At Their Mercy

Chapter 27: Brother, my brother

A/N: 'm glad everyone was chill about the whole Nightmare thing. I've been having a ton of fun reading everyone's responses to what's gone down, so I'm glad you're all invested!

Now, a chapter I've been building up to for a while.

Enjoy

Dream clutched onto the weighted blanket around his shoulders. His mind was still holding tight to the image of his brother, screaming and being swallowed up by the negativity on his body. He was certain it would haunt him for days to come, but he had soldiered through worse. Ink frowned as he picked at a loose thread on the couch, not saying anything as he was uncertain how to help at this point.

"Hey Ink..."

Ink perked up a bit, glancing at Dream quickly as the spirit addressed him. He wasn't looking at him, but Ink counted his acknowledgment as a win. "Yeah?" He tried not to sound too eager, not wanting his intent to be misread. Dream didn't comment on it, furrowing his brow bones as he mulled over what to say. "Why..." He started, pulling the blanket closer. "Why did those universes collide? I thought you said you'd be careful..."

Ink frowned as he looked away again, staring at the wall at the accusatory question. He didn't blame Dream for being a bit bitter about it, he was a bit bitter toward himself for it as well. He wanted the other to understand though. So badly did he want him to get it, for someone to get it.

"Remember when I said I went into a sort of depression after Dreamtale?"

Dream finally looked up at Ink, surprised by the sudden question. "Yeah... you said something changed." He recalled, wondering if the other was truly about to open up about something that personal. "Well," Ink started, glancing back and seeing he had captured Dream's attention. "Can I... tell you something? And maybe you'll just kind of humor me? Even if it seems farfetched?" He half pleaded, looking a touch desperate as he did so. Dream nodded slowly at the question, not needing any convincing after what he already knew. "I promise Ink, I will take you very seriously."

The artist seemed to appreciate this as he looked down at the floor. "I'm not sure how long I sat in this place, just numb and refusing to take my paints, but at some point I... I started to hear stuff." He glanced quickly to Dream, trying to judge if the other was taking him seriously. The spirit sat quietly, giving him his full attention and nodding. "So... I ignored them at first, too numb to do much else. Eventually, though, it was like I... I couldn't control my body. I heard all these ideas in my mind for stories, for worlds, for people. I didn't have the emotional drive to do it, but I still felt the need to follow through on these ideas. I was kind of just going through the motions, robotically making these worlds. When I finally took a break, when the voices were quiet, I took my paints for the first time in a while. It was... I was so confused." He frowned as he moved to start sketching, letting his hands scribble to ease his anxiety.

"So," Dream started, turning his body more to face the uncomfortable creator. "You hear like, people? They give you ideas?" He questioned, curious to see Ink's perspective on it. Ink nodded slowly, seeming hesitant to do so. "Yeah... Creators. I hear the Creators whisper their wants to me, what they wish to see. It was so... neat! I mean, these guys inspired so many great worlds I never would have thought of! Dancetale? I mean how cool is that concept! Outertale? It's such an amazing and, frankly, out-of-this-world universe!" This brought a laugh out of both of them, lightening the atmosphere a bit. As their laughs died down, Ink deflated just the smallest bit.

"Then..."

Dream was immediately attentive again.

"They... they got more forceful, demanding. They were bored with these happy, pretty worlds I was making. That, uh... that started something new." Ink admitted as his pencil tapped against the page anxiously. "When... when they started giving me details about a world they simply called 'Something New' I started feeling hesitant. It didn't make sense to me and I thought the world cruel and, well, lame honestly! Sans siding with Chara because he's worn down by them asking? Boring! It didn't strike me as believable. Then they insisted that it was due to the 'player' hacking the files to make it happen." Ink rolled his eyes, as though recalling the conversation. "I still thought it was dumb though, so I scrapped the idea. They... they didn't like that."