Frisk stepped lightly through the glowing cavern, the soft hum of magic buzzing in the air. Blue crystals pulsed faintly from the walls, reflecting off the slow-moving water. Each footstep echoed as she passed, and reeds swayed from a breeze that wasn't there.
A golden shimmer glowed near the path ahead.
SAVE Point Detected.
Frisk paused, gazing into the light. She reached out slowly and whispered, "Okay…"
[Game Saved.]
She lingered for a moment, eyes half-lidded as if expecting something to change. Nothing did. The cavern was still. The world was still watching.
Just past the pool, she spotted a cluster of Echo Flowers swaying silently. One lit up.
"Monsters can't go to the surface…"
Frisk stepped close, crouching. "Why not…?" she asked, barely audible.
The flower didn't respond. Just repeated the phrase in the same flat, weary tone.
Frisk frowned. "Is someone… making sure they don't?"
She stood, brushing dirt from her knees. A voice suddenly shouted behind her—
"HEY!"
She jumped slightly as a small, armless monster scrambled into view.
"You're a human, right?! Whoa—this is awesome!"
Frisk blinked.
"I'm Monster Kid!" the creature grinned. "And you're gonna meet UNDYNE! She's gonna be SO pumped!"
Frisk's brow creased. "Undyne…?"
Monster Kid blinked. "You don't know her? She's the head of the Royal Guard! Super strong, super cool, super scary! But don't worry—if you're not doing anything bad, you'll probably be fine!"
Frisk gave a small, uncertain smile. "I hope she's nice."
"She's not mean! She just… really wants to capture a human. It's her dream! Kinda."
He started jogging ahead excitedly, calling back, "Come on! We might even see her soon!"
Frisk hesitated for just a moment before following, footsteps quiet on the slick stone.
Above, unseen in the shadows of a high ledge, Sans leaned against the rock with his hands in his jacket pocket. His eye socket glowed faintly as he watched.
"so she's talkin'. that's new."
He exhaled through his teeth. "not swingin', not runnin'. this ain't genocide…"
A beat of silence.
"but she's not sparin' everyone either. probably neutral again."
He tilted his head, listening to the faint sound of Monster Kid's chatter.
"let's see how far this one goes before it breaks."
Below, the two figures moved across a narrow bridge over glowing water. Frisk walked with her head low, hands brushing the rail as she spoke softly to herself.
"I don't want to hurt anyone."
Her words were light, but firm.
Sans watched from above, his grin fading just slightly.
"hope you mean it, kid."
Then he vanished into the dark.