~Melody~

Melody opened her eyes. The eighth human, despite being shaky, had managed to gather enough strength to pull her back. Melody sighed in relief. Undyne had instead grabbed Monster Kid, who was also hiding in the seagrass. Undyne dropped them and stormed off in disappointment. The kids then left the seagrass. Everyone aside from Melody, Faye and Cody had some kind of injury. And Monster Kid, who wasn't involved at all. The humans stared at each other in horror. Especially Melody. She couldn't stop shivering. That was close.

"Yo... did you guys see that?!" Monster Kid asked, running around in little circles. "Undyne just... TOUCHED me! I'm never washing my face again...! Man, are you guys unlucky. If you were standing just a little bit to the left...! Yo, don't worry! I'm sure we'll see her again." 

They raced off. 

"Oh, no," Cody looked disappointed. "I... I don't have enough food to heal everyone..." 

The eighth human shook their head, as if saying, it's okay. They walked backwards, entering another room. It was a room with a table. On that table was a slice of cheese covered in a pink crystal. A mouse hole was in the wall. An echo flower was beside it. The eighth human stood there for a moment. Suddenly, they were miraculously healed.

"How does that work?!" Brayden asked, staring at them. 

Even Melody had to agree that power was a little strange. How could they do that? There was so much about them the kids didn't know... and there was something odd about this world too, like what Percy said... was something going on?

The eighth human didn't look worried. 

"There's ice-cream ahead...?" Clover asked. She rubbed her injured shoulder. "That'll be swell!" 

The kids left the room... well, not before checking out the squeaky mouse. They found Sans standing beside a telescope and a box. There was a wooden entrance leading to somewhere. Melody didn't really feel like talking to Sans, especially since he and Faye would probably make more awful puns.

Faye, indeed, stayed behind to make awful puns with Sans. Everyone else went into the wooden entrance to purchase Nice Cream. It was a small room. The Nice Cream bunny was sitting on one side of the room. The other side had a box.

The Nice Cream Guy sighed, "I relocated my store, but-"

"GIMME AN ICE-CREAM!" Brayden yelled, shaking his fist.

"Customers! Alright!" the Nice Guy cheered. "That'll be 25G each!"

"Did'ja raise the price?" Clover asked, raising her brow. 

The eighth human was already holding out the gold. Melody wondered where they got that from. Maybe she should stop wondering so much. They did save her life, after all. They saved everyone.

They bought three Nice Creams... and got three punch cards, so they got another Nice Cream. They gave it to Melody.

"Oh..." Melody accepted the Nice Cream. She smiled. "Thank you." 

Then the eighth human bought two more for Faye and Cody, even though they didn't need them. Melody guessed they did it out of courtesy. Melody noticed they didn't eat a lot like Percy. They were strange like that. But they were so nice at the same time. Melody had never met a person such as them.

Brayden, Clover and Percy ate their Nice Creams. Their wounds healed. Melody smiled at them, glad her friends were better. Then the kids left and went outside. Faye was still talking to Sans. They were laughing a lot.

"heh heh..." Sans chuckled. He gazed at the other kids. "your friend is pretty faye-bulous." Faye blushed and waved it off. "can i keep her?" 

"She's MINE." Brayden growled, hugging Faye from behind. 

Faye was almost as red as the eighth human's soul. Brayden started blushing too and released her. The eighth human handed Faye a Nice Cream.

"Oh, thank you." she said, smiling at them. 

Melody sighed and shook her head. Faye and Brayden were so strange. Percy looked like he was having a fangirl moment. Clover was wriggling her eyebrows. Cody was simply smiling. Melody realized at that moment she had lots of strange friends.

The kids walked a little further. They found a monster that looked like a cream-coloured teardrop. It was standing beside the entrance to a glowing, aquarium-like area. Dark plants were standing out in the glowing liquid.

"Now that's pretty," Faye admired, staring at the plants. 

Melody had to admit it was beautiful. Her parents would've loved to take a photo of it then put it in an art gallery. Her parents and their art galleries. It was painful. Her younger brother was involved too. Well, at least with comics, like Percy. Percy was how he got obsessed with comics.

"HUH? MY BROTHER? OF COURSE HE HAS A TELESCOPE!" the kids were calling Papyrus. 

Melody frowned. She stared at the stick kid, who was observing their stick.

"What is it?" she found herself asking them. "What is it about you that makes you so amazing?" 

The eighth human shrugged in response. The other kids were finished calling Papyrus.

"Those two are some wacky skeletons." Clover commented, shaking her head.

"I like them!" Cody said brightly.

"THEY'RE PRETTY COOL I GUESS!" Brayden added.

"They are fascinating." Percy gushed.

"I don't like them." Melody grumbled, crossing her arms.

"Why not?" Faye asked. She tilted her head. "Is it because they annoy you?"

Melody sighed. She adjusted her bun. She never liked having her hair down. It got in her eyes. 

"Yes," she got out, "they do annoy me. They're loud, they're weird, they got in our way, they have a messy house... need I go on?"

"That's a little mean, Melody," Cody told her. He laughed nervously. "You do like Toriel, right?"

"... yes," Melody replied. She folded her arms. "Toriel was nice. Just because I don't like some monsters, doesn't mean I don't like others. Okay?" 

She was getting annoyed now. She was allowed to dislike certain monsters.

"Chill out, Mel," Brayden said, waving his arms.

"'Chill out'?! Me?! Look at you running around, yelling at everyone to fight you!" Melody shot back. "It's so stupid!"

"It's NOT stupid!" Brayden yelled back. He took a step towards Melody. "You want me to talk everyone to death!? You're CRAZY!"

"You're crazy!" Melody said, glaring at him. 

Art by https://twitter.com/LastyGhost

They were nose-to-nose.

"You wanna fight me, Melody!?" Brayden asked, putting a fist in his palm.

"Guys, please, don't fight!" Cody pleaded, stepping in between them.

"Yeah," Faye agreed. "The stick kid and I found some really cool things. It's so pretty. You should see them." 

The eighth human nodded.

"I just wanna go HOME!" Brayden complained. "I don't wanna look at stuff!"

"I wanna go home too, but we're not gonna get anywhere if y'all are arguing all the time," Clover said, putting her hands on her hips.

"Says you." Melody snorted, giving her the stink-eye.

"You were just arguing with Brayden." Clover pointed out, glaring back at Melody.

"He was being stupid!" Melody retorted. "You argue with people for no reason!"

"I always have a reason, Melody," Clover said, going over to Melody. "You were bein' stupid."

Melody frowned. "I was not being stupid, I was being sensible." 

She was a sensible girl. A role-model. She wasn't stupid and she didn't act stupid.

"You always think you're being sensible," Clover spat. "But you're not. You're just annoyin' people." 

Melody wanted to kick Clover in the shins. 

"Guys, please!" Cody waved his arms. "No more fighting!"

Melody took a deep breath of composure. "Cody is right. This is stupid. We'd better go on." 

The kids followed a black path covered in small plants to the south. They went around a bend. They came into a room surrounded by glowing blue water and plants. Faye and the eighth human were playing Go Fish on the ground with some punch cards, right next to an echo flower. It seemed they had been waiting for the others.

"Got any threes?" Faye asked the eighth human. They shook their head. "Go fish, okay." 

She and the eighth human noticed the others. "Oh, hey guys. There's a really nice conversation happening between all the echo flowers."

"Oh, hey guys. There's a really nice conversation happening between all the echo flowers." the echo flower right next to Faye said. 

Faye giggled.

"Oops, not that one." she said. She stood up. "The stick kid knows." 

The eighth human stood up. They walked downwards.

"Can I play in the next round?" Percy asked, staring at the cards. Faye and the eighth human looked at each other. They both nodded.

"BLEH! CARD GAMES ARE BORING!" Brayden complained.

"I like card games," Clover grumbled. She eyed the card-players. "Can I play too?" 

They both nodded. The kids headed downwards, finding an echo flower and the eighth human. Melody wasn't so sure what they wanted to show her, but somehow she was interested anyway.

"Here we are," Faye spoke up. "The echo flower the eighth human and I were sitting next to said, 'so? Don't you have any wishes to make?'"

"... hmm, just one, but... it's kind of stupid." the echo flower continued. 

The kids followed a path leading downwards. On the way, they encountered Moldsmal. Melody wasn't a fan of Moldsmal. It was kind of weird. The eighth human, however, shook their hips at Moldsmal, looking pretty dang fine. After that, the kids continued following the bendy path, when suddenly Papyrus rung.

"HELLO! THIS IS PAPYRUS!" Papyrus yelled. "REMEMBER WHEN I ASKED YOU ALL ABOUT CLOTHES? WELL, THE FRIEND WHO WANTED TO KNOW... HER OPINION OF YOU IS VERY... MURDERY. BUT I BET YOU KNEW THAT ALREADY!"

"Oh, we knew it alright." Clover mumbled.

"AND BECAUSE YOU KNEW THAT..." Papyrus continued. "I TOLD HER WHAT THE RED HUMAN TOLD ME YOU WERE ALL WEARING! A BANDAGE, A FADED RIBBON, A MANLY BANDANNA, A DUSTY TUTU, CLOUDY GLASSES, A STAINED APRON AND A COWBOY HAT! BECAUSE I KNEW, OF COURSE... AFTER SUCH A SUSPICIOUS QUESTION... THE RED HUMAN WOULD OBVIOUSLY TELL YOU ALL TO CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES! YOU'RE ALL SUCH SMART COOKIES! THIS WAY YOU'RE SAFE AND I DIDN'T LIE! NO BETRAYAL ANYWHERE! BEING FRIENDS WITH EVERYONE IS EASY!"

 He hung up.

"You never told us to change our clothes." Clover said, eyeing the stick kid. They waved it off like it wasn't a big deal.

"Good, 'cause I like my clothes!" Brayden commented, flexing. 

Melody liked her clothes as well. She rarely took off her ballet things. They were almost like a part of her. But 'dusty'? The eighth human had described her things as 'dusty'? She almost felt insulted. And how did they know it was dusty? How did they know everything?

After another encounter and stupid flexing contest with Aaron, the kids continued. They wandered around Waterfall. It really was pretty. Almost magical. Faye was right. They found another echo flower.

"Don't say that!" the flower protested. "Come on, I promise I won't laugh."

"Who's saying all this stuff?" Brayden asked, scratching his head. 

The others shrugged - including the eighth human. They left the glowing area and followed a black path going upwards. There was a sign on the wall, continuing the monster history. Percy looked excited.

"The power to take their SOULS," Percy read. "This is the power that the humans feared."

"So we were right!" Cody exclaimed.

"Our ancestors were not kind," Percy commented. 

"Yeah, well, we're different, ain't we?" Clover asked, folding her arms. "Some monsters ain't so bad."

"Yeah, we're, like, the Mercy Fighters!" Brayden agreed, fist-pumping the air. 

The eighth human simply smiled. But there was something wrong with their smile, like they were hiding something. The kids continued. They came to a path going straight through a river.

"THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE WATER!" Brayden yelled. 

A yellow tentacle was poking out of the river.  Clover clutched her pistol. The eighth human continued walking. They had a reassuring grin on their face. Melody wondered how they could be so valiant.

Suddenly, a large, yellow octopus appeared. It had shiny eyes and a large blush. It was one of the strangest things Melody had ever seen. Aside from Percy's anime. 

"Hey... there..." it said. "Noticed you were... here..." It made a strange expression. "I'm Onionsan! Onionsan, y'hear!"

("Oh my gosh it kind of looks like Korosensei oh my gosh..." Percy fangirled. Melody rolled her eyes.)

"Nice to meet you, Onionsan!" Cody replied brightly. Clover put her pistol away. Brayden couldn't stop staring. And Melody was simply dumbfounded.

"You're visiting Waterfall, huh!" Onionsan asked. "It's great here, huh! You love it, huh!"

"... yeah?" Brayden responded questioningly.

"It's so pretty." Faye commented, smiling.

Onionsan spoke a little more about their hopes and dreams. They were so weird, Melody wasn't sure if she wanted to meet them again. The kids continued. They came to an area with paths going in different directions. A waterfall was flowing from the ceiling. 

They encountered a monster named Shyren. 

She was a shy monster with scaly hair. She was sitting on a snake-like entity. 

Shyren hides in the corner but somehow encounters you anyway.

Melody got some kind of musical vibe from Shyren. She was musical too, she knew. She looked over her shoulder. Percy was taking notes.

"HEY! LOOK AT ME!" Brayden yelled at Shyren.

"Brayden, shush," Melody spoke up. She perked up. Someone was singing. "Can you all hear that?"

"They're singing." Faye was smiling at the stick kid. 

They were humming a jazz ballad.

"THEY'RE MAKING A SOUND!" Brayden exclaimed. 

The eighth human was indeed making a great sound. They had a nice voice, almost soothing. It was easy to sing along with. Melody found herself joining in.

"Si re, si re si mi si mi." Shyren hummed along. 

Musical notes floated towards the children. Melody danced out of the way, singing more. She could tell what this was. It was a concert. A musical concert. She let herself immerse in this moment, just for once. A home away from hell.

The eighth human was humming louder. Their voice sounded really nice, a soothing background for the concert. 

Shyren seems more comfortable singing along. 

Monsters were drawn to the concert. Sans was selling tickets made of toilet paper. The other kids backed away, letting Melody dance to her heart's content. She twirled and continued singing notes in the pale light. She was almost... glowing blue.

She hadn't felt like this for a long time. She had been so worried and upset for the whole journey. What if they would never escape? What would happen to her friends? It took all the energy she had to keep herself upright. But not just here, but on the surface too. It was hard to be the honest one. Melody realized that life was worth living if there were moments like this. The eighth human smiled at her. She found herself smiling back. They knew more than anyone how to make a scene.

Shyren's singing was getting louder. The eighth human's humming was becoming a song of its own. Melody continued dancing, singing all the notes she could think of. Music was so important to her. When life got too much, music was an oasis. The only oasis she had. 

The eighth human danced with her for a bit, their short dark brown hair flowing in the light breeze. They sung a few notes together. Monsters cheered and clapped. Cody was crying into his sister's sleeve. And Melody couldn't stop smiling.

"Wow, you two are really good!" Cody told Melody and the stick kid when the concert was over.

"Show-offs." Clover muttered. 

Melody glared at her.

"You... YOU MAKE SOUND!" Brayden yelled, staring at the stick kid. They shrugged.

"There's a treasure in the northern room, according to this sign." Percy was reading a sign on the wall. 

Melody bit her lip. Percy didn't say too much about the performance. She knew he could be exclusive, but...

"A treasure!?" Brayden asked, looking excited. "I want a treasure!"

"What kind of treasure is it?" Clover asked, raising her brow. 

The eighth human smirked. They gestured for everyone to follow them. They walked down a path, passing a bunch of signs talking about monster history. Percy stopped to read them and take notes.

"This power has no counter," he read. "Indeed, a human cannot take a monster's SOUL. When a monster dies, its SOUL disappears. And an incredible power would be needed to take the SOUL of a living monster." He frowned. "So there's no counter. It seems the humans had good reason to be afraid."

"No way!" Brayden protested. "Couldn't the humans, like, deal with it or something? Monsters didn't hunt them down or anything, right?!"

"Who knows?" Percy responded. His hands quivered. Melody bit her lip. "Maybe humanity was just paranoid." He read the next sign. "There is only one exception. The SOUL of a special species of monster called a 'Boss Monster'. A Boss Monster's SOUL is strong enough to persist after death... if only for a few moments. A human could absorb this SOUL. But this has never happened. And now, it never will."

"Who's a boss monster, then?" Clover asked. 

The eighth human held out their stick. They drew stuff on their ground. The kids crowded around them.

"Toriel?" Melody asked, observing their artwork. "And... ASGORE? King ASGORE?"

"The king is a boss monster," Percy realized. "Hopefully we won't need to fight him. Our SOULs are supposedly strong enough to pass the barrier by themselves." The eighth human looked away in guilt for whatever reason. "But if we do have to fight him, and if we can defeat him... one of us can absorb his SOUL."

"What will happen then?" Faye asked patiently.

"I don't know," Percy answered. He stared at the eighth human. "Do you know?" 

They shrugged. Melody noticed they looked slightly anxious about something. They shrugged it off and gestured for everyone to follow them. And they approached something beautiful.

A rock statue with horns was sitting in a patch of light. Rain poured down from above. It was almost mesmerizing. Creases appeared around the eighth human's eyes. They had a nostalgic smile on their face.

"Wow... it's beautiful..." Faye observed. 

She sat down on the spot and observed the statue. Melody stared at it for a few moments. It really was beautiful. Something about it made her sad.

"It looks ancient." Percy observed the statue. He took notes. The eighth human gestured for the rest of the kids to follow them. In the next room was a basket full of umbrellas and a waterfall. The eighth human picked up an umbrella. They held it above their large head.

"An umbrella!" Cody observed, clapping his hands together.

"Why didn't you tell me there were umbrellas? I could've spared my hair!" Melody complained, fingering her bun. 

The stick kid led everyone back to the statue room. They placed the umbrella on top of the statue. Inside the statue, a music box begins to play...

"Oh wow..." Faye was sitting right next to the statue. 

A beautiful yet sad song began playing.  It made Melody feel very nostalgic. She felt like she had heard that song somewhere. She stayed in the corner, doing a little dance.

"Oh wow... !" Cody sniffled. 

Percy couldn't even take notes. He simply stared. Brayden stared too. He wasn't yelling for once. The eighth human sat there for a moment, more creases on their face. They looked so pained, yet they were smiling. They briefly laughed for a moment, making another sound. They had a quiet laugh, that once might've been more cheerful.

"YOU MADE ANOTHER SOUND!" Brayden exclaimed. 

Everyone shushed him. The eighth human approached Melody. They told her to follow them. They had a strange look on their face. Melody followed them. They led her past Shyren's room and north. A small room was there. It had only walls, a sign and...

"A piano!" Melody gasped. 

She walked over to the piano and sat down. She began playing a song she was learning for a concert. She liked to play piano as well. Something about music was truly magical. Percy could try to explain it, but he couldn't. Melody had told him that over and over again.

The eighth human peered over her shoulder. They had an eager look on their face.

"Oh?" Melody asked, staring at them. "Do you want a turn?" She gasped. "Can you play piano as well? Goodness, how do you know how to do all these things?" 

They shrugged at her. Melody sighed and let them play the piano. They played the song that the music box was playing, and they did it quite well.

"Can I join in?" Melody asked. She grinned. "I think I know the notes." 

Soon, they were both playing the song. Melody had to admit, they were very good. They sounded great together. Neither of them had noticed a large door open in the wall.

"HEY!" Brayden yelled, running in. "THERE'S A BIG DOOR THERE! COOL!"

"We should check it out." Clover agreed. The others approached the door.

"What?" Melody asked. She gazed at the door. "Oh, so there is!" 

She grinned at the eighth human. "That was fun. We really need to perform together if we get home." She walked over to the door. She grabbed Brayden's shoulder before he ran in. "Hey! Brayden. You know how I've always wanted to teach you piano? Well, now's that chance!"

"I wanna see what's inside!" Brayden protested. 

Everyone else was already inside. The eighth human was smiling in an impish way. Melody gave Brayden a stare. The eighth human kept looking at him with that face.

"Fiiiinneee, you can teach me piano!" Brayden said, groaning. 

Melody smirked. The kids sat down on the seat in front of the piano.

"Okay," Melody took a deep breath. "To play piano, firstly you must know all the notes and which ones you have to play for a song." Brayden was already smashing away on the piano. "No no no, you're just being silly! Stop it!" She shooed his hands away. "Okay. Listen. I will show you how to play the song we heard on the music box. The eighth human was playing that song. You see those notes? That's-" 

Brayden was being silly again.

"THIS IS FUN!" he yelled, playing random notes. 

"Stop it!" Melody grumbled. Brayden ignored her. "Stop it, Brayden." He kept ignoring her. "Do you want to learn or not?"

"Yeah, but you're being boooorrrriiinnng." Brayden complained.

"Well, how else do I explain it?" Melody asked, frowning at him. "Just watch me."

 She played the music box song. She played it slowly. Again, she almost started crying. Nostalgia seemed to overfill her. 

"C-copy me..." Brayden eyed her movements, and actually copied her. They were playing together. It made Melody even sadder. "Now, those notes you're playing are..." She sniffled. "Are... a... are..." 

She took a shaky breath. She wondered if she would be able to get home. Would she ever see her family again? If they even wanted to see her? This song was so beautiful...

"HEY!" Brayden snapped her back to reality. "Notes I'm playing are what?"

Melody shook her head. "Notes are... um... I'll write them down." She felt funny.

"Are you crying?" Brayden asked, staring at her.

"I think I am." Melody replied. Tears were in her eyes. The eighth human came over and patted her back.

"WELL STOP CRYING!" Brayden yelled. He stood up on the seat. "'Cause we're gonna get outta here, okay?!" 

He gave her a noogie.

"My bun...!" Melody exclaimed through tears. "Don't touch it!" 

Too late. Her bun had come undone and she now had a high ponytail. She groaned. Brayden started laughing really hard. The eighth human shrugged at her. Melody sighed.

The kids walked through an area full of puddles. Rain was pouring from the ceiling. Some of them were annoyed because the great treasure was a ruse. Only Faye and Cody were happy, probably because they thought the dog that had stolen the legendary treasure was cute.

"HIYA!" Brayden jumped into a puddle, splashing everyone.

"You wanna go?" Clover asked, splashing him back.

"Oh come on." Melody groaned. Brayden splashed some water on her. Melody growled. She was soaking. "Oh no you don't, Brayden. You won't get away with splashing me!" 

She splashed him back, getting water everywhere. Percy was backing away. Cody was hiding behind his sister. The stick kid splashed everyone at once. Somehow.

Faye perked up. She turned to the eighth human. "I have something to show you. Come here." 

She sounded innocent. The eighth human approached her. Faye jumped, covering them in water. They frowned. Brayden started laughing really hard. Clover and Melody splashed him at the same time.

"HEY!" Brayden yelled. He chased both of them around the puddles. Cody yelped.

"Bro, do somethin'!" Clover yelled at him. Cody gulped.

"I'm so sorry!" he shouted. He raised his shoe. He kicked a droplet of water at Brayden. The small orange human stared at him. "Please don't hate me!"

"I'll show you how it's done!" Melody told him. 

She leaped really high into the air, bringing down her ballet slippers. Everyone was covered in water. They were soaking. Then they all fell over laughing. Aside from Percy, who was clutching his books with his life. He was trying to avoid all this. The eighth human laughed for a little bit, but they quickly stopped themself. Melody couldn't believe she was acting so irresponsible. She laughed anyway. The kids got up, continuing their walk through the rain. They found Monster Kid on the way.

"Hey! You guys looked like you were having fun," Monster Kid told them. "Are you going somewhere? I guess I'll come with you all, heh." They walked alongside them. "Let's go!" 

They walked over the puddles. They stopped at one point, only because some kids were staring at themselves in the puddle. Melody stood next to Percy. They looked at themselves in the puddle. She gave him a smile. He didn't give it back. He simply nodded.

The eighth human was standing next to the monster child. They stared at their reflection in the puddle. Suddenly, they gasped, like they saw something horrific. They dashed off, splashing through the puddles.

"WAIT UP!" Brayden yelled, racing after them. Melody sighed again. The other kids caught up as well. Rain was still pouring.

"Man, Undyne is soooooo cool," Monster Kid gushed. "She beats up bad guys and NEVER loses. If I was a human, I would wet the bed every night... knowing she was gonna beat me up! Ha ha."

"Undyne doesn't scare me!" Brayden yelled. "She'd wet the bed every night knowing I was gonna beat her up! HA!" He cracked his knuckles.

"And she's not that cool." Melody agreed. "She's just mean."

"No need to be party-poopers," Monster Kid chuckled. "Undyne is the best! You're just jealous." They raced off.

"I'm not JEALOUS!" Brayden grumbled, folding his arms.

"Why would ya be?" Clover asked, frowning. The kids followed Monster Kid. They walked down a rainy path.

"So, one time," Monster Kid began telling a story. "We had a school project where we had to take care of a flower. The king - we had to call him 'Mr. Dreemurr' - volunteered to donate his own flowers. He ended up coming to school and teaching the class about responsibility and stuff. That got me thinking..." They smirked. "YO! How cool would it be if UNDYNE came to school! She could beat up ALL the teachers!"

"YEAH!" Brayden cheered. Melody stared at him. "... no?"

"I like some of the teachers at our school..." Faye commented quietly.

"Yeah," Cody agreed. "Our art teacher is really nice."

"Any teacher that educates properly is a good teacher." Percy commented. The kids continued walking.

"Umm, maybe she wouldn't beat up the teachers..." Monster Kid chuckled. "She's too cool to ever hurt an innocent person!" 

They ran off, following the path. The humans did as well. They came to a view of the King's Castle. It was a gleaming, white palace. The ceiling was covered in sparkling crystals. The turrets had blue roofs that shimmered in the light. Everyone stopped to observe it for a moment. Melody was starstruck. It was incredible.

"Is that Disneyland?" Brayden asked. He gasped. "Does Asgore live in Disneyland?! NOW I'm JEALOUS!"

"That's not Disneyland, Brayden," Melody pointed out. "That's ASGORE's castle. Papyrus said so, didn't he?"

"It looks like Disneyland." Clover said.

"Disneyland has more flags and more turrets," Percy commented. "I should know. I've been to Disneyland."

"YOU WENT TO DISNEYLAND!?" Brayden flipped out. "WHEN!?" 

The two boys started talking about Disneyland. Everyone headed on. Melody eyed the castle one last time. A smile spread on her face. Despite everything, there was beauty in the world. Like the concert.

The area after the castle view was blocked by a ledge. Monster Kid was frowning at it.

"Yo," they said. "This ledge is way too steep..." They looked thoughtful. "Hmm..."

"We could climb on each other's shoulders..." Faye suggested.

"But that means someone will have to stay behind." Percy pointed out. Everyone looked disappointed.

"Yo, you guys wanna see Undyne, right...?" Monster Kid asked. "Well... you guys can climb on my shoulders." The eighth human made some gestures. "Oh! They want to help. You can... climb on... their head?"

"You've got a thick head." Faye told the eighth human. 

She had a stupid grin on her face. Everyone groaned.

"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Cody asked Monster Kid. "Maybe we can pull you up or something."

"It's fine, buddy!" Monster Kid laughed. "I always find a way through!"

"I feel uncomfortable stepping on heads and shoulders." Melody grumbled.

"Melody, you can't step on anti-dandruff shampoo." Faye told Melody. It took a little while for Melody to get the joke. Everyone but Melody laughed. Melody groaned.

"What's anti-dandruff shampoo?" Brayden asked, scratching his head.

"The humans, afraid of our power, declared war on us. They attacked suddenly, and without mercy. In the end, it could hardly be called a war. United, the humans were too powerful, and us monsters, too week. Not a single SOUL was taken, and countless monsters were turned to dust..." Percy finished the history. "So if we were to kill everything in our path..."

"It'd be easy." Clover finished. 

The eighth human bit their lip.

"We're not killing anyone, though, right?" Cody asked. He clutched his frying pan.

"I shan't think so." Melody told him, folding her arms. "Though some people tried to." She gazed at Clover. "And some people almost died." 

The eighth human paused. Clover gave Melody a death-stare. The eighth human was staring at something for a bit. Then they started walking across a bridge. The other kids followed. Shadows crawled across their faces. Something wasn't right.

And they had reason to be suspicious. Glowing, blue patches surrounded the children. They didn't look friendly.

"What's goin' on?!" Clover asked, holding her gun up.

"SHOW YOURSELF!" Brayden demanded, clenching his fists. The others looked afraid. The blue patches turned into spears, almost impaling the children.

"Undyne." Melody realized, her breath caught in the throat.

"Run." Percy said emotionlessly. 

The kids raced across the bridge, blue patches under their feet. The eighth human was charging ahead. They held their hand out, telling the others to follow them. Only Faye was behind. She was taking her time, hanging about on the bridge. Undyne was too busy chasing the others to notice.

The stick kid weaved around the bends, narrowly avoiding the spears like they did it for breakfast. A spear almost got Melody, but the eighth human shoved her out of the way. Brayden was screaming curses at the top of his lungs. Clover was firing at the spears. Undyne was underneath the bridge, keeping an eye on the children. Cody was whimpering. Percy was sitting there with a stoic expression.

"Percy, come on!" Melody demanded. 

She forced him to get up and run. They weaved around more bends, following the eighth human.

"Death is inevitable," Percy replied. "But that doesn't mean we should give up. There's always hope."

"Yes," Melody agreed. She smiled. That song played in her head. "Determination is the only way to survive this world."

"UNDYNE! MORE LIKE UNDUMB!" Brayden taunted, narrowly missing a spear. 

Clover grabbed him and her brother. They raced off, following the eighth human. The spears were getting faster. Undyne's patience was wearing thin.

"Melody..." Percy croaked. "If we do die, though... I need to tell you something..."

"Not now, Percy," Melody sighed.

Percy frowned. "But she needs to know..." 

The eighth human leaped between them, saving their lives from more spears. The kids were now on an open space. The escape continued. So did the spears. The eighth human looked very determined. There were spears everywhere. Cody had been injured. He was holding his arm and wincing. Clover didn't look very pleased. Brayden was still screaming. 

"Who needs to know?" Melody asked.

Percy whimpered.

The kids reached a part where the bridge extended out. Finally, the spears subsided.

Brayden looked around in confusion. "Where'd she go?!"

"I dunno, but she's gonna pay when I see her next." Clover growled. 

The eighth human walked backwards. The others followed them. There was Undyne, blocking their way. She approached them, looking fierce.

"You still smell like fish!" Brayden said, looking disgusted.

"Stop this, Undyne," Melody told the fish lady. "We never did anything to you!" Undyne ignored her. Spears came down from above, slicing the bridge in half. The side with the kids plummeted down into the darkness. The kids screamed for help, but nobody came. It was too late.

...

"Oh..." Faye walked over, realizing her friends had fallen down. She'd been having a great time, smelling the flowers, having a leisurely walk while her friends were running for their lives. "I think I'll just wait here until they come back." Undyne threateningly held up spears. 

"Okay, okay, I'll jump down too..." Faye squeaked. She didn't want to jump off the edge. It was too scary.

Undyne groaned. She made spears cut off the edge Faye was standing on. Faye fell down too, faintly screaming. Well, as Brayden says, the group sticks together.