literature

Alice in Undertale Chapter 13

Deviation Actions

Lolitafreak88's avatar
Published:
4.9K Views

Literature Text

Alice in Undertale
By Lolitafreak88

Chapter 13 Starry, Starry Nightmare

So Alice went onward to the next area when she noticed something surprising. There were four seedlings with some kind of pink bloom on them waiting to blossom and there was no bridge connecting her side with the other side. Unless Alice swam against the potentially overwhelming current of the water, she had reached a dead end. I’m glad Undyne didn’t spot me earlier or she surely would’ve cornered me here, Alice thought as she gulped and looked for any clues. She found one in what appeared to be more than just a simple sign hung up on the wall but rather an ancient looking text. Incredibly, it was in English and not hieroglyphics or other similar drawings like Alice had heard about in her history book. It said ‘When four Bridge Seeds align in the water, they will sprout.’

“Bridge Seeds? Hmm… well that would certainly be cost-efficient towards making paths to cross.” Alice spoke thoughtfully as she realized they were the seedlings she saw.

Granted she knew what they were now and had an idea of what they did, but Alice was worried about putting them into the water in case they sank. Alas, she didn’t really have any other options and so Alice picked up one of the rather wet and slightly slimy seedlings and placed it into the water. It floated gently yet strangely quickly to the other side and landed against it. It didn’t quite blossom yet but it seemed to be staying where Alice needed it to stay. Alice couldn’t help but be more curious when they would blossom and so she quickly put the other seedlings into the water. They all floated alongside one another in a path from Alice’s side to the other and then… blossomed. They turned into beautiful pink flowers with four petals, big green heart-shaped leaves, and a lotus-based scent. Now the trickiest part was crossing what would normally be considered as very delicate things. Alice lifted her skirts carefully and placed one foot on the first flower. Surprisingly it was as sturdy as the rocks she recalled crossing before in the park.

“Wow, when I get home I shall write a book about this place…” Alice reminisced, clearly amazed by the feat of the flowers, and crossed the rest to the other side.

Alice had to admit that while one could find this moving from an area to the next tedious, she herself was thoroughly enjoying herself by the opportunity to learn more about the Underground. The next area appeared to have shiny things along the wall and floor, bridges, a lone sign in the water, and that was just on her first glance. However she quickly encountered someone who seemed to be flexing his way over to her. It was a very curious creature that appeared to be half horse and half mermaid with a very, very, VERY muscular build and arms. It had a fairly groomed mane and a rather confident expression. It appeared to be called Aaron which was actually a rather normal name compared to some of the other monsters Alice had encountered. It appeared this seahorse had a lot of HP (horsepower) as well which was a little silly. This world of my own really does admire it’s acronyms, Alice thought as she looked slightly anxious at the creature. Then somehow she understood that his attacks were harder to dodge at the bottom of the box… even though there clearly wasn’t a box to be found.

“CHECK all you want ; ).” Aaron said in a rather slimy and seductive tone.

Drops of sweat seemed to be flung at Alice as Aaron striked very bodybuilder-esque poses and Alice decided to move forward towards Aaron as it seemed there was more space to dodge the attacks there. It succeeded and Alice watched as Aaron admired his own muscles in a very vain sort of way. Alice felt like challenging Aaron in that regard and she flexed her muscles in response, finding childish glee in doing so. Aaron saw Alice’s act and flexed even more than before.

“Flexing contest? Ok, flex more ; ).” Aaron said.

“Well not so much a contest… and could you kindly cease winking at me?” Alice asked feeling a bit uncomfortable.

“No. ; ).”

“... Well then shame on you!” Alice growled in annoyance as she dodged what appeared to be muscles of magic shooting forth at her.

Aaron appeared to be ready for Alice’s next flex so Alice tried to flex as hard as she could. She had a feeling her sister would disapprove of this whole spectacle but to begin with her sister wouldn’t have approved of her coming down here alone. Aaron both seemed to gain increased strength and Aaron repeated the same request of Alice to flex more. Once again Alice dodged a number of magical flexing muscles before she gave yet another impressive flex. This certainly makes me feel quite confident, Alice thought to herself.

“Nice!! I won’t lose though ; ).” Aaron actually complimented Alice as he winked this time which raised her opinion of him a smidge more.

With one final flex, Alice saw Aaron flex very hard… and seemingly flex himself out of the room altogether! Alice waved goodbye to the merhorse as she collected some G and carried on her way. With more space to see, Alice soon found several mushrooms, and four Bridge Seeds lying on the ground. She was curious about the sign in the water but decided that maybe this was a chance to practice with her DETERMINATION to uncover it for herself without wasting the Bridge Seeds. So she walked over to the edge of the lake where the sign was and harnessing her DETERMINATION to uncover the sign, she summoned a golden glass bottle. It was going to serve as a makeshift boat for Alice as it bobbed up and down like a buoy in the water. Climbing inside, Alice pushed the inside of the bottle to find that her DETERMINATION felt strangely warm and seemed to match the same texture as glass or perhaps china. Considering it had been described as a fragment of her SOUL and that the things Alice had conjured with it had been out of her imagination, it seemed that DETERMINATION had a great deal of properties. Similar to the chemical elements Alice had been learning about in science class.

“So what does that sign say…?” Alice asked as she neared the front of the sign.

She couldn’t hold back her amusement in a giggle when she read ‘Congratulations! You failed the puzzle!’ What the sign had not counted on was Alice’s cleverness and choice to not use the Sprout Seeds and so Alice now had a good idea of what to do with them. Returning to shore and dispelling the bottle so she could get on land, Alice continued to investigate the area. The little girl noticed another sign and what appeared to be some sort of bell despite the bell smelling and looking much more like a flower. This sign read ‘If an error is made, the Bell Blossom can call Bridge Seeds back to where they started’. How would that even work? Alice asked herself as she felt slight curiousity in finding out how it worked but also greater satisfaction at having not made a mistake. She noticed a section of land to her left that seemed like the right amount of distance for the Bridge Seeds to work effectively. So she took her time to set the Bridge Seeds into place to create the linking path and sure enough, she succeeded and could move on. As she reached the other side of the land she suddenly heard her phone ring.

“Hmm? Now who…” Alice started asking herself but quickly realized that she had a good idea of who it would be.

“HELLO! THIS IS PAPYRUS!!! HOW DID I GET THIS NUMBER…? IT WAS EASY!!! I JUST DIALED EVERY NUMBER SEQUENTIALLY UNTIL I GOT YOURS!!!” Papyrus’s jovial voice confirmed her suspicions.

“Ehehe, Papyrus, we exchanged phone numbers earlier remember? To symbolize our new bond.” Alice corrected him with a grin.

Despite his interactions with Undyne, Alice felt as though she could trust Papyrus as he knew what would happen to Alice if she was captured and it was something he definitely didn’t desire for her. Plus it was always comforting to hear his voice… even if it felt like she had been constantly running into Papyrus and Sans when she least expected it. Which wasn’t anything bad but rather unexpected and made Alice feel desperate to think of things to liven up the conversation.

“OH… EXPLAINS HOW I GOT YOU ON MY FIRST TRY! NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH!! GREAT TO HEAR FROM YOU AGAIN ALICE. SO… WHAT ARE YOU WEARING…? I’M… ASKING FOR A FRIEND? SHE THOUGHT SHE SAW YOU WEARING A DUSTY TUTU. IS THAT TRUE? ARE YOU WEARING A DUSTY TUTU?” He asked in a hilariously poor attempt to be subtle.

“I did come across a tutu but it certainly wasn’t something I put on. I left it where it was. I’m simply wearing the same outfit I’ve been wearing since Snowdin.” Alice answered honestly.

Ironic how I can be honest with the brother who’s clearly being sneaky when I can’t be honest with the brother who makes goofy puns, Alice thought when comparing how she could answer more truthfully with Papyrus here than opposed to Sans at times.

“SO YOU ARE WEARING THE CAPE SANS PROVIDED AND A LOVELY DOLL DRESS. GOT IT!!! WINK WINK!!! HAVE A NICE DAY!” Papyrus replied charismatically and the call was ended.

“... Well it’s clear he has to do something to appease to Undyne. After all, outright disobeying her orders could jeopardize his dream and I know he wouldn’t want that.” Alice wisely deciphered the meaning behind Papyrus’s words and thus didn’t feel betrayed in the slightest.

In fact it was perhaps more comforting that he was doing it in a way that was obvious, it gave Alice some information she could use to prepare herself. Undyne now had a vague idea of what she looked like so Alice knew that if she met Undyne, she had the justification to keep her distance and retaliate should Undyne aggress on her. However Papyrus had pointed out something about the tutu Alice didn’t realize. It had indeed been dusty and recalling her nightmares about when Toriel turned to dust upon death… was it dusty with the dust that gathered over time, or the monster’s dust…? Either way, Alice knew she had to keep going and so she entered the next area and found herself mesmerized by it’s beauty. It appeared to be a corridor and the ceiling looked like a night sky, black and containing dazzling stars. There were also more Echo Flowers and a sign hanging upon the wall. Alice, careful not to say anything, approached the closest Echo Flower to see what it had to say.

“A long time ago, monsters would whisper their wishes to the stars in the sky. If you hoped with all of your heart, your wish would come true. Now, all we have are these sparkling stones on the ceiling…” It recounted.

“Oh so those are stones… still this is breathtaking… they really do like stars.” Alice said aloud to herself as she gaze at the ceiling once more.

As if to confirm the Echo Flower’s message, the sign said ‘WISHING ROOM’. I wonder what sort of wish I should make here, Alice thought as she turned to the next Echo Flower.

“Thousand of people wishing together can’t be wrong! The king will prove that.”

“... *Sigh*” Alice felt a bit down after hearing the Echo Flower’s mimicry.

It seemed as though whoever said that was someone who believed passionately in breaking the barrier and supported the king’s methods of doing such. It felt a bit frustrating to Alice that she couldn’t find anything to disprove their honest desire of being free. Had the situation between humans and monsters been reversed, Alice probably would’ve done the same and said the same things. The idea though of being seen as a ‘device to break the barrier’ rather than a ‘human being’ in the Underground seemed very depressing to her as it meant it was even harder to break first impressions. She was fortunate enough to have learned how to pacify them from Toriel and become popular in Snowdin but she knew it would only grow harder the closer she reached the king’s castle. It also made her wonder what King Asgore was like, given he was a person willing to kill an innocent life for his people’s sake.

“C’mon sis! Make a wish!” The third Echo Flower said.

“Hmm… sounds like there were siblings here… I wonder who- OH!” Alice gasped as a strange creature shuffled up to her.

The best way to describe it was a living bathtub with a blank expression upon it’s round face, filled with water inside it’s strange body with a bird sitting it in. There was something very sweet about it’s appearance that made Alice feel less nervous about the sudden encounter though she quickly identified it as Woshua. A humble germophobe who seeks to cleanse the whole world. Such an ambitious goal, Alice thought with a smile. To Alice’s amazement, the bird actually tweeted, defining that it was very much a genuine feathered fellow with Woshua. As for Woshua itself, it spoke with a very squeaky voice that was true to it’s squeaky clean nature.

“Scrub a dub-dubs.” It said.

Then to Alice’s surprise, a slippery soap bar was flung at her and it bonked her on the head. Alice muttered a quick ‘ow’ and rubbed her head as she hadn’t anticipated such an attack and watched it slide away as she smelled a very strong, chemical aroma. Alice had a hunch that she knew of a perfect way to pacify Woshua and so she asked him,

“Could you kindly clean me please? I haven’t exactly been able to take a bath since I’ve been here.”

Woshua hopped around excitedly, clearly fond of the idea as the bird tweeted once more.

“Green means clean.” It said.

Then a rush of water droplets emerged from it’s body and were sent forth at Alice in a spiral formation. To her surprise, she noticed some of the droplets were green and when she made contact with them, it not only did clean her, but she felt a sense of recovery. It was definitely making Alice feel happier to assist Woshua in looking for some good, clean fun but she knew it was ready to pacify.

“Thank you kindly for cleaning me. I hope you achieve you dream.” Alice said with a curtsy.

Woshua slipped and slided away and left Alice free to see what the fourth Echo Flower’s message was,

“I wish my sister and I will see the real stars someday…”

Sister… Alice was quickly reminded of her own sister that she had left behind and thus she greatly approved and supported this wish. The next thing Alice noticed after this Echo Flower was a simple metal telescope. Despite the fact that it was already proven the ‘stars’ on the ceiling were false, Alice found it admirable and quite professional of the Underground to still provide a telescope should one want to look at them more closely. So Alice peered into the telescope and saw that the ‘stars’ on the ceiling were still very breathtaking and twinkled like diamonds. She made sure to investigate all angles that were possible through the telescope and that’s when she spotted a secret message. ‘Check Wall’ with an arrow pointing up. My, it’s as if Papyrus’s puzzles extended all the way down here. Alice thought as she realized for the first time this was supposedly a dead end. There was no exit but there was a big wall along the top side of the room which was probably the one that needed to be checked. Still there was one last Echo Flower Alice had yet to check and so she approached it.

“Ah… seems my horoscope is the same as last week’s…” It said amusingly as Alice chuckled.

Considering these weren’t real stars on the ceiling, such a mix-up would be utterly unavoidable. With little to lose, Alice moved onto the wall that she was told to check and as she firmly placed her palm on the wall, the wall seemed to shatter into pieces and open up a new doorway for Alice to cross. As she did so, she noticed some beautiful river weed plants and that she appeared to be in swamp-like territory. She also noticed several signs lined left to right along a wall and a strange stairway. It appeared to be an ancient writing of the monsters and while it did look complicated, some characters were recognized by Alice. So she was able to make out a pretty clear message as it seemed that these texts were referring to some sort of story.

“The War of Humans and Monsters.’ … Oh dear... “ Alice whimpered as she realized this text would no doubt have a bigger meaning and potentially sad moral behind it.

“Why did the humans attack? Indeed, it seemed that they had nothing to fear. Humans are unbelievably strong. It would take the SOUL of nearly every monster… just to equal the power of a single human SOUL.” Alice continued to read.

That’s what Chara was hinting at, Alice recalled as she deciphered the message. He had said that human SOULS are much more powerful but harder to truly use compared to monster SOULS. Alice had to agree with this fact after seeing how she was able to harness her DETERMINATION with such great proficiency after understanding it. Alice however had absolutely no answers for the first question. The unknown and paranormal did tend to make humanity paranoid across history but even then the monsters seemed relatively harmless. It seemed like a case where Alice had to have been there to understand why. Since she wasn’t there, the answer would never be clear and Alice had no idea of what happened. The next message however brought up something interesting to her,

“But humans have one weakness. Ironically, it is the strength of their SOUL. Its power allows it to persist outside the human body, even after death.’ … What on earth…?”

Alice stepped back a bit as she was simply confounded by what implications that had. Was it similar to becoming a ghost like Napstablook? But even then it would seem from past dreams and experiences that SOULS were shaped differently than what Napstablook was… and he was intangible. This was implying SOULS could be grabbed onto or possessed as if it was some trophy. Alice frowned at that ideology, how could anybody rest in peace under such rules? If anything it would mean they would be taken advantage of cruelly after having died whether it was a murder or by natural causes. This got Alice to thinking further about when Flowey had first attempted to kill her. Was it possible that if she died, Flowey would’ve taken her SOUL? Given that he announced his attention to become the ruler of this world it definitely seemed plausible.

“... I thought so. ‘If a monster defeats a human, they can take its SOUL. A monster with a human SOUL… A horrible beast with unfathomable power.” Alice read.

It was true then that if she did, any monster could use her life essence, the SOUL, to potentially become undefeatable. It also further explained why Asgore was collecting human SOULS in the hopes of breaking the barrier, if they really held that much power… freedom was bound to be attained. Alice couldn’t help but feel a bit angry at this though. It felt disgraceful, a unlawful and despicable use of a human life as a power source. If her sister had died and had her SOUL used by someone down here… Alice would show them no mercy. ‘Death’ was, as many of the more social and religious figures around Alice’s life called it, a release and an invitation into a peaceful sleep. This ruling about human SOULS seemed to drag that concept through the mud and ruin it.

“...” Alice remained in a silent fury as she looked at the final message and noticed it was a drawing.

It appeared to be of a very unsettling and strange creature. The very picture seemed to give off an ominous vibe and with the prior messages, appeared to be an example of a monster with a human SOUL. It only served to anger Alice even further to see that the use of an innocent human SOUL in such a cruel manner created this. With a controlled disposition, Alice eventually huffed to release her tense thoughts and stepped onto the path. However to her surprise, and startled shock, the path seemed to be a single block of stone that began floating towards the other side over what appeared to be a dark sea. Alice found that standing still didn’t cause any sort of imbalance with her posture so she simply didn’t move. This decision allowed Alice to make it to the other side safely and soundly. Feeling even more relieved and calm, if still a bit upset about her SOUL discovery, Alice kept moving.

Akin to a dock, she found herself crossing on a wooden bridge with the water being black as a night sky. Mysteriously there appeared to be some walls to her left with massive pillars that weren’t as stoic or elegant as the ones in the ruins but rather seemed more broad and wide. It was more like a cathedral in that sense than ruins of some sort of temple. There was something odd though about the lighting… Alice felt as though it had seemingly become darker and she was being overshadowed by something. She didn’t think of anything that came into mind though of what this could… mean…

“... I-is she…?” Alice whispered to herself as she suddenly felt goosebumps along her back.

The water was dark enough for one who could breathe underwater to hide in. The pillars big enough for someone to hide behind. Wide open space with only a straightforward bridge to cross and no other methods of passing along. It all seemed uncomfortably like a hunting ground with Alice being a lone target. It felt like a part of the circle of life, with Alice being a lone prey trying to harmlessly roam about before a predator would no doubt emerge out of the blue and strike. Then Alice had another thought, what if she was overthinking this? After all there was no proof she was here and she could clearly see everything. There were no bubbles in the water and no shadows around the pillars so Undyne couldn’t have reasonably been there.

“R-right… I’m pretty certain she wouldn’t be around… and if anything Papyrus would’ve let me known right…? I mean it’s getting dreadfully dark… but I can still see shadows and I don’t see Undyne’s so-” Alice made the fatal mistake of unconsciously moving forward despite her reservations.

Perhaps it was her curiousity that led her to make the steps that would lead to something that indeed confirmed this was a hunting ground. Alice heard the sound of something plummeting, which was quickly proceeded by the sound of something being impaled in the ground.

“EEEEEEEEEKKK!!!” Alice screamed as she instinctively stepped back and looked around anxiously.

She soon caught the sight of it, a mysteriously blue and seemingly magical spear impaled into the bridge. It was very long and shaped like a traditional spear but it had a benevolence to it and it’s clear it was just as pointed and deadly. Alice quickly adapted into survival instincts and looked around for the obvious huntswoman who threw it. Undyne emerged from the deepest shadows of what appeared to be the walls of the cathedral. She had never been behind the pillars and Alice had jumped to conclusions that she would’ve naturally hide herself there. So she quickly exposed herself to Undyne and was now at her mercy. Alice wasn’t sure what to do so she first attempted to speak towards the scary guard.

“W-wait… M-Miss Undyne…! I-I’m not… I haven’t done anything wrong!!” She cried holding her hands out in front of her as though to gesture ‘easy there’.

Unfortunately, especially compared to Papyrus, Undyne wasn’t much for conversation. To Alice’s surprise, not one, not two, but THREE spears akin to the same one that had now disappeared from the bridge were magically summoned in a flash of light and flung at Alice. Alice was more hurt than shocked Undyne didn’t even reply to her plea and so she reacted accordingly. She dodged the spears as they passed her back and splashed into the water, violent ripples spreading like a parasol. Alice then proceeded to gather her skirts and dash as fast as she could across the bridge. However, Alice soon noticed not only was Undyne moving along the wall to keep up with her, but that some of the spears were flung in the direction Alice was heading. This made dodging the spears increasingly difficult as Undyne’s aim was formidable and Alice had only the reflexes of a little girl. Alice soon found herself in the crosshairs of a flurry of spears when she made a misstep.

“Ngahhh!!” Alice gasped when she barely avoided being impaled by a multitude of spears.

Her DETERMINATION to make it out of here alive soon began to sprout within her heart and she realized that she couldn’t dodge Undyne’s strikes like this forever. It was at that moment she felt herself invoking a cry for help to no one in particular… and had it be answered. Within moments, a golden woman could be seen walking across the bridge over by Alice, fanning herself with a strange fan shaped like a heart. Upon further inspection, she was a boisterous and fairly plump woman with short hair in a bun, an extravagant dress, and a crown on her head that symbolized her authority. To a lesser extent, her whole demeanor symbolized a pride and sense of regalness that was suitable for this woman. Alice had a mix of happiness at having summoned another ally to assist her and a crippling fear as she recognized who this DETERMINATION construct was. The Queen of Hearts. She didn’t say anything, perhaps unable to do to her magical state and she took precise steps across the bridge fanning herself as though nothing was wrong. Undyne noticeably stopped hurling spears to examine this use of DETERMINATION with a slight tilt of her head. It was as if she was carefully observing and trying to figure out what this new prey that had revealed about themselves.

“Y-your majesty…” Alice unconsciously acknowledged the queen and curtsied politely as she had several nightmares about the infamous ruler.

It seemed this respectful treatment made the Queen of Hearts satisfied as she nodded at Alice and then held out her arm as though giving a decree. Two Card Soldiers of the same golden DETERMINATION arose from the water and quickly hopped onto the bridge. Specifically they were the One of Hearts and the Two of Clubs. Alice recalled Card Soldiers being divided between red and black but their golden appearance seemed to indicate no difference between them and they were wielding lances edged with their respective suit. Undyne felt a bit of a thrill building within her as she saw new opponents and that Alice was a tougher human than she expected. So she summoned several more spears and flung them at Alice to see what would happen next. The Queen of Hearts gave an inaudible roar and the two Card Soldiers rushed to Alice’s side and perfectly parried the spears with their lances. Alice was surprised to see such efficiency, let alone that once antagonistic beings in her Wonderland were aiding her in the Underground. Surely this is because they can sense my determination, Alice hypothesized.

“Thank you!” Alice showed her gratitude as she dashed across the bridge.

Undyne was clearly a bit irritated at the disruption and so she showed no mercy to the Card Soldiers and the Queen of Hearts and sent a flurry of spears at them as opposed to Alice. Alice did not look back for she was still quite nervous about Undyne’s potency and about her chances of pacifying her at the moment. Shortly after, she could hear some painful-sounding noises akin to paper being pierced through and realized that Undyne must’ve defeated the DETERMINATION constructs that were left behind. Fortunately for her, she was able to find a very large and long meadow along the path similar to the one she had used to hide in before. Quickly getting onto her hands and knees, she entered the grass and did her best to make herself as cloaked as possible as she knew Undyne would be arriving eventually in pursuit. Curiously, she heard something rustling in the grass around her but she didn’t have time to question it as echoing, heavy footsteps of someone wearing armor approached.

“*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump*...” The sounds soon stopped and Alice peered up as sneakily as she could to see Undyne hovering ominously over the area she was hidden in. There was definitely something particularly scary about seeing the helmet of Undyne up close than far away as it looked even more mysterious and driven. But nothing could compare to Undyne holding her arm to the sky, a manner fitting a snake coiling back before it’s fatal bite. Alice gulped as quietly as she could for it seemed Undyne was about to try to grab her and she did her best to reduce the amount of space she was occupying to increase the odds of Undyne missing. However when Undyne did finally send forth her grasping arm, she did catch something. She pulled it up like a gladiator in the ring to see… the overjoyed expression of Monster Kid. Alice saw all this and had to admit it was extremely hard not to laugh at the circumstances and at the fact Monster Kid magically came to her side once again. At least time I know he was in these bushes when before it seemed almost impossible, she exclaimed mentally. Clearly believing that Alice escaped, Undyne set Monster Kid down and went back the way she came. After guaranteeing that Undyne was gone, Alice quickly made her way through the meadow and exited on the other side. Quickly followed by a super excited Monster Kid.

“Oh Monster Kid, thank you so much for taking the fall that time. I was almost about to be captured and killed.” Alice clasped her hands together and thanked Monster Kid.

“Yo… did you see that!? Undyne just… TOUCHED ME! I’m never washing my face ever again…!” Monster Kid cheered somewhat boastfully and missing Alice’s point completely.

“... Well I suppose I’m happy you got that sort of contact with your idol but… wait how do you even wash your face when you don’t possess arms?” Alice herself also lost the point of what she was saying when she was genuinely wondering about how Monster Kid pulled something like that off.

“Oh well I just um… mix a vat of water and soap and dive in!” Monster Kid replied.

“So essentially you take a bath… I understand,” Alice admitted, suddenly feeling embarrassed she hadn’t figured out such an easy answer.

“Man, are you unlucky. If you were just standing a LITTLE bit to the left…!” Monster Kid recounted in a way that made Alice feel even more flustered.

“N-no it’s quite alright. My sister wouldn’t want me to be touching strangers anyway… it seems this place is a lot more liberal in regards to how the citizens interact and meet.”

“A sister? What’s she like?! I have one too and she’s awesome.” Monster Kid seemed inspired by Alice’s mention of her own sister and ran over to her like an eager student.

“My sister…? Well she’s quite simply a very pleasant young woman and I look up to her for many things. She taught me manners, educated me, supported me, although never was quite as open to imagination as I was… I feel bad that I left her up above. If I had my way she would’ve at least come here with me.” Alice tried not to get herself sad as she replied to Monster Kid.

It partly succeeded but Alice still couldn’t help but wince every time she recounted her sister being trapped in the past while Alice had been whisked to the future via rabbit hole. Monster Kid seemed to sense Alice’s struggle and to her own surprise, snuggled up against her. Without arms, it seemed this was a demonstration of an improvised hug from him.

“It’s ok Alice! Maybe you’ll find a new sister o-or maybe you can go back up above. I mean I bet Undyne could help too if you asked her nicely.” Monster Kid offered.

“Why Monster Kid… that’s very thoughtful of you. I appreciate your efforts to try to help me but it really is a dilemma that I must solve on my own. You should relax and have fun on your own time and don’t bother with someone like me.” Alice bravely made an attempt to push away Monster Kid in a way so he’d be safe and sound and uninvolved with Alice’s own drama.

“Yo, don’t worry! You’ve been a great friend so far and I’m sure we’ll meet her again!” Monster Kid however seemed determined in his own right to support Alice in any way he could.

Before Alice could make another attempt to keep Monster Kid from being too involved, he ran off… or more appropriately sprinted forth, tripped and fell on his face again, got back up, brushing off the dust, and ran off. Alice decided that there wasn’t much use attempting to reason with an excited kid who did consider her a friend and didn’t yet realize the sheer scale of Alice’s position. She looked behind her one more time and watched carefully to make certain Undyne wasn’t about to reveal she had overheard them by hiding in the grass or something, and found great relief when nothing happened in the next few minutes. Alice then nodded to herself as a matter of factly and entered the next area of Waterfall.

To her personal delight and also surprise, she saw an area that looked very familiar to an area she had seen in Snowdin Forest. A mousehole on the wall, another Echo Flower, and a table that held what appeared to be crystallized cheese. This cheese had been there for so long, a magical crystal had grown around it. It was stuck to the table… I wonder why there are so many tables simply lying about in nature down here? Alice pondered with some bafflement. When she turned to the Echo Flower, to her own personal delight and amusement, it said,

“Squeak.”

“So the sounds of animals can also be mimicked by these flowers! That’s simply incredible!” Alice exclaimed happily as the Echo Flower accurately recounted the mouse who had lived in the mousehole.

This knowledge that the mouse might one day extract the cheese the mystical crystal filled Alice with great determination. Then Alice moved onto the next area and was absolutely stupefied.

“SANS?!!” She couldn’t stop herself from crying out in both a rather bothered way but also genuinely surprised way.

As much as she liked Sans it was starting to come off as really weird that she kept running into him, especially in an area that for a time she believed he had no awareness of. This time he was standing by another telescope as well as a chest similar to the ones from before but this time with no sign next to it. Thankfully, Alice did recall something she needed to clear up with Sans and now had the opportunity to do so. Specifically the mysterious nightmare that he hadn’t yet fully explained to her. Sans reacted to her cry first however and turned to her. He smiled gleefully upon seeing her, which made Alice feel a tiny bit silly.

“ah alice. i’m thinking about getting into the telescope business. it’s normally 50000G to use this premium telescope… but… since i know you, you can use it for free. howzabout it?” He asked with a wink.

“I would sincerely love to Sans but first I must ask you something. What exactly happened in your nightmare? I understand you couldn’t really talk about it in front of Papyrus but I for one feel I can handle it.” Alice claimed.

Sans expression changed in a way that seemed both cross and scared. Cross that Alice wasn’t letting it go and scared about… something? Alice actually had no idea why he would be scared of her offer, unless he was really that nervous towards sharing the details of the nightmare with her. It seemed like an eternity before Sans actually did something else verbal towards Alice and it came out as a sigh.

“... i guess it’s rude to lead you on like a dog without a bone so I’ll tell you. but just don’t… share it with anyone or get any ideas…” He said, speaking unusually serious again.

Alice seemed a bit shocked that he would say ‘get any ideas’ before telling her about a nightmare where she briefly understood involved killing. It almost implied that he didn’t trust her completely yet. Even though I’ve spent such close time with his brother, Alice thought. While it is true I haven’t spoken about Chara or Flowey I thought this wouldn’t be such a major factor. At the moment though Alice decided not to be so negative or hard on herself. Perhaps it would be to her benefit at this point to tell him about those two with Flowey and Chara both disappearing and nowhere to be seen. Yet Flowey seemed to have a lot of power and Alice was scared that if she were to even mention his name, he would show up and impale her with as many bullets he could muster. So Alice replied,

“I definitely wouldn’t dream of getting any ideas from a nightmare Sans. I’m not that kind of person. Please share.”

“ok… so basically it starts off in snowdin with everyone laughing and cheerful and my brother went off to capture you. actually you were already captured but he made it so that you could easily get out for him. i was at home watching tv when i noticed that it was getting really late and pap hadn’t come back yet. i tried to endure it a little while longer but then i eventually succumbed to ‘fear’ pressure and went outside towards the path. you know, the one where you confronted him. it was when i got there that the nightmare really began. you were standing perfectly still, your back facing me… DRENCHED in blood and dust. like you had taken some sick sort of bath or something and you were standing over my brother’s scarf… the only thing that remained of him. so naturally i came to the conclusion you had killed him and shouted in disbelief and sorrow. you then turned around and gave me the wickedest grin i’d ever seen in my life and ran off. this time the dream ended there, sometimes it goes on way longer than it needs to but… heh… always manages to get me up screaming.” Sans ended his very tragic tale with a bitter chuckle.

“... O-oh Sans… that’s… horrible. I’m really sorry you had to go through such a clear and vivid nightmare… but i promise.. I would NEVER harm Papyrus. Not after all the delight and kindness and mercy he’s shown me. I-if I ever were to somehow kill him… I’d allow you to return the favor to me.” Alice, feeling extremely compelled with emotion and sympathy having been through several awful nightmares herself, made a powerful promise to Sans.

“... That was already a given… But thanks.” Sans reply though had the same coldness and tension as the time Alice had offended him by insulting Papyrus.

“...!” Alice flinched and shivered as she felt that uncomfortable presence again.

Fortunately though, it vanished quickly this time and Sans, who hadn’t really shown his face to Alice when telling that story as he instead had looked up the whole time towards the sky, leaned against the wall and turned to Alice with a smile.

“s-sorry… nightmares always put me on edge… and anything involving my brother turns me into something i’m not proud of. maybe i’d oughta treat you to some free skeleton puns.” He teased.

“Sans… there’s no shame in wanting to defend your brother with your very life… and I’m sorry I unintentionally caused you grief and nervousness. I assure you though I mean no harm and I would never do that to you or Papyrus.” Alice humbly said as she steepled her fingers.

you still are, Sans thought a bit bitterly, not ready to confront Alice about his suspicions as she seemed completely oblivious. He did find it a bit of a relief though to hear she really meant no harm towards him and his brother physically and approved of the times he thought of violence whenever someone would try to harm his brother. So still appreciating Alice as a friend, he said,

“so want to silent scope?” He asked.

“Sure I shall use it.” Alice remarked cheerfully.

However when she peered into the telescope, all she could see was red, nothing else. It was if someone had covered it with tomato sauce or some other red object that completely hindered the view Alice was getting. She pulled away to complain to Sans,

“Sans there’s nothing but redness.”

“mirror, mirror, in my hand, who’s going to be the reddest in the land?” Sans cheekily remarked as he pulled out a simple hand-mirror for Alice to use. Alice was very confused but also slightly worried after hearing the way Sans had said that rhyme. Alice then saw it, a perfectly circular red outline upon her right eye. That had been the area Alice had pressed against the telescope to use it and it seemed as though Sans had used some sort of paint or dust on the telescope that stuck to Alice and blocked her view all at once. Alice certainly was a bit flustered but she also did find some humor into this harmless prank and laughed.

“O-oh dear… hee hee… I keep falling for these sort of things… Still, I must thank you deeply Sans… for opening up about that nightmare with me. I hope we can trust each other with this sort of information more often.” Alice remarked with a giggle before using her a napkin from her apron pocket to wipe off the marking.

Sans looked surprised, not only in that he didn’t entirely believe that she trustworthy based on his observations, but also that she genuinely was concerned for him. It was unusual in a sense… and somewhat too kind for someone like him. So he couldn’t resist a small blush before saying.

“hehehe… well maybe in the near future. good luck on your way and be careful not to step on any cracks or you’ll break my back-bone.” Sans joked as he waved good-bye to her.

“Certainly won’t.” Said Alice.

As for this area, there were several more things she noticed. One was a strange rock-like creature standing about in the shape of a teardrop. She said ‘hello’ to it in the hopes of a response.

“What’s a star? Can you touch it? Can you eat it? Can you kill it? … Are you a star?” It asked a series of increasingly concerning questions.

“A celestial object, no, no, no, and definitely not.” Alice answered in a huff as she walked away a bit shaken.

The second thing she had noticed was a small entryway in the wall and upon entering and walking down a medium-length hallway, found the Nice Cream guy again and his cart in a room with a sign and a chest.

“I relocated my store, but there are still no customers…” The monster moaned sadly before opening one of his closed eyes to look at Alice.

“Oh that reminds me, I still am holding onto your Nice Cream… hmm… perhaps I should give it a try.” Alice remarked as she pulled out the frozen treat and opened it, eating cheerfully.

The wrapper said ‘Love yourself! I love you!’ How uplifting, Alice thought. As for the treat itself, it tasted just like premium ice cream back in England and was quite satisfying with a vanilla flavoring. The monster selling these looked very happy to see Alice enjoying the treat.

“Well my dear customer, I thought of the perfect way for you to keep enjoying Nice Cream with more bang for your buck!! Punch cards!! Every time, you buy a Nice Cream, can take a punch card from the box. If you have 3 cards, you can trade them for a free Nice Cream! They’re sure to get the customers to come back!” He announced.

“How very thrifty! I believe I shall buy one then and see how it works.” Alice said sweetly.

After paying 25G to the monster, Alice received another Nice Cream that she was definitely intent on saving for later and was able to pick up a card from the box. She then turned to the sign along the wall and saw that the ancient glyphs had been painted over with a list of 21 different flavors. Vanilla, Hazelnut, Chocolate, Mint, Caramel, Strawberry, Banana, Cake Batter, Cherry Tart, Custard, Pineapple, Roast Turkey, Peanut Butter, Spaghetti, Butterscotch, Rainbow Sherbert, Neapolitan, Green Tea, Blueberry Pie, Coconut, and Red Velvet. Sticking out her tongue at the strange ‘Roast Turkey’ flavor and realizing how much Papyrus would love ‘Spaghetti’, Alice got inspired to call Papyrus after remembering that discussion she had just had with Sans. Waving good-bye to the Nice Cream vendor and returning to the main area, she called him.

“Good day to you Papyrus, did you know Sans has a telescope?”

“HUH? MY BROTHER? OF COURSE HE HAS A TELESCOPE. SANS LOVES OUTER SPACEY, SCI-FI STUFF.” Papyrus replied as though it was common sense.

“Hmm… I wasn’t ever told about this from him.” Alice remarked as this felt all too familiar to when she hadn’t know he knew about Waterfall.

“HMM? HE NEVER TOLD YOU?? YEAH, SANS NEVER TELLS ANYBODY ANYTHING!” Papyrus laughed.

“I suppose that’s the most obvious conclusion to draw upon. Thank you Papyrus.” She said as she hung up.

As she continued down the same path she found it led to a dead end but that on the other side across the water was another piece of land with a very adorable duck waddling and flapping its wings. However Alice wasn’t sure if she wanted to cross just yet as she had seen another alternative path that would lead downwards into Waterfall. She had a feeling that path would be the correct one and would lead her somewhere safe and secure but also fantastical. So retracing her steps and crossing down the bridge, she saw some simply exquisite scenery. It was as if the water itself was glowing brightly and there were lilypads and tall regal trees that seemed to be that of an ancient forest. It all made Alice think of something mystical and enchanting like a fairy tale land. But she knew there was even more beyond this area so Alice went into the next area, hunt in mind, Napstablook in mind, and her future in mind.

To Be Continued...
Welcome back jubilant readers! I have finally posted the next chapter of Alice in Undertale and this one is pretty simple and sweet though does contain some interesting development from the characters and the situation. It's definitely fun to capture some more of Waterfall's most memorable features like the Wishing Room and then the return of the Nice Cream man and also fun to make some delightful references (Hint: read over the flavors) and add the Alice in Wonderland touch to the world of the Underground. Important things to talk about is that I STRUGGLED with the title of this story before finally settling on this one which refers to the 'stars' of the Wishing Room and that the monster Alice spoke to mentioned and also the nightmare Sans finally reveals to us and in a sense, how being hunted by Undyne is easily equivalent to a nightmare XD. I also show a lot of Alice's growth with DETERMINATION as I do imagine that Alice is the kind of person to use it freely and with initiative as opposed to Frisk as she has SO much creativity and imagination that she can wield it very easily. You could say she's being overpowered in a sense but the rules of DETERMINATION with humans vs monsters already set this up for humans to be significantly stronger with it than monsters are. Another thing is that the DETERMINATION constructs she's used so far are mostly characters from Wonderland that I feel symbolize the monster she is trying to pacify. The White Rabbit was for Toriel to symbolize a guide and someone who led Alice into the new land and taught her the basics. Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum were for Papyrus to capture his and San's brotherly bond, vibrant personalities, and love of stories. Here the Queen of Hearts and the Card Soldiers are chosen for Undyne (Though it could be argued Asgore would be more fitting for being the ruler) because she IS a soldier and she has the passion and aggressiveness and ferocity of the Queen of Heart's temper. So hopefully this makes sense and this chapter, longest in a while, makes you happy :D.

Chapter 13 Starry, Starry Nightmare

Previous Chapter: lolitafreak88.deviantart.com/a…
© 2016 - 2024 Lolitafreak88
Comments6
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
ToaDJacara's avatar
Well I'm surprised that the cards helped out Alice