Event Log: Fourth Wall, Part One

[hadrielmods]

Who: Everyone in the city + Fourth Wall visitors!
What: Part one of the fourth wall event, hosted by Fear, Confusion, and Delight!
Where: All around the city
When: October 24th-November 1st
Warnings: Visitors from other worlds!

If you're not from around here, you may be wondering what's going on. You've woken up out of the blue in the colosseum, or near a temple, or in one of the numerous other locations in the city. You're somewhere underground and it's dark, cold, and maybe a little unnerving.

Luckily, shortly after your arrival, the road below your feet begins to light up in a gentle, warm glow. The light points you in a set direction and, if you choose to travel that way, will lead you toward the center of the city, where there is a large gathering of others who are lost here like you, people who might know their way around a bit more, and even some of the gods who rule this place.

There are lights strung up on poles throughout the large clearing, casting a comforting glow onto the tables beneath them. The tables are abundant with lots of food that looks simply delicious- though, none of it tastes quite like it should. The tarts taste like green beans, the mashed potatoes like cheesecake, and the chocolate seems oddly reminiscent of steak. In addition, there are decorations artfully placed around the meeting point. If you see them moving, don't worry- that's probably just your imagination.

Also distributed along the tables are shot glasses, filled with a sludgy, yellow substance. If you're brave enough to consume them, they taste strongly of mint and will give you a much needed energy boost, circumventing the need to eat or sleep for a full 24 hours! After that, however, everything hits you all at once, so use them wisely. Some of you may remember these shots from our How Delightful event earlier this year!

In addition to all of the above, there are also party poppers strewn around the area. Each popper can jet out some strange objects- glitter bombs, seashells, plastic dinosaurs, maybe a live lizard or two- so be careful! Feel free to use your discretion on these, but remember to keep it small!
_

Of course, you can always not travel that way. The rest of the city has plenty of places to explore- maybe you'd like to stumble in our Silent Hill zone, have a quick look around the alien orchard, or check out any of the god temples that can inspire their chosen emotion. Be careful not to get lost in the tunnels leading away from the cave- none of them can actually move you above ground, but you may run into a few monsters on the way.

For those of you who have been with us awhile, please bear with the gods while they try to adjust around these new folks! Join in on the festivities if you like, or try to orient as many of the others as you can. Start a community outreach program, start a fight club, introduce your parents to your weird cave girlfriend- nobody's judging!

Well. Some of us might be.
_

Enjoy the fourth wall event at Hadriel! Once you're settled in feel free to explore the rest of the city! Find a house, find a new monster, or simply scavenge for supplies.

Fourth wall characters do not enter with phones so they cannot reach the network- however, if you'd like to handwave that they somehow got ahold of Mello's Newcomer guide to avoid the 'where am I/what is this' sort of questions, then feel free!

Good luck, and enjoy your stay in Hadriel!

► This log covers October 24th-November 1st.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well! Fourth wall characters will not have posting access, so grab an in-game friend if you wanted to do anything separate from the main log.
► Fourth wall characters will be in the city for at least one week, though they can stay for longer. The party will go on throughout the entire week, thanks to Delight's boundless energy!
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!

Comments

Asriel Dreemurr | Undertale | OTA

[alltozero]

[There's a statue here that shouldn't really be here.

Wherever "here" is.

It's not the Underground. He knows that much, because that's where he's supposed to be. An empty place, with only one or two stragglers. People who are easy to hide from, so everyone can be safe from him.

This place doesn't seem very safe at all. Too many people. Nowhere to hide himself. He's made it this far, to a statue he recognizes. To an old lullabye he knows so well it hurts. And he... ha ha, he doesn't know where else to go. He doesn't know why this happened. But this tiny trace of home in a frighteningly big and bustling and strange place, it...

It aches a little, in a place that's struggling to keep remembering how to feel.

Maybe this... maybe this is what happens when something without a SOUL dies? Maybe that's why he...

He sits down in the statue's weathered lap. Curls himself into a tiny ball, tugging his ears over himself. And there, with his head buried between his knees, he begins to sniffle and tremble.

He always was a crybaby.]

[beautyis]

[Papyrus is walking his patrol when he hears sniffles.

He follows them with concern, careful not to make too much noise as he approaches to startle whoever it is. That's when he finally sees the little monster, curled up and crying at the base of the statue from Waterfall...

They must be from home. They must be very scared... Papyrus puts on a gentle smile and stops nearby.]

I see you found the statue! I was surprised to find it sitting here as well!

[alltozero]

[Oh... oh, gosh, it's Papyrus.

He... ha ha, his last few moments of being able to feel before he turns into a flower again - unless he's dead, for-real dead, and he can maybe stay like this forever? - and he doesn't even know how to feel about this.

As a flower he... well, he wasn't truly capable of liking people, empty and broken thing that he was, but he took a long time to get bored of Papyrus. Nobody could understand how he felt, nobody but Chara. Papyrus, who had never suffered the way he had, would surely never ever get what it was like. But... it felt like it, sometimes. It felt close. Papyrus was always so nice to him.

He couldn't always understand it.

It just cranks the waterworks up even more, because why is Papyrus even being nice to him now? Won't he be disappointed if he gets to know the real Asriel, and then he's gone forever?]

Oh, um, I'm... I'm okay. You don't have to bother with me. I just... it reminded me of something, that's all.

[beautyis]

[A crying child reassures him they're okay. A crying child finds the first familiar thing in an unknown world and curls up in it. Papyrus may seem dense to most, but he understands more than one might think. He understands how complicated emotions can be. Fear and sorrow-- well, they happen to have physical form here, so it might not be too surprising that they tend to be hallmarks of Hadriel.

For all Papyrus knows, he's never seen this child before. That doesn't mean he can't guess what they're feeling.]

I am not surprised you find it familiar! Yes, it is, in fact, the very same as the statue from Waterfall! The exact same one! It is one of the things that appeared here a couple weeks ago when the Door started... hiccuping. God-induced hiccups. Just like every hiccup, for all I know!

[Papyrus gives the child a friendly smile and sits down on their level, taking a seat right across from them, hoping to cheer them up a little.]

There are not a lot of monsters from the Underground here. You must be very lucky to run into none other than me, the great Papyrus, former citizen of the Underground and current citizen guard of Hadriel! Wow! It's like fate!!

[alltozero]

[Asriel giggles, just a bit. Sort of a hiccup of noise, ha ha, because he doesn't know at all what Papyrus is talking about, but god-hiccups are kind of funny to picture.]

Uh, I'm sorry, Mr. Papyrus...

[It feels so weird and formal to tack a "Mr." in front, but it's better if he pretends he doesn't know Papyrus at all. Better if he doesn't have to be associated with all the cruel and spiteful things he does when he's empty.]

I'm still a little bit confused. You mean this isn't the Underground at all? But then... how is that possible? Did something weird happen when the Barrier broke?

[beautyis]

No! Or, yes?? Let's go with yes!

[And just that answer is unhelpful, so after he stops pondering that, he continues,] Hadriel has something called a Door that pulls people through at random! It does not seem to have any sort of real rules as to what it can bring to this city, since... the rules I thought it had are all being broken right now. However!! It can also send people home at random, too! So you will most certainly see the sky someday!

[It is kind of a mean trick to pull, taking a couple of monsters right as soon as the Barrier broke... Oh well. You make the most of things.]

[aegros]

[The lure of an old tune brings him back to a very distant time. A time that smells of fire magic and butterscotch pie and flour-powdered paws and the rich, earthy smell of soil as his children turned over the patches of dirt, jabbing little trowels into the ground, occasionally breaking away from their work to fling clods of grass and weeds at one another with sharp bursts of laughter.

It is an old tune.

It makes him feel indescribably...nostalgic. The memorial statue had been moved from its location, though he had not known where it had ended up, simply that Mettaton had insisted it make way for something more substantial. But the curved horns, the bowed head - it is all of it reminiscent of the son he lost. The children who died, both of them, on the same day.

He hears the soft sounds of a child crying, and the King's great heart could never take the sound.

He treads closer, peering over the statue's shoulder with a soft, gentle rumble.]

There, there. It is quite all -

[And then he sees who it is that is crying.

And the words stop dead in his throat.]

[alltozero]

[He's not ready for this.

He'd told Frisk. He'd told them. He couldn't break his parents' hearts all over again. He'd figured out that he had to move on, had to accept that things couldn't go back to the way they used to be. It wouldn't be fair to deny his parents that, too. They had a new kid to make them happy, they had a future full of promise and possibility.

It would just hurt so much worse if he could hear their loving voices one more time, and really remember how it felt to be safe and cared about.

And at first he thinks - hopes - that it's just his imagination, summoning up a fond memory of days when he could run to protective arms with tears in his eyes, and be comforted and sheltered. But the sentence doesn't finish itself. It stops, cuts off, freezes.

Asriel doesn't know if it's hope or dread clamping down on his chest as he lifts his head. Nobody there in front of him. He looks up, sees the underside of the statue's water-worn, smoothed-down face, and... there, peeking over its shoulder...]

Dad...?

[aegros]

Asriel. Asriel.

[He is shouting, he thinks, or crying, or - or one of the two, he cannot say. There is an awful heat gathering in the corners of his eyes as he stumbles, the strength gone out from his legs as he tries to circle around the statue, nearly bumping into it in his haste.]

You are - you are truly - are you here? Please, are you...

[Are you real? he cannot bring himself to say as he reaches out, the tears pooling out and over down his furry cheeks.]

[alltozero]

[What should he do? What's he supposed to... they were never supposed to see him like this. It's not fair to make Dad see him like this, knowing he's just going to have to lose his son all over again.

Chara would know what to do. Chara was always so good at knowing what to do, while Asriel was just... lost. Was always looking to them. Ha, a future king, and all he ever knew how to do was hope people made decisions for him.

But the look on his dad's face - the desperation, the hurt, the wholehearted sincere ache - it tears whatever's left of Asriel's SOUL to bits. A whole fresh salvo of tears well up in his eyes as he clumsily tries to stagger up onto his paws, not entirely sure if he's trying to run away or leap into his father's arms.]

Dad, I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry. You shouldn't be here - I shouldn't be here, it's not... I'm sorry!

[aegros]

[He just wants - he needs to hold him, hold him close to him, and never let go again. And Asriel's paws brush against his and that's enough confirmation to make his SOUL wrench painfully in his chest, his voice to climb in pitch because he cannot - he can hardly believe this, hardly trust his eyes, because he had dreamed such a scenario countless times. If he could see his son, talk to him one more time...

And then he can touch him, and he is solid, and it only makes Asgore weep with regret, with joy.]

I do not care. I do not care, Asriel. You're - you're here, you're alive.

I am never - I could not ever let you go.

[somuchlove]

[* You hear the sound of crying over the soft melody.

Lately Chara has tried narrating for themselves. It's...most of their attempts felt weird because all they were at that point was a disembodied voice in a child's head. They didn't have arms and legs and - really - no reason to do it anyways. Perhaps that skeleton's words of trying new things had gotten to them, even if it was really, really old.

But the narration can't be used to distract from the person who had crawled into the statue's lap. Ironically the one who it had been made for, or so Chara heard. Still they stand there, however, until the child can find something to say.

It's just his name.]

Asriel.

[alltozero]

[He knows that voice.

He looks up suddenly, sharply, his whole heart lurching painfully.

It's them.]

Chara.

[He shouldn't be crying. He should put on a brave face, like they were always so good at doing. But... but the tears just start up all over again, and a big, shuddering, messy sob spills out of him.]

Chara, it's you! But how... you're... am I dead? Were you waiting for me all this time? I... Chara, I missed you so much!

[It comes out as a painful wail, and his voice feels so weird and distorted by the dumb snotty crybaby tears he's so full of, but for however long he can still feel, he knows exactly what he feels right now, and all he can do is just let it pour out of him.]

[somuchlove]

[Chara make sure not to cry this time. Not like with Asgore and they kind of wish they can hide away that LV 20 because it feels dirty...dusty. Both.]

Asriel.

[They say his name again because they can. They'd make a quip about him crying again but within their SOUL they can feel a bit of happiness of seeing their Best Friend again. After all this time. After all that time it's not a SOUL-less flower but Asriel.

But they instead smile as best as they can.]

I...am not alive, no. But this place seems capable of bring back the dead. And it's wonderful to see you again.

[It's awkward. They can't help it. But Chara means it.]

[alltozero]

[He should be questioning this. Asking important questions like "how" and "where is here, anyway." But he doesn't, because all that matters is Chara. Chara's here. That's all "here" needs to be.

He stumbles up onto his feet (big awkward paws, like rabbit feet, and he suddenly remembers how none of the shoes or socks that filtered down into the dump fit them, only Chara, and how they used to knit so many socks for Asriel and for Mom and for Dad so they didn't have to be left out, didn't have to put up with cold toes, and the sweetness of the memory aches), he - he wants so bad to just fall into them. To throw himself forward with everything he has, to absolutely engulf them in this desperate longing.

But instead, he holds his paws out. He invites, he doesn't demand, doesn't just hurl himself onto their arms, because he remembers when they used to flinch at touch. He remembers the terror and pain and dismay they felt in their last shared moments with him, when he forcefully took control away from them and didn't give it back and made them helplessly endure hit after hit from faces they surely must have recognized.]

I... um... I have a lot to apologize for, Chara. But if you'll let me...?

[He wants to hold on. He doesn't want to let go.]

[somuchlove]

[After all this time...Asriel invites, opens his arms for a hug. Remembers the fear and panic and the flinch. Everything. It made sense a kind Monster would remember kind things. The one who, instead of incinerating those humans on the spot, had never touched that FIGHT button. The one who would ask for thing like hugs and not demand them.

Chara takes a deep breath.

* You don't want to let go.

They step forward and open their own arms. It's not a particularly tight hug but they're not letting go. And well...

Actions speak louder than words, right?]

[cinnamonbroll]

D-don'...don' cry!! It's okay!!

[ there's a little, teeny skeleton running up to you!! A big scarf tied around his neck! A jacket that sits a little too big around his shoulders. His tiny hands are gloved-- this kid looks like he's ready for a polar expedition...

he nearly trips on the way over. But miraculously sticks the landing.

What a cool, tiny skeleton. ]

[alltozero]

[Huh?

Who's this pint-size Papyrus?

Wait, no, that was almost a... that was almost not nice. That was almost Flowey.

But this unexpected visitor is so surprising, it's interrupted the sobbing. Asriel looks up, puzzled, smearing his sleeve across his snout.]

Um...? I didn't think there were more than two skeletons Underground. You must be related to Papyrus and Sans, right?

[cinnamonbroll]

[ his head lifts a little when Asriel says his name. Papyrus. A big, bold, brave name. Sans tells him that it's the coolest name, for the coolest bro.

Papyrus leans forward on the tips of his little boots! He holds his scarf with his hands! ]

It's me!! Cool Papyrus!! [ he pats his chest a couple times. What a proud child. ] It's me!

[alltozero]

Whoa, what? Really?!

[Asriel's so surprised, it kind of comes out as a squeak. Not a very princely or God-of-Hyperdeath-y kind of voice at all, whoops.]

But... you're a kid! Just...

[It's funny. He feels a million years old. After everything that happened, it's like he can never really go back to being how a kid is supposed to be. But... he's not a grown-up, no matter how hard he bent all that SOUL magic to make himself look like one.]

Just like me.

[cinnamonbroll]

'M not a kid!! [ he huffs!! ] 'M a Great! Great Papyrus!!!

[ instead of being mad about it, though, Papyrus seems upset. ]

You're okay?? Crying.. [ what a worried look. ]

[save_theworld]

[It's a monster they've never seen before.

Or rather, they don't think that's quite true. Vague memories of a timeline in which their curiosity had gotten the best of them, and everything had to be explored. Every line, every script of dialogue-

Before it had gotten to the point where they just opened the door. Take the locket. Take the knife. And leave.

Frisk doesn't quite think this monster is like the others. They're fairly sure, if he is who they think, that he's supposed to be dead. Just a happy face in a photograph, that means nothing to them. Even so... they sit by the statue anyway, gently laying a hand on his shoulder with a concerned furrow to their brow and a soft smile of understanding. It's okay.

They were scared when they got here, too.]

[alltozero]

[He feels a hand on his shoulder, and it's jarring. He'd forgotten what having shoulders even felt like. His head snaps up and to the side so quickly his ears flap ridiculously, and one even splaps over his muzzle. He... ha ha, even when he's a teary mess, he giggles a little, because Chara always did believe that you can keep going as long as you can still find something to laugh about. Laughter's the best medicine, right?]

Oh! It's you, Frisk.

[There's relief in his voice. Of course there is. They understand him, what he's been through. They're different from Mom, Dad, Papyrus - from all the monsters who he tried and tried to feel something about. None of them could fix him.

But Frisk could.]

I always was a crybaby, huh? Don't worry about me. Go be with the people who love you, remember?

[save_theworld]

[Haha, about that.

He says their name- not only the correct name, but with confidence bred with familiarity, and they have to wonder. About every single person they've spoken to today, themself, Chara, all of them- who spoke as if he wasn't just simply a story to be told and a picture in a dusty room.

They really didn't need the reminder to know, they have more to learn from this world. So they smile, and let that be their answer alongside the fact that they aren't moving, thumb running gently up and down woolen fabric.

They think they're okay here, actually. Hopefully.]

[alltozero]

[Haha... just like them, isn't it? Won't let him win, in their quiet, passive way. It's selfish of him, but... he sort of doesn't mind the company at all.]

I'm so confused, Frisk... why am I still here? Where is "here," anyway? I know I shouldn't be around anyone, or I might end up hurting them.

[He's going to turn back into a flower. All the compassion that motivated him to do the right thing is going to fade away, and he knows what's going to be left. The aching sorrow that Chara's really, truly gone. The realization that he has absolutely nothing left to keep him going. No hoping his best friend will come back to him. Not even the false consolation of pulling a Reset, just to see if there was one more new thing to look forward to. Only an empty Underground, forever. Or... or however long a flower is supposed to live for.

What happens when something without a SOUL dies?

The thought had been enough to stop him, once. Will it still be enough if he knows that all he'll ever have is a world without love, a world without Chara?]

I know it's better if I'm alone. But... I'm not sure where to go anymore. Did I do something wrong? Is that why everything's so strange?