Ink had kept me for eighty years and a month. The resistance had long since crumbled, and Ink was now the undisputed ruler of the multiverse. I was called his right hand by some, a follower by others, a tyrant by many, and a victim by more; I didn't think of myself as any of these. I was Ink's toy, and I would stay that way as long as he needed me. Error was no longer isolated; he now received many visitors, and he would do his best to keep them happy - they needed it. I had also given him my Hope to make him feel a bit more comfortable. My brother was Ink's left hand, doing whatever Ink asked of him in fear that I would do it if he refused. It seemed like everybody was afraid of Ink - except me. My brother had regretfully taken the resistance out under Ink's orders; he said he never should have given in. The members of the resistance were all eventually inducted into the army over a course of two years, and at the moment, there was no such group - only a few single resisters. Ink's only worry would be a large-scale coup, but that would never happen with the prevention methods he had used. I still slept in Ink's room, and high ranks were still allowed to take their anger out on me; I didn't mind. I had just been woken up from my dusty nightmare, and I was ready for another beautiful day.

"Good morning, Dusty!" Ink greeted.

"Good morning, Ink!" I returned.

"Did you sleep well?"

"I always do!"

"We have a busy day today! Are you ready?"

"Always ready!"

"Right! First, you have to come with me to an AU that's resisting and help me crush them."

"Sounds great!"

"Second, you have to solo an interrogation on a resister - force may be used."

"Got it!"

"Third - wait, this should be first..ah, whatever; make this first, okay?"

"Okay!"

"First, your daggers have been cleaned."

"Perfect!"

"Fourth, you, your brother, and I are going to do something special."

"I can't wait to see what it is!"

"You're such a good Dusty!" Ink patted my skull, making me giggle. "Now, go pick up your daggers, and I'll wait for you right here!"

"Right away, Ink!" 

I wasted no time in getting up off the floor and heading out the door; Ink liked it when I was quick. Since the resistance had fallen, Ink had found out that my magic wasn't exactly something to brag about; he preferred my weapon capabilities, and I preferred using daggers. Needless to say, Ink made sure that I had a lot of daggers available; they needed to be cleaned on a regular basis due to how much I used them, but it worked out fine. I was also one of the few people who didn't wear a suit of armor; it was a bit hard to fight when you were heavy and your joints were hindered. I reached the weaponry section rather quickly - two minutes - and found Fell running it today; the guards took turns, and after he wasn't needed as my sitter anymore, he was simply a respected guard. We were still friends, of course; Ink encouraged me to keep any friends that I had, which meant that I did.

"Hello, Dust." Fell waved.

"Hello!" I responded. "Nice day?"

"Better than usual. If there ever was a good day, this is it. Got a lot of work?"

"Not as much as some days, but I really don't mind."

"You're a good kid, Dust."

"I don't really think so, but thanks for the thought."

"Well, good luck today. Here are your weapons." Fell handed me a few daggers.

"Thanks! Good luck to you, too!"

"Thanks."

As I made my way back to Ink's room, I sheathed all of my daggers in an order I had long since memorized; Ink liked everything done perfectly, and I wasn't one to shirk from responsibility. When I made it back to Ink's room, I found him waiting for me, just like he said he would be.

"Ready to go?" He inquired.

"As I'll ever be." I replied.

"Then we'll be off!" Ink opened a portal to the universe we would be taking care of, and we stepped through; it looked pleasant. "The judge is leading the resisting party; take him down, but keep him alive."

"Of course, Ink."

"He's in Snowdin. You take the judge, and I'll take care of the rest."

"You're the best, Ink."

"Thank you!"

We started our route towards the Snowdin, and we found the inhabitants of the universe battle-ready; they had obviously been attacked more than once. On Ink's signal, I stepped out of our cover and unsheathed my daggers; the inhabitants attacked me immediately, but only the judge made it past Ink's defenses. He was a Papyrus; that didn't surprise me, and I was more than ready to do what had to be done. His magic was finely tuned to be used exactly how he wanted it, but I had determination on my side, and that was stronger. I had fought thousands of Papyrus judges, and this one was no different; he was no match for my experience, and within ten minutes, he was unable to stand without help. With the judge out of commission, I was able to assist Ink with the rest of the fighters after transporting the Papyrus to a cell. The universe was taken care of within half an hour, and guards began to occupy the area immediately. After another half an hour of assisting with the occupation, I returned to Ink's room to report the success; Ink didn't help with the occupation because he had something more important to do. I walked up to him.

"Ah, Dusty." Ink smiled. "How did it go?"

"Perfectly fine, Ink." I returned the smile. "The universe is under your control."

"That's wonderful. Now, you have an interrogation to get to in your room; good luck!"

"Thank you! Good luck to you, as well!"

"So sweet! Get to it."

"Right away, Ink!"

I started my walk to my interrogation room; Ink had insisted that I get my own, but I didn't really need it. I accepted, though, since I would never go against Ink's wishes; that was ridiculous. When I reached the interrogation room, I found a prisoner alone; he was a Sans, and he looked a bit confused - he must have just woken up. I took my seat post-haste and smiled at the prisoner.

"Hello!" I greeted him happily.

"Ugh..another idiot." The prisoner was less than helpful in past interrogations. "Look, I'm not telling you anything about me! I know what you do! You take all my information and put it in a little file and in the future, you'll somehow use it against me! I'm not stupid!"

"I never said you were stupid.."

"Others have."

"What? That's rude. Why would they say that?"

"Because I'm a rebel. Don't you care?"

"I don't mind that! Used to be one, myself!"

"Really?"

"Yep!"

"Then why the heck did you join that tyrant?"

"Um..he tortured me..like, a lot."

"Huh. What's that badge you're wearing mean?"

"Oh, this?" Instead of armor, I wore a badge sewn into my jacket; it was easier. "That's just my rank; it isn't important."

"What about the suits of armor everybody else wears? You too low for one of those?"

"Inefficient for my skill set."

"I see. You're not like the others, are you?"

"Not exactly. If you're worried about what the information's used for, don't be. There's a ninety-five percent chance that it'll never be pulled off the shelf, and even if it is, it'll most likely be just to rearrange the files."

"No blackmail?"

"No blackmail. Honestly, it's better just to give up the information when you're asked; it skips a lot of pain."

"What do you mean by that?"

"If you don't tell me what I ask, I'll be forced to hurt you, and I can tell that you're a smart person; I don't want to hurt you."

"Hmm..you promise that it won't be used against me?"

"I can't promise a thing; I don't rule this empire."

"Huh..deal. What do you want to know?"

"Have you got a nickname?"

"Nah."

"You'll probably get one along the line. Do you have any family?" I was writing everything down.

"A brother - Papyrus."

"What are your powers?"

"I can summon bones and fancy blasters, manipulate gravity, teleport, levitate objects, make attacks blue, and absorb magical signatures if they're on a certain frequency which I have yet to determine."

"That's pretty special."

"I guess."

"Can you even do that with suppressed magic?"

"I think so, but I can't even feel your frequency."

"Ah, I've got a deficiency; that's probably why."

"Ouch. Do you take good care of yourself?"

"As well as I can; thanks for the concern."

"I've heard some pretty scary things."

"You know the thing about a magic deficiency?" 

"What?"

"Everybody automatically thinks that you can't use magic, while in reality, you just can't use a lot of magic. They also think you're weak, but, well, I really am."

"Well, good luck to you."

"Thanks."

"Do you have any more questions?"

"Would you be interested in joining this army willingly? They're going to pose the question at some point - they always do."

"What's the difference between willingly and unwillingly? 

"Well, if you join willingly, you get special perks, and if you don't, you're forced to anyway."

"What did you pick?"

"I was a bit of a special case: I said no for a couple decades while being tortured until I finally gave in and said yes. I still got the perks, but they come at a price."

"What would you recommend?"

"I'd recommend just saying 'yes' and taking the perks while you still can, but there are a lot of people who are happy with their choice of saying 'no' and doing the right thing. It's still up for debate. Do what your soul tells you: you can't go wrong, then."

"Thanks..what's your name, by the way?"

"I'm called Dust."

"Wait."

"Huh?"

"You're the one who everybody thinks is a tyrant?"

"I get mixed feelings. I wouldn't say that I'm a tyrant, but apparently a lot of people would. Feel free to think what you will about me."

"But..you're supposed to be this fearless fighter that doesn't give up for anything, and here you are, openly stating your weaknesses?"

"I guess I'm kinda weird.."

"Sorry..but..you?"

"Me."

"Wow." The prisoner took a breath.

"I have one more question, if you don't mind after..that."

"Go ahead."

"What are..your weaknesses?"

"You said this wouldn't be used against me."

"I said it probably wouldn't. If you just tell me, I won't hurt you."

"I can't tell you that."

"Please, don't make me hurt you." I unsheathed a dagger. 

"I'm not telling!"

"I don't want to hurt you.." I was tearing up.

"I'm sorry. I can't."

"D-do you just not know? I can write that down!"

"I do know..I just don't want to tell you."

"This is your last chance. Please, just tell me."

"No."

"Fine..p-pick a number, from one to five."

"What is that supposed to do?"

"Just pick it.."

"Fine. Five."

"I'm so sorry.." I stood.

"No matter how much you hurt me, I will not give in!"

"I'm sorry that I think you will." 

After this, I grabbed the prisoner and pinned him on the ground; he couldn't move. He made a mistake in picking the highest number; I would have to use one of my strongest attacks. I checked the tip of my dagger to make sure that it was sharp enough before forcing his soul out of his body; Ink had taught me how to do that. After another apology, I touched his soul with the end of the dagger, making sure not to touch anything that was important; his screams weren't as loud as some of mine, but they were loud enough. After a minute of careful torture, I lifted my dagger from the victim and returned him to his seat; he was in obvious agony from his persisting screams. I kept up my expression by crying the entire time and constantly apologizing. Ten minutes later, the prisoner reduced his volume to a loud sob, and that was my cue to pose the question again.

"I don't want to do that again.." I wiped some tears away. "What are your weaknesses?"

"I-I.." The prisoner was shivering. "O-okay..f-f-fine..m-my weaknesses a-a-are m-my s-soul and m-magic h-hindering at-attacks.."

"Thank you."

"Wh-what d-did you d-do?"

"I didn't hit anything important. Your soul just looks like a lot of others now. The pain will go away eventually, but just remember it next time you're asked a question. That's the end of your interrogation; I hope it was a learning experience." 

At this, I stood and knocked on the door of the interrogation room. A guard answered.

"Yes, Dust?" The guard was a friend.

"Have him taken back to his cell, and be careful with him: his soul isn't what it used to be." I always used that line to let guards know of what transpired. Some people were even beginning to call me the 'Soul Carver' for what I did.

"I understand. Have a good day, Dust."

"You, too."

I then started walking back to Ink's room, where he and my brother were waiting. Although my brother was an associate, we would never recover our 'bond.' After what he had done, I wouldn't think of ever even trying; he wasn't worth it. Now, he just focused on his work; that was best for all parties. Ink seemed happy, which was good.

"Hello, Dusty!" Ink grinned. "How did the interrogation go?"

"A complete success." I answered.

"Dusty, you never fail to amaze me." Ink patted my skull, making me laugh. "All right, we have a special job today."

"I'd love to hear what it is!"

"You're so sweet! I'm going to be giving a speech in an AU today, and you two have to be there. Can you do it?"

"Of course, Ink!"

"It is possible.." My brother was never really happy anymore; it was weird.

"Great!" Ink was happy. "Well, let's go!"

Ink soon opened a portal to a universe, and our trio walked into it. The universe seemed to be a recently conquered one, since the inhabitants weren't exactly thrilled that the guards were there; they would get used to it eventually. Ink always liked to give speeches on a stage, which was good, because there was one. The inhabitants were gathered in front of the stage - mostly by force - to hear Ink's wonderful speech; I really enjoyed hearing him talk. As for my brother and me, we would double as protection for Ink; he wouldn't be harmed on our watch. As soon as the last inhabitant was forced into the gathering, Ink was ready to begin.

"Good morning, newly acquired subjects!" Ink liked to use that line. "It's great to meet you all. You know, not every AU gets this opportunity - only the unruly ones. Some of you have been wondering where your Sans is; well, he's been forced into my army, and I think that's the best place for him. This is a strong AU; I admire that. However, you must learn obedience, and I think that the best way to teach you..is example. I will be leaving my right hand here for a few days, and in those few days, I want you to develop a healthy relationship with him. Invite him over to your house for tea or something, seriously, I don't care. As long as you're obedient, he won't hurt you in the slightest. If you aren't..he'll make you wish you had never been born. Now, some of you may not believe that; I understand completely. You don't think anyone can hurt you more than you already have been. Well, I think a demonstration is in order. One of your friends has been acting up a bit too much; this is her." 

Ink gestured to an Undyne who was resisting a couple guards as she was brought onto the stage.

"Take careful note." Ink chuckled. "Dusty?"

"Yes?" I was ready to serve.

"Give her your level five."

"Of course, Ink."

I unsheathed a dagger as I approached the Undyne; she was moving too much for a proper job, but I could fix that. As soon as she wrenched free from the guards' grasp, I grabbed her arm and sent her flying into the floor; that would keep her down for at least a minute. As she was immobilized, I brought her soul out and readied my dagger; her screaming was proof enough to the crowd that Ink wasn't joking. I believed that I had done this to over five thousand souls, including my own; Ink had decided that I should have a signature move, and I wasn't one to disappoint. I spent two years perfecting the technique and gaining the steadiest hand I could manage; by the end of it, I had created an attack that would last even through a reset. Ink loved it, and that was good enough for me. He often made me use it when conquering universes; once the inhabitants had seen what it could do to someone, they never made any more trouble. When I had finished my work, the Undyne was left screaming on the floor; Ink seemed to enjoy it. After this, I spent a few days in the universe, but the inhabitants made no trouble at all; their Undyne even suggested that they try harder to follow the rules.

It was another beautiful day.

~~~chapter end woot~~~

Dust bean..um..make ows.

Thanks for reading my unkind writing!

Bye!