Book 2: The First Fallen Human

Flashing Lights

DS stared around. It was so quiet here. He turned back just in time to have Cross spit at him. He rolled his eyes. "It truly is nothing personal..." He said, sighing. Paint had Cross wrapped up in ink. Cross struggled. Cross glanced to the side. He seemed to quiet for a moment.

"Yeah... assholes..." He seemed to be agreeing with something. DS raised a brow. Paint was quiet. This wasn't the best plan. It was a huge gamble on the fact that the red human would come here, of all places. But for some reason, DS seemed sure that it would show.

Cross couldn't believe this. These pieces of shit had come into HIS home and were using him as what?! Bait?? A hostage?? What the hell were they even doing?! He growled and jerked around again, hissing as Paint tightened the ink to a crushing pressure. He swore loudly and shot a furious glare back at the other. While Paint showed him no physical reaction, the ink seemed to weaken for a moment.

DS blinked. "There we are." They all looked up to see a pool of blood spreading through the white. It was bubbling. Slowly, but surely, the red human began to rise up from it. It formed and lifted its head to stare at them with glowing red eyes. It seemed to note the situation. DS furrowed his brow. Its wings were gone.

Blood slowly spread out from it. Cross hated that. The blood wasn't spreading in a pool, it was spreading in lines that almost resembled veins. He began to back up, using his shoes to push himself back. Paint scowled and yanked him forward. "Cross... oh shit..." Chara sounded horrified as they watched from next to him. "Is it just me, or is it giving off a not too happy feeling...?" For a moment, Cross was confused.

Cross focused and realized Chara was right. Upon closer inspection, the red human's face was wrinkled. It looked pissed off. "I feel that." Cross muttered. Chara snorted and gave an agreement. They blinked and turned to Cross.

"Trade?" They said quickly, raising an eyebrow. Cross blinked before nodding and closing his eyes. His form changed and he switched places with Chara.

His skeletal body was replaced with Chara's small human body and they easily slipped out of Paint's ink. Paint yelped in shock. DS whipped around with wide eyes. Chara lifted their hand and the blade was summoned to it. They stood defensively.

This captured the red human's attention almost instantaneously. It tipped its head. Chara sighed and traded back with Cross, his form reappearing in front of them, wielding the blade. "Sometimes it helps having a half-human SOUL." He growled. DS scowled before turning towards the red human.

"I am TRYING so hard to be civil with you." He said quietly. "You keep choosing to make this difficult. All I want, is to kill you." The red human blinked at him. It didn't seem to like that and shook its head. DS scowled. "Do you not understand that you're useless in this world? You would never fit in as a human or a monster. I am doing you a FAVOR." DS held out his hand, summoning a staff with a scythe-like, bright blue blade.

"Jesus, what a prick." Chara muttered from next to Cross. "Yeah, that thing is super messed up, but holy shit..." Cross furrowed his brow. The red human seemed upset by DS' words. The veins of blood around it began to twitch and bubble. DS gave a calm grin.

"I will show you mercy and terminate your horrible existence." He said, seeming genuinely focused on the fact that this was just a "favor." The red human, however, was less than impressed. It hissed and glowing, thin red tendrils shot up from every vein around it, tearing and ripping at anyone trapped inside. Fortunately, that only included DS.

DS snarled and flapped his wings to propel himself above the tendrils. He glared at the red human. "So be it." He hissed. The red human hissed back at him, almost seeming to mock his tone. Cross watched with wide eyes.

All of a sudden, with one of Chara's warnings, he barely managed to avoid a sharpened ink spear from Paint. "What the hell?! Why are you fighting me?!" Cross spat at the other. Paint scowled, but didn't reply, only lashing out at Cross again and again. Cross deflected each hit before giving in and lashing out too. He caught Paint across the forehead. "I don't want to fight you, this is pointless!!"

Paint didn't seem to listen and Cross hissed as the other pinned him down. He scowled before kicking Paint off, rolling over as he did so, launching the other right into the blood tendrils. "INK!" DS yelled. Paint shrieked as the tendrils began to burn away at his body. Cross sat up, watching in horror.

DS flew down, snatching Paint out of the tendrils. The other was burnt and chipped badly. DS swore before opening a portal and disappearing through it. It closed and Cross was left with the red human. He turned to it, blade in hand, ready to defend himself.

The red human seemed distracted. Confused, almost. Cross could tell it was thinking. Slowly, the tendrils sank back down into the veins. For a moment, Cross thought the red human just looked absolutely lost. Like it had no idea what to do. It blinked and slowly turned to look at him. He tensed.

He jumped as it sank back into the ground. The veins bubbled and began to finally pool, connecting with one another into one huge blood puddle. Cross shrieked as he felt a hand rip through the back of his body and grab his SOUL. He fell forward, his blade clattering next to him. He turned to look back, freezing.

The red human blinked at him, his SOUL in its hand. He shook his head. "D-Don't. Please." He said quickly. The red human didn't respond and lifted its other hand. He flinched as its chest tore open. He stared at the SOUL inside.

It was twisted and hollow. Black and red. Like red shards of glass encased in black goo. It pulled out its SOUL before holding it down to Cross. Cross blinked in shock. He didn't know about this. He glanced up at the red human. "Cross, I don't know... This is seriously dangerous..." Chara whispered urgently next to him. Cross gulped.

He shakily reached up and took the SOUL. It was horribly misshapen for a SOUL. Ugly, as well. Cross furrowed his brow, sitting up. Why did this thing want him to hold its SOUL? He shrieked as a sudden, loud, breathy, deep voice spoke quickly.

MONSTER?

Cross was shaking as he held the SOUL. He blinked and looked up at the red human. "I... am a monster... but my SOUL is half-human... if that's what you're wondering..." Cross said warily, furrowing his brow. The red human seemed to note this. It was quiet for a moment before Cross spoke. "But what are you?"

That question seemed to take back the red human. It was quiet. He could tell his question had confused it. Maybe even shocked it. He waited quietly and tensely. Finally, the voice spoke again, still loud and urgent in his head.

Don't know.

Cross blinked before glancing up at it. It stared right back.

Don't know.