Chapter Text
“I DO NOT UNDERSTAND.”
“YOU HAVE NOT MET AN END… AND YET…”
The Angel stood motionlessly, head down. The silver light that usually wreathed their head, a manifestation of their power, was finally going dark after all this time. The wings around their head looked brittle, like they would fall off at any moment.
“YOU ARE WILLINGLY GIVING UP?”
They had Kris’ face, but it did not stay neutral like the real vessel. No. Their eyes, barely shining a dull red, looked far too tired. “Yes.”
A figure made of nothing but shattered fragments frowned. It could only be called that, as he felt their connection… loosening. Perhaps, with the right push, with the right motivation, this story could still reach its actualization.
“YOU UNDERSTAND THE CONSEQUENCES…”
“SHOULD YOU NOT PERSIST.”
Their stolen hand balled into a fist. The vibrant red soul that signified their tether to this world started dulling dangerously. Their power waned. “I understand.”
What could have caused this? Was the story not engaging enough? Did the hiccups in their arrangement cause this much distress? The man thought that the Angel had truly begun to see their purpose. After all, they had just managed to claw victory out of certain defeat. They were advancing into the next Dark World at this very moment, ready to tackle the trials within. Why now, then, did they have doubts? They were more capable than ever.
“THEN PERHAPS, ONE MORE INQUIRY.”
The Angel nodded, like they did not care one way or the other. Something glimmered in their eyes, reflecting the remaining light of their soul. They likely knew what he would ask next, and perhaps that meant he would receive an answer.
“WHY?”
“Kris does not want me,” they answered, rubbing their own arm while taking a deep breath. They were trying to stay calm in the face of what would soon come, but the man could tell they were still scared. “You watched my last fight. You watched when they ripped me out last time. You saw.”
Indeed. Even now, he could remember the Angel’s panic with utmost clarity. However, he also remembered their tenacity in the face of danger. He remembered their determination. Why did that break now? What detail had he failed to observe? Their winning attempt against their foe had been difficult, but their performance was exceptional. The human, “Kris”, was a strange vessel. It was not the man’s vessel of choice for the Angel, but he still believed that they could make things work. Unfortunately, he should have paid more attention.
The Angel found it fitting to provide the missing details. Light wreathed their head again, sputtering in uncontrolled blasts of gold instead of just silver. “I had to watch while my mistakes cut Ralsei down in an instant. I had to watch as Susie fought until she couldn’t stand anymore. Worst of all, I had to see Kris smile when I told them to ACT. They smiled.”
“YET, YOU ACHIEVED VICTORY, EVEN THOUGH YOUR LOSS WAS GUARANTEED.”
The gold started to flare out even more before sputtering and dying, just like the silver. “And it hardly mattered,” they muttered, a broken smile crossing their face. “The moment Kris took me out again, they did everything in their power to stop me. I tried so hard to be seen, and it was for nothing.”
“PERHAPS”
“SHOULD YOU PERSIST”
“YOU COULD CHANGE THEIR MIND.”
This must have been the wrong response. The Angel’s light crackled, before getting even dimmer within the darkness. Trying to hide a grimace, they retorted, “What do you think I can do? I already tried. They want me gone. They are willing to hold back during a fight to spite me. They are willing to go against their friends to get rid of me.”
The Angel didn’t know everything. Even though the man knew the truth of the human’s actions, he could not say it. If he were to give away the secrets to the story, then the Angel may leave sooner. There would be no drive to pursue. However, things were dire now. He had already overextended when he reached out to the Angel when battling against the Knight. A push or nudge in the right direction could save the Angel from turmoil… but he could not merely give away everything.
“It’s just not worth it anymore. It’s not worth putting Susie and Ralsei in danger to spite me. It’s not worth keeping control over a teenager. It’s just… not.” They turned away, the light at the back of their head looking like a mere flicker in the dark. “I’ll let them live on how they want. I am never meant to stay part of these stories, anyway. Maybe… I’m just meant to leave earlier this time.”
“YOUR CONNECTION.”
“YOUR POWER.”
“THE WORLD WOULD STAGNATE, SHOULD YOU GO.”
He could feel it. The connection wavered. It would be gone soon.
The Angel winced, like it was a truth too bright to look upon. Truly, the world could no longer progress without them. Until the Angel’s Heaven was banished, they would be unable to truly detach themself from this world. It would hold its breath and wait until they returned to continue moving pieces across the board.
So why… did they still seem so resigned?
“I know.” They shut their eyes, a pained smile gracing their face. “I already know what has to be done.”
Truly exceptional. They’d thought of everything, but for the result that would end in tragedy. The man would leave the connection open, should they ever return. Perhaps one day, they would.
The Angel began to fade into the darkness. Their power finally fizzled out completely. Darkness shrouded them, moving up to their soul and beginning to consume it as well.
“THEN THE WORLD…”
They bowed their head, turning away so that they would not be seen.
“WAS COVERED…”
He could not see their hands when they moved up to their head. He could not see the moment their link to this world was mangled. He could not see the moment they lifted their head, allowing the silver light to return for one final purpose. He could not see when they were unmade, their features turning gray and lifeless.
He could only feel their absence.
The Angel was lost.
“...IN DARKNESS…”
Kris noticed first.
How could they not? The very soul they had caged inside of them had something wrong with it, which didn’t bode well considering they and Susie had just jumped into a Dark World. Sometimes, the soul did this thing where it would briefly leave for a bit, like its presence waned. It happened in the TV-World after Kris returned with Susie. They just sometimes went… dormant.
This was not that.
It was anything but that.
As Kris and Susie fell, their outfits slowly began to change in the descent. Realizing they suddenly had control of their head, Kris glanced at Susie. Should they even communicate that something was wrong?
Susie wasn’t supposed to even know about the soul in detail. If she knew about it too early, that could jeopardize things. What would telling her even do? She didn’t even seem to notice Kris’ apprehension, her eyes trained on their descent.
Red light broke out of Kris’ chest.
Over the rushing wind, Kris now could hear Susie yelling, “Kris? Is that supposed to happen?”
No Susie. Their soul was not supposed to leap out of their chest during a fall. They didn’t voice this thought as the red heart started drifting out of their chest. As their outfit finally changed into armor, they reached a gauntleted hand out to try to grab it. They needed it.
Too little, too late. Kris slammed into the ground as the Dark World came into focus around them. Immediately, they brushed the hair out of their face, scrambling for the edge of the platform-
Susie grabbed their armor by the plating, keeping them from going over. “You idiot! You’re gonna-”
Kris didn’t waste any time lunging as far as they could. It was too late. Far too late. Even if Susie didn’t stop them, they never would’ve been able to catch it.
As they stared down into the abyss below, they couldn’t even see the soul’s light anymore. It was gone. It was GONE.
What were they supposed to do? What should they do?!? That damn soul got away! How did it even… it wasn’t supposed to be able to just leap out like that! It only could leave in battle or if Kris removed it. It wasn’t supposed to-
They went limp in Susie’s grasp. She pulled them back from the abyss, her eyes darting between the void and Kris’ face. “I know that’s… uh… probably not good. At least warn me next time you’re going to lunge over the edge, okay?”
Kris tried to keep their expression as neutral as possible. They wanted to say something, opening their mouth before shutting it quickly. Their own voice almost came out. Almost every interaction with Susie had been with the soul present. It couldn’t help them now. They clamped their mouth shut. They didn’t want to disappoint Susie.
She squinted even more, before finally setting them down. “I didn’t get a good look at what that was. Was probably important to get you that frantic, huh?”
Kris kept their head low to mask their eyes with their hair. They couldn’t betray anything right now. All they needed to do was get down there somehow to retrieve it, or…
Or they had to tell the Knight somehow.
The plan was already off course now. Without the soul, Kris wasn’t meant to enter Dark Worlds. The soul was deemed too much of a risk, especially if the soul was left to roam free in the Light World. Leaving it alone for too long already proved to Kris that it would escape given the chance. But… that was in a house. It made them panic when they realized the soul had gone into the vents, but a house was not a Dark World.
Next to them, Susie had gotten down on a knee to slowly peer over the edge. She even squinted for good measure, like that would somehow make things clearer. “Well, whatever it is, we’ll see if we can find a way down. Can’t just jump after it though. That’d suck.”
She was… unfortunately right. Kris was only human. The party had sustained terrible falls in the past, but they couldn’t even see the bottom. They could only go forward now.
Kris rose to their feet, only giving a quick glance up in the direction they came. While it was a good idea to close the doors to the church for many reasons, this meant they couldn’t leave the Dark World at this point. They’d been doing it out of habit, mainly to prevent other people from accidentally discovering the Dark World. Now, they regretted every decision they’d made up until this point.
Their gaze traveled downward to something silver shimmering on the ground. While they didn’t initially recognize it, a pit formed in their stomach. As soon as they got closer, they realized what they were seeing.
The light only they could see…
It had shattered.
Sometimes the soul guided Kris to these points. They would retrieve items, check their recruits, and sometimes do something else that Kris could never parse. Sometimes, when standing in front of this light, it was like the soul completely changed emotions on a dime. The worst was right before the Knight was meant to show up. The sudden shift into boiling rage was unlike anything Kris had ever felt, and it was partially aimed at them.
Kris… couldn’t think about that now. They turned towards the only possible route.
The way forward didn’t look any better. Susie had taken up her position behind Kris already, not questioning their silence at all. It was something they could be thankful for, at least. There were small mercies, which they would need considering the path ahead was shrouded in unnatural darkness. A few lanterns pushed the darkness back, but…
That wasn’t normal at all. Kris was unsure whether or not they should step in. They couldn’t see the edges of the terrain, and knew that a wrong step would send them over the edge. Taking a deep breath, they steeled themself and continued forward.
Candles lit the way for them. They exhaled a sigh of relief quietly, ignoring the way Susie was trying to glance around them to see their face. Kris just needed to hold up for a little longer. But, they couldn’t waste any time. Every time they went without that soul for too long, it was worse when it went back in.
It was strange that Kris did not feel any different in that regard. They’d mainly been playing up the “neighborhood zombie” schtick around the soul whenever possible, just to throw it off. Still, going without it for too long and trying to put it back in, especially after hitting it with a hockey stick, was rough.
They didn’t know if they could go without it forever. According to people more knowledgeable on this sort of thing, it would get worse as long as Kris was the soul’s “designated vessel”. Even when Kris tore it out, there were certain differences on how it interacted with them versus someone else. Even when away, it had made Kris accidentally talk a few times in the Cyber World when trying to give Susie… from the sounds of it, dating advice.
Hopefully, Kris had built up enough resistance to it to survive for a while. They didn’t see a clear way down through all of this darkness, and already they could feel their chest growing heavy.
The Knight would be able to more easily traverse the darkness. They could find the soul. Kris just needed to find them.
When coming to a piano puzzle, Kris was suddenly very relieved the soul wasn’t here. It was, quite frankly, far too insistent on playing pianos. No matter how many times Kris intentionally botched playing the piano to keep one thing for themself, the soul continued being annoying like that. Still, when Kris found two easy switches and the notes to play…
…Susie was still there.
Kris’ hand hovered over the keys, the exact motion already in their head. They never liked playing when someone was watching. Even with Noelle… they never could do it when someone else was present.
Susie noticed them glancing back at her. She took one look at the piano before narrowing her gaze. “I’m not doing piano puzzles. It’s… not my thing.”
Fine. They needed to make this quick. Kris couldn’t waste any time now, especially since the Knight could be anywhere in the Dark World. Hastily, Kris hit six keys, lightly grazing their hand in one simple motion. The gate opened instantly, allowing the two of them passage.
“Sweet.” Susie put her hands on the back of her head lazily. “Guess you can play after all!”
It was kind, but a bitter reminder of her thinking that they couldn’t when they’d been trying to spite the soul. They could play. They could.
If Kris had any say in it, they simply wouldn’t put the soul back in. Unfortunately for them, they’d made a promise. The soul was integral for that promise to be kept. So, keeping their head low, they marched on, trying not to let Susie’s comment get to them any more than it already did. It wasn’t her fault. How was she supposed to know that she’d befriended that thing instead of them?
They wanted to be without it. But… now that they had become its cage… could they even live without it?
A certain salesman came to mind. He wasn’t always a puppet on a string. Then, he took on a higher form… a higher purpose. The moment he tried to break free from that purpose… he…
They needed that soul back.
More importantly, they needed to keep their mouth shut. Susie made it abundantly clear how much she hated people hiding things from her. Now that Kris wasn’t bound to a soul, there was no excuse not to tell her. They’d had many opportunities before even with the soul, but…
They couldn’t.
No one could know about their promise.
At least having the soul in made it easier. Even though the soul seemed determined to help Susie and go against Kris, it was a little easier for Kris to lie knowing that they didn’t have enough control to tell the truth. They stamped out that instinct to turn around and tell Susie everything. They couldn’t act on that want to reach out to her and ask her to please help.
The soul was useful in that regard. It kept them from making stupid decisions like that. It made it easier not to, when the chances never presented themselves.
“Kris… Kris, hey wait, look!” Susie’s voice stopped them in their tracks, and Kris followed her gaze. Ah. That. Wasn’t great. “The fountain’s just up there!”
If Kris was capable of escaping a Dark World using a fountain, then they would certainly be happy to see it. Unfortunately, they didn’t have the one thing they needed to seal the Dark Fountain. Susie was apparently none-the-wiser about just what Kris had lost in the inky abyss, but this… would be bad. She was going to figure out that they didn’t have the soul anymore, and then-
“Well, that was easy.” She walked up the stairs, unaware of Kris’ inner turmoil. “Heh, too bad, was looking forward to another adventure… But… guess we gotta do what we gotta.”
Kris didn’t know how to stop her. They’d never been the one making these decisions. Sure, they could alter them, but the soul usually knew exactly what to do or say. Whenever they didn’t, Kris could course correct into something better, but they had no idea how to stop Susie.
A heavy presence washed over the two of them. Kris held up their arms, shielding their face from being buffeted by the winds. They knew that presence… The Knight was close! Immediately, Kris took a few steps up the stairs, catching the Knight further down the walkway. They just needed to signal somehow, without Susie-
Immediately, a black knife struck Susie across her chest. She toppled backwards, and Kris’ heart seized.
Their gaze locked on the knight, brow furrowing. Did that attack really have to be that hard?
The Knight cocked their head to the side, readying a new set of blades. Susie told Kris to go after them, and they obeyed. It’d be hard to signal the Knight without Susie seeing, but if they could just get a little further… Kris tried coughing, signaling that something was very wrong.
If Kris didn’t feel blistering pain in their side, they might’ve noticed the Knight tilting their head.
Too late. They weren’t nearly as good at dodging as the soul. The winds forcing them backwards were too strong, and they’d been hit too early to make a real difference. The sharp pain in their side made them lose their footing for a moment. Kris tumbled backwards, their armor hardly weighing them down in the tempest.
Susie fell next to them, having given up on finding a way to the Knight while Kris fell. At least, they’d still have her here with them. At least-
Kris’ eyes went wide. They were rushing right for a pane of glass. Trying to brace themselves, they tucked their arms and legs in. Hopefully Susie wouldn’t get hurt-
In the brief seconds that Kris saw the glass, they realized something was terribly, terribly wrong.
It gave them enough pause to loosen their posture. It gave them enough pause to send them careening through the glass. Their vision went white, and they found themself tumbling through the air. Nothing made sense in their head anymore, their senses all failing at the same time.
They went limp, falling further and further down.
Ralsei couldn’t breathe.
As soon as he felt another Dark Fountain form, he’d begun navigating to the next Dark World as soon as possible. It was a difficult process to go from Castle Town to wherever the next world formed. His ability to float was a saving grace there. The outskirts of the Dark World crumbled the further away from a fountain one became.
He knew this day would come. This Dark Fountain had formed in the church, as far as Ralsei could tell. That meant… he’d be seeing the prophecy for the first time. After their near-victory against the Knight, he almost had hope that it would be changed when he finally arrived. The Angel had done well to steer them towards kindness.
Ralsei hoped. He just hoped that their efforts had meant something.
Finally, blue lights flared out in the darkness. He was close now. Ralsei tried to calm his nerves, floating to the nearest piece of solid ground. In the distance, he could see the stained glass that would show him whether or not the prophecy had changed. Not wanting to see just yet, he shut his eyes.
Deep breaths, Ralsei. Deep breaths.
His breath was sucked out of him when something unknowable lifted from his back.
Ralsei’s eyes snapped open as he glanced around in the darkness. As if he didn’t know exactly what had just happened, Ralsei frantically looked around for the source of the feeling. No. No no no. That was… too sudden. That was all too sudden, like the world didn’t even give pause to what fate had just fallen upon it.
Surely, there had to be some magic around here making him feel lighter. Maybe he was just a little… winded. Yes, please, it had to be that. It had to be that.
Ralsei walked forward. Each step felt out of place, like it was a step taken in completely hostile lands now. This entire time, he always had someone watching over him. This entire time, he could count on someone being there to protect him and his friends. Every step he took now felt like another step into pure, unbridled danger.
He knew why. He knew why.
Don’t think about it.
Ralsei continued towards the stained glass. He couldn’t think about the possibility of… of…
The Angel… couldn’t be gone.
But oh, he felt the exact moment their connection wavered. He didn’t feel lighter out of sheer chance. A presence had finally lifted from his shoulders, and he knew that presence by heart now. It wasn’t like the other times where they were dormant.
It felt so cold.
Ralsei stopped in front of the stained glass. His hands trembled behind his back, as he tried to keep any semblance of stability. No, the Angel couldn’t be gone. Where did they go? They didn’t go anywhere, because they COULDN’T BE GONE.
Ralsei finally looked towards the prophecy, and the world fell out from under him.
They’d done it.
They changed the prophecy.
He should be elated. He should be happy. He’d worked so hard to just be kind, so that he would see this day come.
Ralsei brought a hand up to his mouth, covering it and looking away. A shaky breath hit his palm as he walked away from the stained glass, refusing to look any further. He couldn’t- why was this happening so fast? Why had this come now?
The image of the prophecy that he tried to relentlessly force out of his head came into view again. The prophecy could not be ignored. It would always appear somewhere else. Again, he tried to divert his gaze, but it was no use. He could already see it in his mind’s eye. He could already recall it with complete clarity, and it made him stumble on the stone flooring.
There was no more prophecy to tell.
Ralsei ran. He ran in the direction of where he thought Kris and Susie should be. They were in danger. All of them were in grave danger, and he didn’t know why. If the Angel was gone, something must’ve happened to Kris. That had to be the only viable option. Perhaps… perhaps there was still time. Yes, it would mean that the prophecy would revert once more, but…
Anything was better than this.
Ralsei ducked and weaved past the sightlines of multiple other Darkners. He couldn’t afford to get sucked into a fight now. He only hoped that Kris and Susie were doing the same. Should they be pulled into a battle, there would be no one to take the hits anymore. There would be no one to dodge for them. There would be no one to command.
They would die.
Multiple glass panes rushed by Ralsei. He tried to avert his gaze, but every time he thought he was looking away, another would appear. Look at what you’ve done, they taunted. Look at what your hope has gotten you. You didn’t do enough.
Every time he passed another pane, he saw the Angel’s shattered imagery bearing down on him. Even the three triangles below the Angel hadn’t survived its shattering. All three were just as broken every time he caught a glimpse of them.
Ralsei needed to get to Kris and Susie now.
As he rushed by, he realized the panes of glass were beginning to slow him down every time he tried to not look. Ralsei’s scarf began to lash out on instinct, smashing the glass as he floated by. He couldn’t look now, and he didn’t know how he was going to explain this to Kris and Susie. Surely by now, Kris knew that something had gone wrong. The two of them had talked about the Angel twice previously, so hopefully they knew by now that it needed to be here.
Finally, he heard a voice. He strained to figure out where it was coming from before dashing in that direction. Susie was panicking about something.
As he got closer, he could finally make out words, “C’mon. Just a few more heals and it’ll be fine-”
Ralsei sucked in a breath, moving as fast as his magic would take him. Finally, he managed to catch sight of purple and blue around a dark corner. A feeling in his chest lifted before immediately crashing right back down.
Kris was prone on the ground, with multiple shards of glass sticking out of their body.
Susie caught his gaze, but refused to stop the flow of green magic coming from her palms. Still, her yellow eyes were wide, jaw set firmly. “Hey, Ralsei! Kris is…”
He already knew. He already knew.
Something in Susie’s expression silently asked him for help. Perhaps, she’d already drained herself of healing magic. Kris didn’t look like they were moving at all. Anyone would’ve been scared seeing that.
So, Ralsei quickly pushed her out of the way, the prophecy still burning in the back of his mind. “Susie, could you move out of the way?” He needed room. He needed space. Ralsei focused on that warm feeling bubbling in his chest, allowing golden light to form under his feet. He overexerted himself with the healing far more than he normally would have in a battle, making sure that the wounds would cease to be.
Kris sputtered. Multiple glass shards were painfully pulled from their body, the wounds sealing instantaneously. Their hand clenched into a fist. Blessedly, they were alive.
Ralsei immediately put his hands behind his back, giving them some room. “Kris… Kris are you okay?”
They seemed weak, as they tried to push themself to their feet. Susie didn’t give the same space Ralsei did, immediately walking past and grabbing Kris’ forearms. With her help, they managed to stumble to their feet, a lone red eye glancing out from under their bangs.
Keeping her hands on their shoulders, Susie got in their face. “Hey, you with us, Kris? You weren’t moving after that fall.”
Hesitantly, Kris nodded. They still weren’t speaking, but their movements looked far more fluid than before. Usually their motions were kept stiff and locked up, a result of being possessed by the soul who had limited mobility options. Now, Ralsei could see the difference.
The difference was too obvious to ignore. If it wasn’t Kris in danger that caused the prophecy to change… then that only meant that something happened to the soul. The moment Susie let go of Kris, Ralsei scrambled to figure out how to even broach this subject. Susie… never acknowledged the Angel’s presence in the past. She obviously wasn’t aware of the soul in that regard. Getting Kris alone would be nearly impossible, and Ralsei knew about their feelings on the matter.
“What… um…” Ralsei’s hands clasped tighter behind his back. “What happened?” His question was aimed more at Kris as he made direct eye-contact with them. A question like that would usually trigger a response from the Angel if they were still present.
Kris didn’t respond, averting their gaze.
Apparently, Susie didn’t get the memo. Her eyes still lingered on Kris’ healed wounds. “Uh… we found the Knight again. It… it was too much for us. We got flung down here, and Kris crashed through some glass.”
That made sense considering the injury. But… that still didn’t explain the Angel’s disappearance. Ralsei could feel the bags under his eyes already beginning to worsen. He’d already been dreading this day for so long. Now, it’d somehow become worse.
“Ralsei? You good?” Susie had stopped glancing at Kris’ healed injuries, her gaze now trained on him.
He didn’t know how to even go past this point. If they moved into the next room, there would already be obstacles and Darkners to face. Without the Angel, they would be doomed. The prophecy was now saying as much. They were doomed.
Ralsei wasn’t breathing. His hands grew even more tense, balling into fists. Still, he put on the brightest smile he could. “I’m fine, Susie. Um… let’s just… stick together, I suppose.”
Susie’s eyes narrowed. Something about his facade hadn’t worked as well as he’d hoped. Thankfully, she decided not to comment on it yet. Instead, she opted to put a hand on Ralsei’s shoulder. “As if we’d do all these adventures alone. C’mon Kris, lead the way.”
With a moment of hesitation, Kris did manage to take a few steps to stand in front of the group. They seemed shaky on their own two feet, and as they passed Ralsei, he could hear them beginning to breathe raggedly. Something still wasn’t right with them.
They got a few steps before Susie, still trying to lighten the mood, asked, “So, hey, uh, Gang’s together! We gonna, uh, pose now?”
Ralsei didn’t feel in the mood. Apparently, Kris shared that notion. They kept walking forward after a moment of pause, not looking back.
Susie frowned. “Well damn, okay.” She took up her position right behind Kris, while Ralsei followed just behind.
What were they supposed to do? Both Kris and Ralsei knew something was wrong. Ralsei needed to pull Kris aside at some point, but leaving Susie also simply wasn’t an option right now. They were in more danger than ever without the Angel’s help during battles. Worse, if someone did get separated, there would be no one to send to their aid. There was no soul anymore. It couldn’t take hits for them.
Susie looked more and more upset by the minute as they walked. He understood. After all, she’d just said how much she hated people hiding things from her. Both Kris and Ralsei were complicit in that now, and it was becoming harder and harder to not just start spilling everything. Ralsei was trying everything in his power to keep his hands from trembling, keeping them clenched tight behind his back.
They passed by the glass panes, Kris turning their head to look. They must be curious as to what it meant. For Kris, the soul was merely the soul. At least, they never really talked about it in the way Ralsei did. Ralsei knew that the soul and the Angel were one in the same. Kris didn’t share that same reverence, something the two of them disagreed on constantly when they had moments to talk. The soul was a tool to them. They needed it, even though they wished that they did not.
If it was gone, Ralsei didn’t know what the consequences were. Was Kris aware of any consequences?
Susie’s head tilted upward at the glass tapestries depicting their inevitable fate. Out of everyone here, she knew the least. Immediately, she proved that by asking, “What is all of this?”
Knowing Kris wouldn’t answer and knowing that an explanation was needed, Ralsei responded, “That’s… the prophecy, Susie.” That is what he had prepared himself to say if the prophecy was still here.
Sure enough, Susie tilted her head at the shattered Deltarune. There were no words to be found on the prophecy. It must’ve seemed confusing. After they reached a second glass pane with no words, she scratched the back of her head, idly commenting, “Yeah… doesn’t look much like anything to me.”
“It’s…” Ralsei steeled himself, taking a deep breath. Susie deserved to know this at least. “That’s because… it…” Come on, Ralsei. Just get the words out. “There is no more prophecy to tell.”
Kris stopped for a second, tilting their head back to listen. When they stopped, so did the entire line.
Susie made a huh sound, like she didn’t know what to make of that. “Wasn’t the uh… whole prophecy thing your entire schtick when we met you? I wasn’t paying attention all that much, but wasn’t there like…” She moved both of her hands in an arch for emphasis. “...something something banish heaven, something something only we can do it?”
Apparently, Kris heard enough. They kept moving down the path.
Still, Ralsei kept explaining, “I- yes Susie. It’s… not exactly a thing to… worry about anymore.” It was more of a worry than ever. He just didn’t know how to express that. Anxiously, one hand traveled up to his scarf, fiddling with it.
“Hah! Bet it’s because we kicked the Knight’s ass the first time.” Confidently, Susie placed her hands on the back of her head while they walked. “Bet the prophecy didn’t see that one coming.” In typical Susie fashion, she neglected to mention the fact that they were all unceremoniously cut down after she broke a shard off of the Knight’s weapon. Still, Kris retrieved a powerful weapon and a Shadow Crystal from the encounter. It wasn’t anything to scoff at.
It… was an interesting point to bring up though. In that moment of finality with the Knight, knowing that they could be cut down at any moment, they did manage to come out of the fight somewhat victorious. The Angel, notorious in Ralsei’s mind for choosing pacifism at any given point, had decided to fight without warning. It was the angriest Ralsei had ever felt them. He wondered if the others felt it too, when the Angel burned like a raging sun at their back.
He missed it, traveling through this cold church.
As they walked past a third pane of glass, Kris glanced just under it. They stood there, transfixed for a moment, like something was out of place. Ralsei tried to catch a glimpse, wondering if it might be the light that only they could truly see. He knew of its existence. He’d recommended that they stop there frequently. Yet, he did not understand the true nature of the light. The Angel used it for storage, checking recruits, and taking a break. Ralsei… didn’t quite know what that entailed despite knowing of its existence. However, every time they passed one of those places, he felt invigorated.
Ralsei caught a glimpse of silver. It… was duller than the past few times he’d seen it flickering. It looked more akin to… well… shattered glass. He didn’t see it for long, the glass vanishing into nothingness when he blinked. Even with Ralsei’s awareness of things involving the Angel, he could never look for too long. They were, after all, far above him.
Kris continued onward. However, Ralsei could now hear metal grinding every time they took a step. Their feet were dragging, like every step was getting harder and harder to take.
Every fiber in Ralsei’s being wanted to say something, but doubt always clamped his mouth shut. He never knew when to say these things. There were so many problems that they would face in the future, and usually they just handled themselves! Without the Angel though, all of these problems would be so much worse. He needed to figure out how to say things. He needed to say something.
A flame flickering above them suddenly began to glow and move with intent. A Darkner had spotted them. Ralsei only had a second to stammer out a quick “Watch out!” before the flame descended.
Normally, they would be immediately pulled into a battle. The moment a Darkner tried to harm a party member, the Angel would place itself in between the fight, forcing it to follow certain rules. Starting a battle was something any Darkner could do on their own. Roulxs had done it multiple times despite Ralsei politely asking him not to. However, the Angel ensured a battle would be started regardless. Only in times where the goal was to evade combat would the Angel not instantly interpose itself.
Kris and Susie both did not know this distinction, as flames crashed down around them.
Kris dove to the side, rolling in a heap. The motion thankfully extinguished the flames, but it looked like they wanted to land more smoothly than that. Their motions were off-kilter.
Susie hissed, putting her arms up in a cross to try to defend. The flames burnt her, like any normal flame would. “What… what the hell? ”
There was no time to waste. The flame morphed into something more coherent. This was a Guei, from Ralsei’s memory, though he didn’t have Kris’ check ability to verify that right now. Ralsei bounced on his feet, focusing on the world around him. He pushed out all of the noises around him, only focusing on the battle. He readied his scarf at the Guei, clearly displaying his intent.
The normal feeling of a battle finally greeted him. Both Kris and Susie readied their weapons beside him, their normal formation being back.
Still, Susie looked worse for wear, shaking off her arms from stray flames. Her eyes darted around, the grip on her axe growing tighter. “This doesn’t feel right,” she muttered. Her head swiveled to Ralsei, expecting an answer.
“I-I’ll explain everything in a moment, Susie!” He was still winded from engaging a battle under pressure. Ralsei hadn’t needed to do that before. Yet, seeing injuries on both Kris and Susie sent chills up his spine. “Just… let’s just wait for Kris’ command.”
Kris…
Kris’ grip on their sword was tighter than it’d ever been. While their eyes weren’t visible, Ralsei could see their jaw set firmly. Were they… shaking? They weren’t… particularly new to the dangers of combat. They’d thrown themselves in front of Susie once already when being attacked by the King. But… they looked like they didn’t know what to do.
Ever diligent, Susie glanced in their direction, asking, “You good, Kris?”
As always, they remained silent. Their eyes trailed over to Ralsei, as if trying to silently ask him something. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a single clue what it could be. When they got no response back, they readied their weapon.
Ralsei winced as Susie followed their lead despite not receiving a command. Instinctively, based on what the Angel probably would’ve told him to do, Ralsei wrapped his scarf around his body, trying to gain TP for the time being.
He didn’t feel any power being pooled up behind the party.
Both Kris and Susie rushed forward to strike the Guei. Thankfully, they managed to land both of their hits, but Kris’ movements looked far too slow. Worse, Ralsei was still trying to figure out what felt so wrong about that DEFEND.
When the attack from the Guei came, he finally understood.
Tension Points were just gone.
Ralsei shielded himself with his scarf as another wave of fire came. He could feel the flames pelting his body while Susie yelled. The soul wasn’t taking any of the hits anymore, and Susie wasn’t ready. While Ralsei couldn’t see Kris, he doubted they were doing any better suddenly having to dodge.
Susie swore to herself when the flames died down. When Ralsei lowered his scarf, he could finally see the carnage. Multiple portions of her hair had been singed, and her arm looked blackened. Air rushed through her nostrils as she fought back the pain, clenching at her arm. “What the hell is going on?”
When her gaze went to Ralsei, he stammered, “I-I think- we just- we have to dodge- on our own.” She looked too hurt. Every time Susie received a direct attack like this, Ralsei’s heart broke. Seeing her get slashed directly by the Knight haunted him when he closed his eyes. Seeing something similar again… it… “I have to end the fight. I have to…” Ralsei trailed off, seeing an opening. The Guei was slower now. Right! Fighting made enemies tired! Ralsei channeled his own magic, immediately feeling part of his own energy drain.
A small plume of magic surged outward, collecting around the Guei’s approximation of a head. It slowly receded back into a flame, and the battle finally stopped.
Ralsei’s hands felt a bit tingly after that casting of magic. Ah, so that’s what was going on. Battle rules specific to the Angel had entirely gone away. Ralsei thought as much, but he didn’t expect Tension Points to be one of those things. Thinking about the logistics was all he could do to distract himself from the nerves surging through his body.
His brain snapped back into focus when he saw Susie’s wounds. “O-oh let me-”
“I can do it, man,” she said, green magic already trying to come out of her palm.
No. No they weren’t doing this. Even behind Susie, Ralsei could see Kris with a nasty hit to their cheek. No. No. Not right now. He wasn’t going to let any of them stay hurt. Ralsei pushed as much of his energy into his Heal Prayer as possible, healing the both of them. Immediately, just as it should be, both of their wounds faded.
Susie’s own magic faded in an instant. She grimaced, lowering her hand. “Okay, or not,” she grumbled, crossing her arms, “What the hell even was that? It felt like… back when I was fighting you guys with Lancer.”
Behind her, Kris had taken a second to sit down. They were taking extra steps to keep their breath level. Ralsei poked his head around Susie, but immediately returned to a neutral position to face the person asking him questions. Hastily, Ralsei answered, “Battles… have changed.” Yes, that needed to be enough. He could go with that.
“Why?” Susie asked, perfectly going for the exact issue that Ralsei was hoping she wouldn’t go for. “Every time I’ve been with you guys, it’s like… I don’t know…” She squinted a little bit, like she was trying to piece together what she was really seeing in battles previously. “Kris always handles most of the dodging.” Ah, so she didn’t quite understand what the battle box was. “Man, that sounds bad now that I’m saying it like an idiot.”
Ralsei nodded steadily, trying to figure out how to word this. Susie could in fact see the soul during fights. She likely just didn’t understand what it was doing or the fact that it very much wasn’t Kris. “I-I’d love to explain why Susie… but…” Think. Think. Make a good enough explanation. “I think if we stay out in the open too long, we might get drawn into another fight. I-I think now… it might be best to avoid battles.”
As soon as he gave the word, Kris rose to their feet. They were sweating, but determined to keep on moving.
Susie didn’t seem to share their resolve, gesturing wildly with her teeth starting to bare. “Are we seriously not gonna talk about any of this?” She glanced between the two people who refused to answer her. “You two are acting like that fire didn’t hurt you, but it sure as hell hurts! I’ll admit that! We can chill for a sec and let Ralsei explain.”
“I-I’ll explain the exact things we need to worry about, but-” Ralsei’s eyes darted to Kris, seeing that they were moving ahead. Hastily, he followed them, trying to keep pace. “Kris! Slow down! I-I know this is different, but we need to stick together or-”
Susie kept pace, her attention now focused on the human who appeared to be ignoring them. She was getting more and more frustrated. “Hey! Why are you two acting so weird? Kris just- just slow down!”
They weren’t slowing down. Their steps moved faster and faster with purpose, and Ralsei saw their body leaning precariously forward. Worse, Ralsei could see something twitching in the darkness. It was… far too dark in this room. Some of the lanterns and the lights on the floor managed to make spots of illumination, but…
Intense dread hung over Ralsei like a cloud while he sprinted after Kris. They were moving fast, steps uneven and hand moving for their chest. Susie was right behind him, though her larger stride passed him quickly. They were both interrupted when a blackened creature whizzed past their sides, forcing them both to dodge to either side of the pathway.
Susie yelled, “Kris! Where are you going? Did you not hear- oh dammit.” She immediately began running to keep pace with them, Ralsei having to call upon a bit of magic to float and keep up.
Kris wasn’t stopping. As they finally made it out of the abnormally dark room, Ralsei finally understood why. They were only moving to keep themselves in motion. Kris passed another glass pane, reaching out a hand to open air to try to steady themselves.
They collapsed immediately, metal armor clanging through the halls.
“Shit.” Susie ran as fast as she could, dropping by their side immediately. “Kris, what the hell?” Her eyes trailed up to Ralsei, who had just floated to a stop. “What the hell?!?”
Ralsei immediately started channeling healing magic, but he had an idea of what was going on. The imagery of the shattered Deltarune above him made his blood run cold as he tried to send healing magic through Kris’ body. The truth of the matter was that there was no more wound left to heal.
Still, Kris coughed, having a bit of energy left. They’d only been trying to move, because if they stopped, they would have collapsed on the spot.
Susie’s yellow eyes furrowed. “What the hell were you doing? Didn’t you hear Ralsei? When did you stop listening to Ralsei of all people?”
Kris frowned at that, not giving it a response.
When Ralsei finally pulled his hands away from their body, nothing had visibly changed. Susie’s eyes darted back to him, flicking between his receding hands and Kris’ face. “Uh, dude, they’re… I think they might need a little more.”
Ralsei shook his head. “There’s nothing left to heal Susie, I-” His shoulders sagged. Using magic this much outside of battle was beginning to wear him down. Instead, he decided to ignore Susie for the time being. This was urgent now. Kris needed to pick up on what he was saying, or there would be trouble. “Kris… are you certain that you only crashed through glass during your fall?”
They glared at him like he already knew the answer, but he truly did not understand what had occurred to make the Angel vanish. The soul wasn’t going into battle anymore. It clearly wasn’t possessing them. So, Ralsei needed something. His whole life, he’d had more than enough information to know generally what events would happen next. This world operated on certain rules, and they could be relied on.
Now, all of the rules were bending, and he didn’t know how much more of this he could take.
But… Kris never really answered Ralsei’s questions anymore. Ever since they’d discarded him, they kept a distance. Maybe they knew what he was. Perhaps, they didn’t like how much Ralsei had faith in the Angel. He hoped that they cared. When they and the Angel told him to be himself, he simply thought… that maybe…
Even if they didn’t care, right now, he just wanted them to be okay.
But, they just wouldn’t tell him a thing.
He withdrew his hands behind his back. Ralsei shut the thoughts out before they could continue. After all, he… he knew he would be discarded once more eventually. He shouldn’t be upset if the Lightners… chose to move on from him. He’d hoped that some of the answers the Angel gave him were in part Kris. He hoped somewhere that the hug when they first met and the hope for Ralsei to be his own person were Kris' opinions too.
Was it… ever Kris? He wanted to believe, but…
When Ralsei withdrew, Susie took the empty space. She caught his gaze, and something shifted. The air crackled, and Susie decided to be characteristically rude. “Fuck this.” She practically gripped the ground hard enough to chip the floor, gritting her teeth. “You two have been acting weird as hell all day, and we’re not even a few minutes into this Dark World.”
She was getting angrier by the second, and Ralsei thought he deserved it.
Someone needed to get mad at him, as they stood beneath a glass pane depicting the failed prophecy. It was he who wished for the prophecy to change from the start. He’d gotten his wish after all, and the ending would now be so much worse. Maybe, if Ralsei hadn’t begged for something as foolish as that, things would’ve been okay. But now… now… the Angel was gone, and they all didn’t have any time to even begin to understand why.
It was far too sudden.
Maybe that’s why every one of Susie’s questions put him on the backfoot so quickly. Ralsei wanted to know why the battles had changed, but not for the same reasons she did. Why would the Angel abandon them now? Why did they even leave? Was it even their choice? Did something happen? The only one with answers was Kris, and they were struggling to stay awake. Ralsei didn’t even know if they particularly enjoyed talking to him anyway, and that only made his breath quicken the more he looked at that stupid glass pane.
Something clicked in Susie’s head, and she made a decision immediately. “Kris, is this about the stupid red thing that you lost when we were coming in?”
“You lost WHAT?!?” Ralsei shrieked, shaking the glass pane just over Kris’ head.
In response, the human winced, like they’d been trying to keep that one a secret. Or… maybe it had something to do with how loud Ralsei just was.
But oh, how could he not be loud? They’d lost the soul? How did one lose something as precious as a soul? It was clear to Ralsei that the soul was no longer in Kris, but if Susie saw it get lost then what were they DOING?
Susie glanced between the two of them before groaning, “Are we serious right now? You two both know what’s going on, and you’re dancing around m-”
“Didn’t lose it.”
Kris’ words came out in a raspy whisper, like they had gathered all of their strength to say it. Of course, they’d used their strength to be pedantic. Their eyes remained trained on Ralsei, trying very hard to get him to not bring this up any further. “Left on its own.”
Unfortunately for them, Ralsei was a few moments away from accidentally tearing his own ears off. That stupid prophecy behind Kris mocked him every time he had to face them, but this was too important for him to just leave alone. “Kris, I-I need you to be a little more specific, b-because we very much need that-”
“I know.” They forced out the last word, gritting their teeth.
Susie stepped in between them again. “Oh, so we’re just doing this in front of me now, huh?” She glared at both of them, her limit for being left out of the loop finally being reached. “You.” She pointed at Kris, baring her teeth. “If that thing you lost is this important, and you didn’t tell me…” Her resolve broke midway through as they turned their head away. Kris’ emotions were clear, and Susie saw right through them. “ Why didn’t you tell me?”
The moment silence fell, Kris only receded into themselves more. They didn’t even make an attempt to speak, their mouth clamped shut.
Susie’s head lowered, her eyes slowly disappearing under her hair. Instead, she turned around, looking at him. “Ralsei? What’s going on?”
Maybe that’s what did it. Susie had a habit of questioning things regarding the two of them over and over whenever something seemed wrong. It happened once with Kris, their entire body trembling after they had just fought Spamton NEO. Perhaps, it was a correction she made after not paying attention to Lancer’s feelings when they were approaching Card Castle. Even more recently, she refused to drop the subject of the festival in the TV World. She knew something was wrong, and never let up despite Ralsei trying to… help her understand what his role was.
Why would he expect her to ignore something like this?
She was about to turn away again when Ralsei finally found the strength to speak up. He didn’t want to… to scare them… but…
But they were going to die if they didn’t know what was going on. If there was a time to say anything, just like with the Roaring, then it would be now.
So, Ralsei shut his eyes and admitted, “Kris… has… there’s no real polite or normal way to say this… lost their soul.”
That would have to do. No talk of the Angel needed to come through. As long as Susie knew precisely the amount of information she needed to know, it would hurt her less.
Susie’s brow furrowed, but some of the tension in her shoulders started to vanish. “So then why the hell are you two hiding that from me?” Ah, she was looking at Kris pointedly. “Don’t uh… don’t humans need that? If they lost something that important, why are we acting like it’s some big secret?”
Kris was actively trying to push themselves to their feet now, but their face still looked caked in sweat. They at least managed to push themself up to lean on a pillar, coughing into a hand. Still, they tried to set the record straight. “Didn’t… want you to worry.”
While Ralsei heavily doubted that was the true reason, Susie didn’t care if it was or not. In her eyes, it was- “What kind of piss poor excuse is that? Don’t want me to worry? You look like you can barely stand!”
When a pained expression flashed across their face, Ralsei tried to cushion the blow. “Susie, I think Kris only meant- We didn’t want to- They didn’t want to make you mad-”
“I-” She took a deep breath, but there was rage bubbling in her exhale. “I already told you two how much I hate it when people hide things from me, Ralsei!” Susie growled, “You two… you keep…” She clenched and unclenched her hands, trying to scramble together something. “You keep not telling me things until someone’s about to get hurt. You keep- Kris is looking like they’re about to die.” She jabbed a finger at Ralsei, rocking him back slightly from the impact. “You look like you’re gonna just keel over from being too nervous. Just… tell me what’s going on so I can help! I can help!”
Ralsei didn’t realize how still he’d gone until her voice started echoing off the walls. None of his muscles moved, and he didn’t want to move. Her gaze was trained on him, expecting something, anything after how much they’d both been keeping from her.
She… she always did hate when people hid things from her.
The truth was, admitting to what had happened would be admitting that they were doomed. Without the soul, they couldn’t even escape the Dark World. Without the soul, more Dark Fountains would form freely. He wasn’t even sure if they could survive a harder battle without the soul on their side.
But she needed an answer. She… deserved an answer.
Ralsei’s hands went to his scarf, and he tried to keep the tears from springing to his eyes. Perhaps he’d been ignoring the tremors in his body enough to not notice that he was afraid. Now, with Susie pointing it out, and with her begging for him to just say something, he couldn’t keep it down anymore.
So, he took a shaky breath, and tried not to look at the way Susie flinched backwards as he did. He kept as much of a smile as he could, trying to soften the blow. “I-I’m sorry- I just- I-It’s because… without it…” Admitting this would mean admitting defeat, but he didn’t know what else to do. With Kris looking gaunt and Susie losing faith in the both of them, he just couldn’t soften the blow any further. “I-I don’t think you two can make it out of this Dark World, Susie.”
And suddenly, all of that anger from Susie started to fade into something… much, much worse. Her eyes softened, and her shoulders fell. Ralsei never wanted Kris or Susie to be concerned for him, but… he could never keep it together. He just couldn’t… not now… not with the Angel’s shattered form looming just over their heads.
“Th-the soul is gone. It- we needed it- to-” He kept his hands firmly behind his back, his claws digging painfully under his fur. “We can’t fight anymore without all of us being in danger. Kris is… is going to get weaker. W-we can’t cast spells normally. We can’t seal the Dark Fountain. There’s- there’s no one- no one to-” Don’t mention the Angel. Don’t mention them. It was the one thing he had to do. He couldn’t mention them.
He didn’t even know them enough to mourn their loss.
Should he even mourn them?
Even now, Ralsei remembered the small moments where something started shining through in the Angel’s actions. At every turn, there was a glimmer of undeserved kindness in their actions. After Ralsei had messed up his introductory speech, they stayed behind and even hugged him while he explained battles. They let him wear ribbons, sacrificing their own defense to let him wear something he liked. Even on the swan ride, they told him that they liked that he was being himself.
There were so many questions he wanted to ask them. So many things about them didn’t add up, like their tendency to change whenever a night passed. Sometimes, they would do strange things, look for stranger Darkners, and sometimes… even change opinion on Ralsei. They were always kind to him, but he always wanted to ask… why they were so confused when he took off his hat.
He’d never know now. They were gone. They were gone, and he didn’t know what to do. All he had to cling onto were fragments of a being that would’ve been banished by the heroes anyway, and he, Susie, and Kris were going to die in their absence.
Ralsei was going to lose all of his friends in a single day, far earlier than he thought he’d have to. He didn’t even get to know why.
Everything felt like it was falling apart. At least with the prophecy, there was at least a semblance of a path to walk on. Even though Ralsei hoped they could divert it, it still allowed a certainty that helped him stay… calmer. Now, the world fell out from under him. There was nothing but darkness around every corner with no light to shine the way. It didn’t feel real. It couldn’t be real. Ralsei didn’t feel real, his entire body thrumming like static.
Something pressed against his shoulders. Ralsei could barely make out a haze of purple in his face, and he realized his name was being called. He was needed. He just needed to focus.
How could he focus? The Angel would still be gone when he got his bearings. His friends would still be in mortal danger. His friends, the very friends who trusted him with their lives, were going to die because he’d wished the prophecy would change. But, it didn’t matter if he could focus. He had to. If he wasn’t smiling, then who would? He had to keep smiling. He had to.
“Ralsei? Ralsei, look at me, dude.” That was Susie. Her hands were still set on his shoulders, trying to keep him standing.
Ralsei tried to root himself on that feeling. In the hands of Lightners, he always felt a bit more real. That is how it always was, even when he was still only an object without these horrid things like fears. “I-I’m sorry, Susie. I’m- I just need a moment.” He didn’t know how to keep his voice from trembling.
There was now blue in his vision. Kris stood on their own two feet, keeping a distance so as to not crowd him, but he could tell they were at least concerned.
They shouldn’t need to be worried. Get it together.
Finally, Ralsei’s vision focused on Susie’s face. Just like when she yelled at him for explaining what Darkners were, she’d gotten in his face again. But oh, there was that expression he hated again. That frown on her face, putting her concern on full display, made his vision swim again.
Susie kept him steady. “Hey, breathe. Eyes on me, and you better listen.”
The command gave him enough wherewithal to stare her in the eyes, her hands on his shoulders keeping him firmly planted to the ground. The world around started to feel more real, coherent even. Most of all, she felt real.
She put on one of her self-assured smiles, refusing to back down. “We’re gonna get out of here. We’re gonna find that damn soul. Whether you like it or not, I’m not giving up just because we gotta change things up a little.”
“S-Susie it’s not just a little thing. It’s-” He tried to argue, but-
“So what?” In the light reaching down from the windows high up in the church, Susie’s eyes started flickering. Ralsei rarely saw a Lighter’s capacity for determination, but it always tended to manifest through Susie. “It just means you two might have to listen to me for once, since you dorks have been fighting with that soul… or something. Me and Lancer had battle tactics down. Guess I’ll have to be the teacher for once.”
That… that was true. In their first journey, Susie did immediately leave the party to fight battles on her own. If anyone here knew how to fight alone, it would be her. Slowly, Ralsei was starting to believe, but the prophecy looming just over Susie’s head stamped it out. “I- and what about the Dark Fountain? Wh-what about our magic? We can’t- I don’t want you all to get hurt-”
Susie removed her hands from Ralsei for a second, tentatively reaching into thin air. Her ToxicAxe materialized instantly, purple rude magic instantly forming on the end of it. “Eh, I can still do it.” She shrugged, testing the weight of the axe. “Feels different, though. And the Dark Fountain? We’re not worrying about it.” The axe vanished, and Susie pointed just beyond Ralsei into the black depths beyond. “Because I know where that stupid soul went.”
Ralsei almost once again thought that things could be solved. Yet, when he turned around to see where Susie was pointing, he realized just how dire their situation actually was. If the soul went into the depths of the Dark World… there was no telling what they would find. Ralsei… knew what would likely be lurking in that darkness. It was too stifling down there.
Even Kris was looking over the edge now, but they seemed far more pensive about the whole thing than Susie. They hadn’t said a word in a while, but from how firmly their brow was set, they were probably willing to follow her down there regardless.
No. No they couldn’t do this. It would be too dangerous. “I- we can’t-” Ralsei grabbed for Susie’s hand, pleading, “I- I can’t lose you all too. Please. We’ll- we’ll find another way. I- I can traverse Dark Worlds. I can take you all back to Castle Town. It- It would be…” He couldn’t, though. The outskirts of the Dark Worlds were only traversable thanks to his ability to fly for a limited time. Even then, the Roaring would be sure to occur.
Kris’ shoulders had gone rigid midway through Ralsei’s sentence. The moment didn’t go unnoticed by Susie, and her brow furrowed. “...can’t lose us, too?”
Ralsei clenched his mouth shut. Stupid. Stupid. He was still getting mixed up in all of this. The Angel was always going to be banished by them eventually. They were a far higher being than he was. This… wasn’t a loss for him. He had no right to decide how to think about their departure other than tactically-
Instead of pressing more, Susie decided on something. “Listen, Kris just got their energy back. We’ll… we’ll find a way down to where I think I saw that thing fall. I think I remember how fighting works without that soul but uh…” She scratched the back of her head. “You seem to know the actual difference between those fighting styles.”
Kris was already looking like they wanted to get moving now. But- they were going to get eviscerated without the soul!
Ralsei could explain, but explanation wouldn’t help them! It wasn’t just that the soul had fallen into the darkness. If it was merely that simple, then the Angel’s presence would still be in this world. He worried that there would be nothing to find down there. They’d be lost in the endless darkness with Ralsei being the only one who could return.
Ralsei was the only one who could return.
“We can’t.” He forced the words out, hands once more clenching behind his back. “I can’t let you all get hurt. Let… just let me do it.” It was the only thing he could really offer now. At least, if he succumbed to the darkness, they would still have a chance of traversing through the actual Dark World. He’d be able to go down there and potentially leave.
“No.”
The singular answer came from Kris. They’d tilted their head ever so slightly back to face the two of them, a frown being the only facial expression Ralsei could make out. While Kris… was the tactician of the group, they rarely issued commands on their own. It was strange to hear such a definitive word come out of their mouth.
“Kris is right. We’re not letting you go alone.” Susie hooked her arm around him. Ralsei yelped, suddenly being pulled against her side, stuck in a headlock. “We’re doing it as a team, toothpaste boy. All this? It doesn’t change a damn thing.”
Kris crossed their arms, once more deciding to be pedantic. “My soul fell out. ”
“And we’re gonna solve that in like two seconds!” Susie nodded confidently before digging her knuckles into Ralsei’s forehead. “And besides, you got me here to explain fights to you. What else is better than that?”
Something about the feeling of knuckles on his head vanquished the rest of the static in his body. It… hurt to be merely an illusion formed from an object. But… sometimes, whether it be the Angel hugging them through Kris, or Susie playing rough with him, it made him feel a little more real. He shouldn’t be allowed to feel that way, but…
Oh, something was blotting his glasses.
He just wanted the two of them to be okay. It seemed impossible, but maybe… maybe with Susie’s hope…
Maybe… they could just change the prophecy one more time.
“Uh… first noogie to make someone cry?” Susie asked, though she didn’t look like she regretted it at all. Her toothy grin betrayed her, but she let up, unhooking her arm from Ralsei’s head.
He took a second to wipe off his glasses with his scarf, a disgusting sniffle coming out of his nose. Really, he needed to be a little more composed. Still, he shakily laughed, “I’m just happy you’re my friends, Susie.” He hoped he could include Kris into that. He wanted to hope that they maybe… also would’ve been kind to him if the Angel wasn’t there.
They didn’t betray a single thing, turning their head away.
Susie took up the marching order again right behind Kris. She kept grinning. “Now, battles, yeah? You two gotta know how to fight like I did.”
Oh, this would be good. Ralsei followed in line while they began to move. The glass pane left their view at long last as they entered a thin hall together. Ralsei never imagined that they would be fighting without the soul. While he had theories on what the differences were with the Angel being gone, perhaps Susie’s insight would be valuable. For the time being, Ralsei was thankful to be in the back. His fur was matted and he still had to take off his glasses to wipe away some of the remaining tears.
He was thankful, just a little bit, that Susie took things in stride so often. She didn’t make fun of him for crying, even if he deserved it a little bit for… for keeping her in the dark for so long.
“So, battles.” Susie summoned her axe, placing the handle over her shoulders and draping her arms over it. “Uh… yeah back when I was smashing those puzzle piece guys, they kinda just happened? Like, I didn’t really do battles like you all did. It was kinda just… I smacked them and they fell over.”
Ralsei helpfully interjected, “I believe that is what happened when the Darkner back there attacked us. A battle was not initiated properly. Typically, with the soul, it would force a battle to occur.”
“Huh.” Susie thought about that for a second. “Well, that’s nice. Wouldn’t have wanted to deal with getting stabbed before being able to start a battle. I kinda like it when I’m not getting fire spit at me for fun.”
“We have to do it manually, now.” Ralsei wasn’t quite sure how to explain exactly how to engage a battle. “It’s… a matter of intent. You have to focus on only the fight, like nothing else around you matters. Drawing a weapon usually helps.”
Susie snapped her fingers. “Yeah! Lancer did something like that when we were practicing our team attacks!” As she thought about it, a chuckle came out of her mouth. “I remember the attack where I jumped on his head tripped you two up big time.”
As her chuckle echoed down the hall, something large dropped from the ceiling. Ralsei instinctively went to start a battle, but Kris beat him to the punch. They raised a hand, pointing at the enemy. It halted in its tracks, a head forming from the rest of its spherical body.
A battle started immediately.
Kris had listened!
“Well done, Kris!” He shouted, genuinely happy that they had caught on so fast. “Although, do remember that we will have to dodge on our own, now.”
They nodded, grip tightening on their blade.
“So uh, anything else we should know before giving them their turn?” Susie asked, suddenly sounding a little less certain and glancing away. “I know I like… am obviously the expert and all… but uh… I didn’t… get too many fights in before you all dragged me back into the group.”
Ralsei nodded. “Most importantly, we do not have Tension Points anymore.”
“Sweet.” Susie nodded before a bead of sweat dripped down the side of her head. “What’s that?”
“I-” Just how much of battles was Susie doing on pure instinct? After seeing how she fared against the Knight, Ralsei was now very concerned about what she would be capable of with full knowledge of her abilities. “You never read my manual. Right.”
“S’not my fault it’s a good bedtime story-”
“Tension Points…” Ralsei cut through, seeing that the enemy across from them was getting agitated. “...are what we use to channel our spells or use stronger abilities. They are something that… the soul channels through us.”
Surprisingly, Susie understood. “Right. Always did feel pumped whenever Kris told me to use a spell.” Before they could continue their conversation, Kris raised a hand into the air. Susie’s glance twitched over to them, before a grin split across her face. She asked, “You thinking what I’m thinking?”
Kris nodded, and the two sprinted towards the enemy in a blur. Ralsei yelped in confusion, before seeing the two jostling the Balthizard back and forth. He ran to join them, though he wasn’t nearly as strong as the two of them working together.
For some reason, this made the Balthizard’s singular white eye look happier.
When they returned to their positions, Susie continued, “So uh, what changes without the tension? I cast Rude Buster all the time outside of fights. Wait- shit- dodge-”
White smoke clouds began to encircle the three of them, as even more shed off from the Balthizard. They all stood back to back, keeping an eye out for burnt incense that came their way. When Kris pulled the two of them to look forward, it was clear that the attacks were only coming from the Balthizard’s direction.
They split off, managing to individually weave in and out of the haze. One of the attacks lightly grazed Kris’ armor, but they didn’t make a visible wince. Okay. That… that was good.
The smoke clouds vanished, and Ralsei took a deep breath. “We can theoretically cast at any time.” Ralsei brought his hand up, waving to the Balthizard to spare it. “It’s just now… you will likely get tired after exerting yourself with spells. It will draw on our energy now… even in fights.” The Balthizard left down the hallway, ending the fight. “With Tension Points, we could theoretically cast forever. Now… we should probably use our spells sparingly.”
“Pfft, we’ll see about that.” Susie let her weapon dissipate, following Kris who had already once more taken the lead. Their movements were a tad slower, and their breathing heavier. It looked like they didn’t have all that much energy to work with when their soul was gone.
That battle hadn’t been the worst thing, Ralsei supposed. Still, that felt like an easier Darkner to fight. He thought he would see more on this path. Usually, Darkners tended to attack in groups. He’d only seen singular Darkners on their path. Perhaps, he should simply count his blessings.
Once more, the group passed by another image of the shattered Deltarune. Even though Kris tried to move quickly past it, Susie still idly commented, “So what did the prophecy usually say? Anything cool about me?”
Ralsei almost didn’t want to remember. More importantly, he could not share that with Kris and Susie now. While the prophecy had been broken, their current trajectory was even worse. He didn’t want to deter them from doing the right thing. If they never escaped the Dark World, then all would be for nothing.
So, Ralsei answered with a steady voice, “There… were many things about all of us. Although I… don’t think it matters much anymore.”
“Aw come on, nothing fun?” Susie wondered, keeping pace with Kris. “I bet I was cool in it. You can admit it, Ralsei-”
The glass pane shattered.
All went silent as the room was covered in darkness.
Immediately, something in Ralsei’s chest felt constricted. This wasn’t normal. Something was lurking deep in the darkness with him. Whenever Ralsei traversed through Dark Worlds, he always tried to make sure that he stayed out of the deepest darknesses. Unfathomable things waited there. It was why he was so scared to let Kris and Susie descend into the depths in the first place. Now, the depths had come to them.
A clang of metal rang through the air. Suddenly, a hand was on Ralsei’s shoulder. It was Susie, having grabbed both him and Kris. She grumbled, “Can’t see shit. We should probably hold onto each other.”
Ralsei immediately put his hands on her waist, deciding that he would in fact try that. He could… maybe try to use a bit of his magic to light the way, but he didn’t want to burn it out yet. If… if the darkness got worse, with no light to shine the way, his own abilities may be needed.
Kris moved the group forward, inching slowly forward. They were only able to listen to the sound of footsteps in the darkness, and didn’t seem to have a single clue where they were going. Sometimes, Ralsei would hear a few clanks of metal, like they were testing the way ahead. One time, Susie tensed, pulling Kris backwards after one of the clangs of metal sounded off.
“Not gonna be able to save your ass every time, you know,” she muttered, keeping her voice low.
The darkness only grew thicker as they winded along thick paths. Ralsei felt like his lungs weren’t properly filling with air anymore. It weighed on his chest, and stifled the magic bubbling at the surface of his being.
Nervous, he started mumbling, “It’s… awfully dark in here, isn’t it…?” He didn’t want his worst fears to be confirmed. He just hoped that they could get through this room. He hoped that it was just naturally dark.
His hope was answered with a screech in the darkness.
No… no that couldn’t…
Had the Dark World been open long enough for spawn to appear?
Ralsei didn’t waste a single moment. He tugged on Susie, trying to guide her back while yelling, “W-We need to go back! Now!”
Susie spared him a glance in the darkness, but she couldn’t see just how terrified he was. Instead, she responded to the sound of Kris’ blade appearing, drawing her own weapon. “Like hell we’re going back now! It’s just another Darkner. We got thi-”
Suddenly, a gauntlet wrapped around Ralsei’s robes. Both he and Susie were yanked away, Kris charging in the opposite direction. They were panting heavily, sweat dripping down their face.
Ralsei didn’t know the way back. He didn’t know if Kris did either. They’d been so unsure with their footing before, and now-
Susie pulled them all back from the edge before Kris careened over. “Slow down. We’re not gonna be able to run in the dark like this. We gotta handle them-”
“Battle isn’t working,” Kris rasped, turning around to the encroaching darkness with their Blackshard in hand. They frantically tapped Ralsei on the shoulder, trying to get his attention. “Not working.”
The two of them hadn’t done this before. Ralsei had only explained a feeling, but a feeling wasn’t enough with these spawns. Ralsei stepped in between the encroaching darkness and his friends, readying his scarf. He was the only one of the three well-practiced in this. He just needed to focus on the fight. Yet, fear was entrenched in his chest already. His friends breathing laboriously behind him made him falter. His fear of what came made it hard to focus on only the battle.
Ralsei whispered, shaking, “W-we have to run. We can’t-”
Susie grabbed them both, having found a route away from the Spawn. As she ran, she had an idea. “Well, we gotta go down into the Dark World, right? Y’know, gotta go off the beaten path to find that soul?”
As he ran as fast as his legs could take him, Ralsei panted, “I- yes? But we need to find a safe place to go down-”
Ah, he understood the issue now.
Susie had gone the wrong way. Or perhaps Kris had gone an incorrect way earlier, and they were far off the correct trail. Now, the three of them stood at a dead end with Titan Spawn slowly approaching.
In the darkness, Susie’s yellow eyes flashed with a spark of red. She grabbed hold of both of them, yelling over the heartbeat in their ears, “You two trust me, right?”
Kris nodded without hesitation. Ralsei had just a little more apprehension. “O-of course, Susie, but-”
“Good enough for me!”
Before Ralsei had a moment to react, Susie’s arm was hooked around his waist. In her other arm, Kris held on, like they knew what was coming next. When Ralsei stared at Susie, he saw her face trained on the certain oblivion below.
With the Spawn right behind them, Susie leapt into the unknown. Air rushed around them, showing just how fast they were descending. Ralsei clung to her, trying to use any of his magic to slow their descent.
Something slammed into them, and Ralsei…
His thoughts shattered.
DOWN