they had to share it. They hung out until Nick checked the time and saw that it was 1 am. They bro-hugged each other and Nick went back to his car. Going back over to Happytown once more, Nick focused on the road. The lights of the slums passed both sides of his vision. He looked up for a second against his better judgement and looked around. He remembered this part, not that he wanted to. Nick looked back down, regretting the decision to come to Finnick's. There was minor late night traffic as Nick passed through downtown. The people in the clubs had just started to spill out and onto the streets; Nick had to abruptly slam on the breaks to avoid several drunkards who had fallen in the road. Luckily, a bouncer helped them up and Nick was able to speed along through Downtown.

Entering the Rainforest District, Nick turned on his windshield wipers and drove slowly in preparation for hitting the wall of humidity. There was an audible thud as he entered into the district and for a moment his vision was impaired as the entire windshield and interior of his car steamed up with condensation from the humidity. It was only for a second however and from then on Nick had no problems driving. The rain system had shut off for the night and Nick got to see the beauty of the Rainforest District. The sidewalks were glowing in the dark, revealing the pathways which snaked around the roots of the giant trees which made up the district. The sounds of a million bugs chirping all at once were a symphony to the ears. Which is why Nick was grateful his basement blocked out the sound. He already had the pipes keeping him up at night; he could only begin to imagine what life would be like with bugs included into it.

Nick pulled into the driveway of his house. Nick could hear the television as he walked up the steps into the house. He opened the door to discover that Bill had fallen asleep once more with the TV on, at least this time he was wearing pants. As Nick walked passed Bill, he took out a envelope labeled RENT from his pants and tossed it onto the coffee table. Walking down the steps into his room, Nick checked his phone for messages. The only one he had was from Honey, which was about sheep or something like that. Nick didn't care at this point, he was too tired. After a brief shower, Nick pulled out the drawer that served as his bed and laid down. The day had its highs and lows but all in all it wasn't terrible. Nick shut his eyes and within minutes he had fallen asleep. As visions of greener pastures went thought his head, Nick could never imagine where his future would take him.

It was probably for the best.

[coachtransform39]

A crash-course in survival. And self-coaching!

Every path hath a puddle. ~George Herbert, “Jacula Prudentum”

Except in this case, it was a deluge!

August 29, 2017. 468 mm of rain in 12 hours in Mumbai, over 7 hours of driving, the constant fear of drowning in the flood, and my own personalised coaching crash-course. I survived the night to tell the tale and my recent experiences with coaching had a big role to play in this. Here is my story on surviving the Mumbai floods. And on self-coaching.

Meteorological department had forecasted heavy rains combined with high tides and flooding in many parts of Mumbai. People were advised to exercise precaution while venturing out. In many offices, arrangements were made for the employees to stay indoors while others released transportation earlier so employees could reach home in good time.

Some of us who had driven to work that day, decided to stay back in office till the traffic cleared out on the roads. After 8 hours of wait, we reviewed the situation based on news, Google maps and inputs from colleagues/ friends/ family who had ventured out. It seemed like roads had cleared out and we could go.

Before driving out, I had a good meal in the canteen, took a bottle of water and some chocolates for the way. These supplies kept me going through out my journey. It’s important to prepare yourself for the journey, but sometimes that may not be enough. In those moments, use your common sense and intuition, these are powerful tools.

I took my regular route and covered 2/3rds of the distance in a record time. I was beginning to feel happy, and then, my car was stopped. Roads ahead were submerged in neck deep water with buses floating in it. My car stood no chance of crossing that.

Based on inputs from some good samaritans and traffic police on the roads, I decided to take the alternate (and longer) route to home instead of going back to office.

There can be different paths to get to the same destination. If one does not work, there may be others. Make your choice.

All was well, until a certain point where I was told that the second route was blocked too and I had to take the only open route. At this point, there was no scope of returning to office. No one could tell how much time it would take to reach home or how bad the traffic or flooding was.

In that moment, I told myself a few things –

drive on, without dwelling much on what could have happened had I left earlier or stayed in office etc. There was no looking back.

stay calm, look at what you can do in the present to get to your ideal place. Use your common sense, drive slowly, be vigilant about the surroundings, listen to your car and save your energy (mental, emotional and petrol)

It was raining heavily with traffic either moving at a snail’s pace or totally stuck at most places. Google maps to destination would show 45 minutes, while I would spend 45 minutes in one spot. No clarity on how much time it would take to reach home.

To keep my sanity, I spoke to other drivers/ bikers every now and then. It helped me deal with my feelings knowing there were others in a similar situation. It also gave me some useful insights on what to expect next.

My radio was on to help me pass the time, stay calm and get news updates on traffic conditions.

And then I reached a point where all you could see was waterlogging. It was a stretch of alteast a few kilometres and vehicles were wading through that water. Given my small automatic car, I wasn’t sure how it would fare.

It’s important to be in touch with your feelings and surroundings. I was well aware of the little butterfly fluttering in my tummy, but kept driving slowly and steadily with the goal of getting to the other side. When I reached the other side of water logging, it was a feeling of triumph. To celebrate the occasion, I treated myself with a small piece of chocolate and a few sips of water. Thereafter, I repeated this ritual, every time I crossed a difficult stretch.

After driving for almost 5 hours I reached the highway that connects to my locality. It was good to be in familiar surroundings, except this seemed like the worst waterlogging so far. Traffic was stand still and only a few vehicles were allowed to cross at a time to avoid a panic situation. I waited for my turn, trying to stay calm and have a plan to go across.

Plan was simple, keep driving on extreme right, without stopping. I started with two more cars ahead of me. Just in that moment a scooter with 3 people on it shut down and skidded ahead of us due to water getting into its engine. The cars had to slow down. In those few minutes (which seemed like a long time), focus was to keep the engine running, without crashing into the car ahead or losing my mind. At certain points in time, you have to give it your all to stay afloat.  Just in nick of time they managed to pull the scooter out and moved ahead. I pressed on and was glad to drive through to the other side. I celebrated by finishing my chocolate bar.

My house was just a few minutes away but connecting road was shut down due to water logging. So near, yet so far. I got down from the car and caught up with folks waiting around to figure out how to cross that last hurdle. Sometimes a road is more difficult in your mind than in reality. After waiting around for an hour, I took a leap of faith and drove away on the alternate connecting road to my place. That road had cleared out by now and I was home in 5 minutes. I came out as a stronger person and am grateful to the universe for that experience.

Every time, we face a deluge (metaphorically speaking) in life, the true strength of our character is tested. The choice is upon us to give up or face it, with faith, and that determines how the story develops.

“It went in a Sorrow, but through the alchemy of Self, it came out a Song.” Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Life, 1912

About the Author-  Abhilasha is an HR professional with over 16 years of diverse experience across pharmaceutical, consulting and IT services sectors. She has been in leadership positions for over a decade and has helped grow and manage the business by partnering closely with the business leaders. She is a travel enthusiast and loves being amidst nature. Abhilasha is currently undergoing the ICF coaching certification program with Coach-To-Transformation.

[asktemmie-frisk]

War is You (ゴッドモードアーク (Goddomodoaku)

Chara and Frisk sensed Talrok and Rhonda, and they were homing in on their magical signature as quickly as they could. Everyone else followed them in armored vehicles of their own making. Suddenly, Frisk and Chara hear some static on their earpieces. Then they hear an initially indistinguishable voice. Finally, they hear the all-too familiar comedian. "Hey bro, princess, can you hear me?" Asked Sans. "Yeah. Sounds like the earpieces are working." Replied Frisk. "Good. Now listen, bro. After some closer examination, I looked into it, and I figured out why Chara managed to get you to snap out of it earlier yesterday. It seems that Talrok infused his magic and determination into you when he casted a spell designed to control your mind. When you attacked her, she absorbed the magic and determination you were using. Since you were using Talrok's power in your attacks, all she had to do was drain you enough to the point where you could fight back." "Wait. So what you're saying is she kept taking a bunch of hits for me so I could snap out of it?" "Well, that, and my affection for you sped up the process. I don't know how much, but it did." Added Chara. "Pretty much. If she can absorb magic and determination through taking damage..." "That's right. You can too, bro." Quiped Sans. "Well, well. Another chink in Talrok's armor. Maybe I should thank him for turning me into a goddamn freak." "Oh, no. If there's anyone to thank, it'll be our friends, siblings and parents for that." Admitted Chara. "Wow. Since when did you start doling out compliments like that?" "Since I found out I'm just like you." "Hey guys! My radar has Talrok in the vicinity! Do you see an aura of any type?" Sans warned. "Yeah. I see it! Time to take him down!" Chara and Frisk closed in on Talrok, and they noticed an unusually large amalgamate. "Holy shit." Chara said, noticing the poor, unfortunate monstrosity. "That's probably the amalgamate Talrok's gonna use. How many of our people suffered for that thing?!" "If I had to guess, I'd say at least 25 monsters and humans, each." Replied Frisk. "Yikes. Maybe if we absorb the magic and determination, we can stop it in its tracks." "Doesn't look like it's willingly moving. I think Talrok's forcing it to go, and it's too scared to fight back. Let's take him on, and maybe it'll fight back on its own." Meanwhile, Talrok was forcing the poor amalgamate along the roads, causing an impossible-to-ignore path of destruction. "COME ON! KEEP MOVING, UNLESS YOU ENJOY BEING ABUSED!" Talrok shouted at the top of his lungs as he singed his creation onward. The victimized abomination groaned in pain as it obeyed its "master". Frisk and Chara noticed the abuse, and zoomed in to put a stop to it. "HURRY UP, YOU PATHETIC COMGLOMERATION OF MAN AND MONSTER! THEY'LL BE HERE ANY SECOND, AND WE'RE GETTING NOWHERE FAST!" Talrok singed the creature again, and it groaned again as it slithered at a relative snail's pace, which was actually closer to walking speed, considering the size of the amalgamate. "TALROK, YOU ASSHOLE!" Roared Frisk. "HOW DARE YOU TREAT THAT POOR CREATURE LIKE A FUCKING SLAVE?! I'M GONNA RIP YOU A NEW ONE, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" Talrok turned his head under heavy stress and anger. He noticed Frisk and Chara flying towards him and closing the distance fast. Damn it, they're stronger than I thought, he said to himself. Just before Frisk could land the initial blow on him, Talrok created a temporary barrier that blocked Frisk's strike. "Damn it, Frisk! How did you learn to control your power so fast? I didn't ev-AHHHHH!" Talrok was interrupted by a surge of electricity flowing through his body, courtesy of Chara. He made a slight descent, which stopped about 10 feet above the ground. "Damn it! That was painful! Who did that?!" Talrok was losing his cool. Things were starting to go off the rails for him. "I DID THAT, MOTHERFUCKER!" Declared Chara loudly and angrily. "You don't get to treat that thing as your pet, you dickhead!" "Oh, is that so? Why should I pay any mind to what you say?! Your actions clearly speak much louder than your words!" Talrok rebutted, starting to show his lessening sanity. "You think you can beat me?! Heh heh! Please! We may have the same power, but I had YEARS to practice! You haven't even had them for a week!" Talrok started laughing maniacally. "Talrok, you better stop what you're doing now, before you end up losing your life!" "You want MY HEAD?! COME AND GET IT THEN!" Talrok's mental state became worse as he engaged in a fight with Frisk and Chara. Talrok launched himself at Chara, only to get surged into by Frisk, knocking him into the amalgamate he tortured. The creature cowered in fear as Talrok as he ran to Frisk to strike him down. Talrok manifested a blast of energy to launch at Frisk, only for it to get diffused by a drill Frisk created to home in on Talrok. Talrok screamed in pain as the drill pierced his chest, lacerating his heart to an extent. He fell on his knees, but before Frisk and Chara could finish him off, Talrok created another barrier to protect himself. Then, two gunshots went off as two bullets went straight through Chara and Frisk's chest. They felt a small stinging sensation in their hearts as their bodies ejected the bullets. "Ow! Now that actually stung a little! Where did that come from?!" Chara angrily boomed. They both looked frantically until they saw Noah with a gun. It had a little smoke come off of it. Then he shot again, missing the two and cursing himself. As he aimed once more, the gun had a knife through it, and he threw it into the air as it exploded. Then both Frisk and Chara turned their attention to Noah as they sped towards him. Before they could get close enough, they smacked into an invisible barrier. Then Rhonda came out. Frisk had a scowl of fear and hatred. Chara's rage showed itself. "YOU BITCH! YOU ALMOST RAPED MY FUCKING MAN, YOU HUSSY!" She roared. "So what if I did?! A boy his age wouldn't be able to get enough of my body!" Replied Rhonda. Chara roared and charged at her at full speed as she lowered the barrier. Rhonda flew to her, and they had a brawl like no other. She tried to pull Chara's hair out, but the princess was having none of that as she punched Rhonda in her eye, and kicked her to the ground. "Frisk, Talrok is yours! I'ma beat this bitch's ass!" Chara declared loudly and angrily. "You got it, babe." Frisk replied, flying to Talrok. Frisk flew towards Talrok, ready to strike him down, but Talrok erected a shield before Frisk could do any damage. Frisk smacked his fists against the barrier Talrok erected repeatedly until he got fed up enough to make a concrete whip, and slammed Talrok with enough force to make the shield fizzle out. Before Frisk could strike again, Talrok launched a fist into Frisk's stomach, and kicked him hard enough to knock him back about 20 feet. Talrok ran to Frisk, but he summoned a drill to get some distance between him and Talrok before he could do any damage to the temmie. Meanwhile, Chara and Rhonda were having violent bout of their own. They both charged at each other, intending to do some damage. They both grabbed each other, and Chara threw Rhonda to the ground. Then she kicked her away like a soccer ball. Chara ran to Rhonda, only to get a fist thrown to her eye. Rhonda landed a couple more punches, but missed as Chara dodged and sunk some spikes into her chest. She tore her arm out painfully, and picked up Rhonda, intending to slam her onto the ground again, only to get a knife thrown into her back, causing her to drop Rhonda. She winced and took only a second to pull the knife out of her back, but it was all Rhonda needed as she punched Chara again, set her ablaze with her magic and determination, and threw her away from her. As Chara got back up, she got shot again, but in the head. She screeched at the bullet's velocity, and noticed Noah had another gun. Before he could aim again, Chara magically lifted him up by his neck. "Alright, enough of this." She said, electrocuting Noah just enough to knock him out. "Okay. One down, two t-" Chara got interrupted by another fist to her face as Rhonda knocked her to the ground. She tried to stomp Chara's chest as she lied there, but Chara quickly moved out of the way, and zapped Rhonda. Then she kicked her into an abandoned building. They both panted heavily as they tried to recover from everything they dished out to each other. Meanwhile, Talrok and Frisk squared off against each other. Talrok flew to Frisk and shot multiple energy blasts, missing every shot except for one. It zapped Frisk, but the temmie refused to give up as he went straight to Talrok, intending to punch his lights out. Talrok tried to erect another shield, but it was destroyed by a drill Frisk launched at Talrok. Then they both met up each other in a violent embrace of fists and fur. Talrok kicked Frisk off of him, and manifested a sword at least three times his size to slice Frisk in two, who countered by manifesting a scythe to decapitate Talrok. They both went all out as they were both trying to one-up the other. The fight between all four hybrids carried on for at least an hour. No ground was gained, and no ground was lost. The ultimate stalemate was cast upon them. However, Frisk let his guard down to breathe for just a moment as he closed his eyes. Talrok rushed to Frisk and set him on fire with his determination. Then he zapped Frisk with his magic. It was painful enough to force the temmie onto his knees, with his body smoking a little bit. Chara noticed this amd tried to run to Frisk, despite her now-exhausted state. "Frisk...I'm coming, babe. I-AAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!" Rhonda sent a vine through Chara's chest, and held her in place with them as she was burned again. She screamed in pain and teared up just before Rhonda ripped her violently out of her thorny restraints, and punched her hard enough to make her roll to Frisk. They were both breathing heavily, feeling the pain of Rhonda and Talrok's attacks. "They're...they're too str...they're too strong. Don't think we can...beat them that...easily." Chara sputtered out, severely beaten from the flames, stab wounds, and gunshots. "Yeah...they're so powerful. Those souls they have...must be...amplifying their power." Frisk tried to elaborate. "Gotta admit, they're tough." "Can't just stop though, Frisk. People are gonna die if we give up." They both tried to bring themselves up, but Talrok and Rhonda slammed their feet into Frisk and Chara's chests, causing them to cry out in pain. They were both angrily tearing up as their attackers put more of their weight onto their feet. Frisk started having trouble breathing. Chara tried to fight back her tears as she was singed by Rhonda again. "You two should not have come for us." Talrok said angrily. "Do you really think you had a chance to stop us?" Talrok took his foot off Frisk's chest as he tried to catch his breath. "To be honest, couldn't help but try at it." "You really are an idiot." "NO, HE'S NOT!" Chara screamed. Rhonda kicked her in the face in response. "Then why did you two come to fight us alone?" She asked. "Correction: we didn't come alone." Talrok and Rhonda winced in fear at what Chara was suggesting. Could Chara and Frisk actually have found a way to ge- "NOW!" Yes. They did get backup. All their friends and family drove onto the scene in an armored vehicle and quickly got out. Then they aimed the extractors at the hybrids. "HANDS UP, MOTHERFUCKERS!" Toriel swore. "Whew! Thanks for coming to-" Not them! You and Frisk!" Chara was seemingly scared. "Wait. What?! Mom, how cou-" Toriel repeatedly shot Chara with the extractor until she was out of magic and determination to shoot. Chara was seemingly fatally shot by her mother. "No...mama...why...?" "I was so tired of pretending I cared about you. Now I don't have to anymore. Goodbye, 'my child'." Chara fell to the ground face forward as Toriel left, feigning a sadistic laugh. Hopefully, she'll remember when to stop playing dead, she thought to herself. Frisk pretended to be fearful at his skeleton brothers aiming at him. "Sans, please! We're family, remember?" Sans emptied his eyesockets. "We're not family, you fucking dumbass. What, you think Paps and I actually gave a fuck about you?" Sans said with great acting skill. "Nyeh, hehehehehehe! Truly foolish of you! Truly!" Papyrus mocked. Frisk started faking his sadness. "No, please! Do-" Sans and Papyrus emptied their extractors in the form of an immense blast of electricity. It flowed through Frisk's body so intensely, Frisk looked like he was in pain. After the extractors were emptied completely, Frisk fell to the ground and twitched a little. Sans and Papyrus stepped to him, with glowing eyesockets and creepy smiles. "See ya, 'bro'." Said Sans. "Looks like I never needed to capture you after all. The king never needed a useless piece of trash, anyway." Added Papyrus. The skeltons faked a laugh as they walked away from Frisk, who pretended to die right then and there. Asriel let his acting skills show themself. "I can't believe it. We actually killed them finally." He said, faking a smile. Talrok and Rhonda believed the whole act. "Amazing! I never knew you were all on my side all along!" He said. "Well done, all of you." Rhonda added, impressed at their feigned betrayal. "Very well done at that! After I turn everyone into monsters, you guys will be treated to lives fit for royalty! But first, you'll have all the human souls you dark little hearts desire." Talrok was beaming. Things were finally looking up for him as Frisk and Chara lied on the ground, seemingly lifeless.