Categories > Games > Undertale > Undertale: Project AU
The surface of the lake rippled calmly along the bank, leaves rustling and falling from the branches of thin, twisting trees, as they silently landed on the water. Everything had a calm tranquility in the early morning scene of the Underground.
The short moment of calm was disturbed as an arm broke the surface of the water, grabbing the shoreline and hauling herself over the edge and onto dry land.
Pebbles crinkled and showered into the shallows of the lake, and water droplets cascaded down onto the sand, turning it to a burnt amber shade.
Undyne’s gills flared at the sudden vanish of water, but she ignored it. She swished her tail through the air, knocking a few more damp rocks tumbling down the bank. She walked farther past the lakeshore, passing into the deep foliage beyond the open space. Branches and brambles scraped her arms and tail, and bushes brushed and rustled as she pushed further into the forest.
I hope I won’t get caught this time, she thought, nerves buzzing under her scales. Dad would kill me.
She shoved dangling ivy tendrils from her path, trudging deeper into dense woodland. Her mind screamed to run for the water, but Undyne didn’t listen. She had trained her gills to last longer on the surface, and even though the pain was almost unbearable, her short secret outings to the land were worth the agony.
I’ll have about an hour to look around, she thought. Then I’ll have to go home before my parents get suspicious.
A sharp noise sliced the silence, and a faintly glowing weapon cut through the trees, crashing through the forest, aimed directly at her. Undyne ducked quickly, rolling onto her back and hiding under a nearby bush.
Close one.
She silenced her heavy, rasping pants to a slow, quiet breath, careful not to disturb the sensitive leaves hanging around her still form. Panic tore at her chest, her heart pounding so loudly she was sure her pursuer could hear it from wherever they were. She hoped they wouldn’t find her.
“Who’s there?” A harsh voice sounded from a few feet away from the bush. Undyne heard footsteps pounding against the ground. The sound was like thunder. She tried not to tremble as a metal pair of boots revealed themselves from behind the deep foliage, stamping the earth inches from her sweat-drenched face. “I know I heard something!”
As the Royal Guard inched closer, Undyne instinctively moved away, making the leaves rustle. A long period of silence seemed to stretch on for days before the Guard’s gaze snapped towards the bush. Grass crumpled underneath them as they walked even closer, then stopped to crouch down and examine Undyne’s hiding spot. A white paw lunged into the shelter, grasping at the leaves half an inch from her eyes. She held her breath for what felt like ages until the hand retreated to the open.
“You’re going insane,” a male voice said a few feet away. “There’s nothing there. If there was, it was probably just the wind.”
“I know I saw something. And the air around here reeks of those slimy fish.”
“Maybe someone’s cooking,” the voice responded. “You should know that they don’t leave the water. They wouldn’t be able to breathe. Even they aren’t that stupid.” Rage boiled under her scales at the insult, and she fantasized about punching him in the face.
Very tempting.
She heard a few receding footsteps. She assumed the Royal Guard’s company was walking away. “Are you just going to stand there? Or are you going to help me finish our shift? We’re almost done.”
“Just a minute. Go on without me. I have something to check.”
Undyne imagined the other rolling their eyes. “Whatever. As long as you catch up.” The sound of their feet slowly got quieter until there was silence.
Undyne heard the breathing of the first Guard, coming fast.
They’re irritated, she observed.
“I can sense your presence, fish-face. There’s no point in hiding.” She whispered. “I’m not about to be humiliated by my colleagues again.”
Undyne refused to move, holding her breath longer.
Just go away, she wished. She wanted to scream out her frustration.
“You think you’re clever?” The voice sneered. “You think if you wait there long enough, no one will notice?” Her voice rose. “I’m going to take you to Asgore himself if you don’t shove it, and then he’ll kill you.”
I don’t care, Undyne thought, annoyance itching under her scales.
“He’ll kill your family.”
I doubt it.
“He’ll kill your whole ugly tribe.”
Since when could goats swim?
Silence.
Suddenly, something grabbed Undyne by the neck of her shirt, dragging her out from under the bush, then throwing them onto the ground so forcefully that the breath was knocked out of her for several seconds, her vision blurring and the forest twisting into a labyrinth of confusion and pain.
When Undyne’s disorientation faded, the Royal Guard stood looming over her, wielding a glowing red pitchfork gripped in one fuzzy white paw.
The Guard had menacing scarlet eyes, burning with fierce hatred and exasperation. Her lip curled with disgust, growling, her teeth glinting in the faint light seeping through the canopy. Her pure-white fur bristled with anger, raised and spiked along her neck. Her armor shone with a brilliant silver, with a sleek, liquid substance seared over the top.
“You brat,” She snarled, pointing her weapon down to Undyne’s throat. “I’m going to teach you a lesson that you’ll take with you when you dust away!” She raised her pitchfork, fury blazing in her eyes. Undyne rolled out of the way as the glistening red nightmare sank into the dirt where she had been lying just seconds before. She stood up in a heartbeat, crashing through the forest, running as fast as her sore legs could take her.
The scene was a blur: green and brown melting into a mixed mess, branches slicing through her arms. She tried to remember where the lake had been.
She heard the Royal Guard dashing after her, screaming terrible things that Undyne ignored. Wearing bulky, metal armor would slow down her pursuer.
“Get back here, you BRAT!” She screeched. “I’ll cook you into fish-sticks!”
Another pitchfork sailed through the air over her head, landing with a splash in the distance.
The lake!
The thick layering of trees broke slightly, and Undyne caught a glimpse of the shimmering surface of the lake, flowing gently despite the intense chase happening nearby. Undyne pushed her legs harder, her breath vanished, fear making her faster.
The forest ended abruptly, and Undyne wasted no time before she ran for the safety of the water. But just before she could dive in and escape the Royal Guard on her tail, a sharp pain sliced her cheek. She fell to the ground with a thud, catching herself just before her face collided with a sharp stone along the bank. She shook slightly, then pulled herself up. She brought her hand up to her face, feeling the cut in her scales. It was wet.
Undyne retracted her hand, not wanting to risk a glance at her now blood-soaked fingers. She approached the water, taking a glance behind her to see if she was still being chased. The forest was eerily silent.
Out of nowhere, the world turned red, and pain seared across her back like fire. The ground was spinning, and everything felt so wrong. Then darkness swallowed her. She heard a faint splash before the black void enveloped her, and there was nothing.
*
First, she heard the voices.
“What happened?”
“We aren’t sure, ma’am. The army patrol found her close to the border. Her face and back were damaged, but the head doctor says she’ll recover in a few days, but the scars will last.”
“When can she come home?”
“Ma’am, she’s still resting. Give her some space. We aren’t accepting visitors right now.”
“She’s my daughter, you rock-eater!”
“Ma’am-”
“STOP CALLING ME THAT, OR DO YOU WANT YOUR TAIL RIPPED OFF?”
“Lady, this is serious, you better leave or I’ll have to call in the captain.”
“I don’t think you want to do that.”
“Are you threatening me-”
Undyne’s eyes opened slowly, and she brought herself upright on the hospital bed.
“You’re awake!” Her mother gasped, then rushed to her side, giving her a choking hug. “I was worried about you. What happened?”
“I-I'm fine, Mom. Really.”
“No, you’re not. Why did you cross into their territory? You could have been killed!”
“But I wasn’t,” Undyne retorted.
“That’s a whole week of meal cooking for you! It’s not safe up there. Asgore’s soldiers will stop at nothing to kill us all.”
Undyne hopped out of bed, then winced as pain shot up her back.
“Okay, that’s it! I’ll carry you home if I have to! No more taking risks until you’ve recovered.”
Undyne rolled her eyes as her mother grabbed one arm and dragged her up, guiding her out of the room. They made their way to a bored-looking doctor, who groaned dramatically as they approached.
“So, you’re checking out your daughter…?” They said, looking less than pleased. They paused to write something down, then motioned at the exit with a lazy wave of their hand. “Off you go, then. Stay safe out there.”
As they left the hospital, Undyne pulled her arm out of her mother’s death grip, ignoring the slight jolt of pain as she moved away.
“Dad’s going to kill me.” She mumbled.
“Just because your father’s hard on you doesn’t mean he doesn’t love you.”
Undyne shrugged. “Sure.”
“When he found out you were injured, he was the first to be there to get you to the doctor. He couldn’t stop worrying about you.” She laughed. “Don’t tell him I said that. He might not act like it around you, but he cares a lot.”
I doubt it. She thought.
*
The room fell utterly silent as Undyne’s father entered the house, his face screwed up with an unreadable expression. Undyne instinctively looked away, finding the floor suddenly the most interesting thing she’d seen.
It was quiet like this for several minutes, unsaid tension hanging thick in the air. Undyne felt like she could choke on it.
A rough voice broke the never-ending silence.
“Find anything on your little secret adventures?” Her father’s voice held no ill intent, but his face was dark, and the look he gave Undyne made her want to hide.
When she didn’t respond, he rose upright, his tail thrashing through the water. He approached Undyne with a stiff posture, his eyes gleaming with fury. Her heart pounded as he grabbed her by the neck, lifting her to eye level.
“You idiot!” He growled, smashing her against a nearby boulder with moss coating the edges. His grip was crushing on her throat, and she couldn’t breathe. “You know how dangerous it is up there! And yet you disobeyed my orders and snuck out anyway, and now look at you. You almost died.”
Undyne struggled against his pinning; fear made her want to fight back, but she knew that would only make things worse.
When she thought she couldn’t last another neck-crushing moment, his grip loosened, and Undyne backed away, her heart hammering and her mind on alert, just in case he tried to attack again.
Her mother just looked into the distance, like she hadn’t just seen her husband try to break her neck. Her eyes were clouded, her gaze distant. It was almost like she wasn’t there at all.
Defeated, Undyne left the room without another word.
It didn’t matter what happened.
It would always be the same.
The short moment of calm was disturbed as an arm broke the surface of the water, grabbing the shoreline and hauling herself over the edge and onto dry land.
Pebbles crinkled and showered into the shallows of the lake, and water droplets cascaded down onto the sand, turning it to a burnt amber shade.
Undyne’s gills flared at the sudden vanish of water, but she ignored it. She swished her tail through the air, knocking a few more damp rocks tumbling down the bank. She walked farther past the lakeshore, passing into the deep foliage beyond the open space. Branches and brambles scraped her arms and tail, and bushes brushed and rustled as she pushed further into the forest.
I hope I won’t get caught this time, she thought, nerves buzzing under her scales. Dad would kill me.
She shoved dangling ivy tendrils from her path, trudging deeper into dense woodland. Her mind screamed to run for the water, but Undyne didn’t listen. She had trained her gills to last longer on the surface, and even though the pain was almost unbearable, her short secret outings to the land were worth the agony.
I’ll have about an hour to look around, she thought. Then I’ll have to go home before my parents get suspicious.
A sharp noise sliced the silence, and a faintly glowing weapon cut through the trees, crashing through the forest, aimed directly at her. Undyne ducked quickly, rolling onto her back and hiding under a nearby bush.
Close one.
She silenced her heavy, rasping pants to a slow, quiet breath, careful not to disturb the sensitive leaves hanging around her still form. Panic tore at her chest, her heart pounding so loudly she was sure her pursuer could hear it from wherever they were. She hoped they wouldn’t find her.
“Who’s there?” A harsh voice sounded from a few feet away from the bush. Undyne heard footsteps pounding against the ground. The sound was like thunder. She tried not to tremble as a metal pair of boots revealed themselves from behind the deep foliage, stamping the earth inches from her sweat-drenched face. “I know I heard something!”
As the Royal Guard inched closer, Undyne instinctively moved away, making the leaves rustle. A long period of silence seemed to stretch on for days before the Guard’s gaze snapped towards the bush. Grass crumpled underneath them as they walked even closer, then stopped to crouch down and examine Undyne’s hiding spot. A white paw lunged into the shelter, grasping at the leaves half an inch from her eyes. She held her breath for what felt like ages until the hand retreated to the open.
“You’re going insane,” a male voice said a few feet away. “There’s nothing there. If there was, it was probably just the wind.”
“I know I saw something. And the air around here reeks of those slimy fish.”
“Maybe someone’s cooking,” the voice responded. “You should know that they don’t leave the water. They wouldn’t be able to breathe. Even they aren’t that stupid.” Rage boiled under her scales at the insult, and she fantasized about punching him in the face.
Very tempting.
She heard a few receding footsteps. She assumed the Royal Guard’s company was walking away. “Are you just going to stand there? Or are you going to help me finish our shift? We’re almost done.”
“Just a minute. Go on without me. I have something to check.”
Undyne imagined the other rolling their eyes. “Whatever. As long as you catch up.” The sound of their feet slowly got quieter until there was silence.
Undyne heard the breathing of the first Guard, coming fast.
They’re irritated, she observed.
“I can sense your presence, fish-face. There’s no point in hiding.” She whispered. “I’m not about to be humiliated by my colleagues again.”
Undyne refused to move, holding her breath longer.
Just go away, she wished. She wanted to scream out her frustration.
“You think you’re clever?” The voice sneered. “You think if you wait there long enough, no one will notice?” Her voice rose. “I’m going to take you to Asgore himself if you don’t shove it, and then he’ll kill you.”
I don’t care, Undyne thought, annoyance itching under her scales.
“He’ll kill your family.”
I doubt it.
“He’ll kill your whole ugly tribe.”
Since when could goats swim?
Silence.
Suddenly, something grabbed Undyne by the neck of her shirt, dragging her out from under the bush, then throwing them onto the ground so forcefully that the breath was knocked out of her for several seconds, her vision blurring and the forest twisting into a labyrinth of confusion and pain.
When Undyne’s disorientation faded, the Royal Guard stood looming over her, wielding a glowing red pitchfork gripped in one fuzzy white paw.
The Guard had menacing scarlet eyes, burning with fierce hatred and exasperation. Her lip curled with disgust, growling, her teeth glinting in the faint light seeping through the canopy. Her pure-white fur bristled with anger, raised and spiked along her neck. Her armor shone with a brilliant silver, with a sleek, liquid substance seared over the top.
“You brat,” She snarled, pointing her weapon down to Undyne’s throat. “I’m going to teach you a lesson that you’ll take with you when you dust away!” She raised her pitchfork, fury blazing in her eyes. Undyne rolled out of the way as the glistening red nightmare sank into the dirt where she had been lying just seconds before. She stood up in a heartbeat, crashing through the forest, running as fast as her sore legs could take her.
The scene was a blur: green and brown melting into a mixed mess, branches slicing through her arms. She tried to remember where the lake had been.
She heard the Royal Guard dashing after her, screaming terrible things that Undyne ignored. Wearing bulky, metal armor would slow down her pursuer.
“Get back here, you BRAT!” She screeched. “I’ll cook you into fish-sticks!”
Another pitchfork sailed through the air over her head, landing with a splash in the distance.
The lake!
The thick layering of trees broke slightly, and Undyne caught a glimpse of the shimmering surface of the lake, flowing gently despite the intense chase happening nearby. Undyne pushed her legs harder, her breath vanished, fear making her faster.
The forest ended abruptly, and Undyne wasted no time before she ran for the safety of the water. But just before she could dive in and escape the Royal Guard on her tail, a sharp pain sliced her cheek. She fell to the ground with a thud, catching herself just before her face collided with a sharp stone along the bank. She shook slightly, then pulled herself up. She brought her hand up to her face, feeling the cut in her scales. It was wet.
Undyne retracted her hand, not wanting to risk a glance at her now blood-soaked fingers. She approached the water, taking a glance behind her to see if she was still being chased. The forest was eerily silent.
Out of nowhere, the world turned red, and pain seared across her back like fire. The ground was spinning, and everything felt so wrong. Then darkness swallowed her. She heard a faint splash before the black void enveloped her, and there was nothing.
*
First, she heard the voices.
“What happened?”
“We aren’t sure, ma’am. The army patrol found her close to the border. Her face and back were damaged, but the head doctor says she’ll recover in a few days, but the scars will last.”
“When can she come home?”
“Ma’am, she’s still resting. Give her some space. We aren’t accepting visitors right now.”
“She’s my daughter, you rock-eater!”
“Ma’am-”
“STOP CALLING ME THAT, OR DO YOU WANT YOUR TAIL RIPPED OFF?”
“Lady, this is serious, you better leave or I’ll have to call in the captain.”
“I don’t think you want to do that.”
“Are you threatening me-”
Undyne’s eyes opened slowly, and she brought herself upright on the hospital bed.
“You’re awake!” Her mother gasped, then rushed to her side, giving her a choking hug. “I was worried about you. What happened?”
“I-I'm fine, Mom. Really.”
“No, you’re not. Why did you cross into their territory? You could have been killed!”
“But I wasn’t,” Undyne retorted.
“That’s a whole week of meal cooking for you! It’s not safe up there. Asgore’s soldiers will stop at nothing to kill us all.”
Undyne hopped out of bed, then winced as pain shot up her back.
“Okay, that’s it! I’ll carry you home if I have to! No more taking risks until you’ve recovered.”
Undyne rolled her eyes as her mother grabbed one arm and dragged her up, guiding her out of the room. They made their way to a bored-looking doctor, who groaned dramatically as they approached.
“So, you’re checking out your daughter…?” They said, looking less than pleased. They paused to write something down, then motioned at the exit with a lazy wave of their hand. “Off you go, then. Stay safe out there.”
As they left the hospital, Undyne pulled her arm out of her mother’s death grip, ignoring the slight jolt of pain as she moved away.
“Dad’s going to kill me.” She mumbled.
“Just because your father’s hard on you doesn’t mean he doesn’t love you.”
Undyne shrugged. “Sure.”
“When he found out you were injured, he was the first to be there to get you to the doctor. He couldn’t stop worrying about you.” She laughed. “Don’t tell him I said that. He might not act like it around you, but he cares a lot.”
I doubt it. She thought.
*
The room fell utterly silent as Undyne’s father entered the house, his face screwed up with an unreadable expression. Undyne instinctively looked away, finding the floor suddenly the most interesting thing she’d seen.
It was quiet like this for several minutes, unsaid tension hanging thick in the air. Undyne felt like she could choke on it.
A rough voice broke the never-ending silence.
“Find anything on your little secret adventures?” Her father’s voice held no ill intent, but his face was dark, and the look he gave Undyne made her want to hide.
When she didn’t respond, he rose upright, his tail thrashing through the water. He approached Undyne with a stiff posture, his eyes gleaming with fury. Her heart pounded as he grabbed her by the neck, lifting her to eye level.
“You idiot!” He growled, smashing her against a nearby boulder with moss coating the edges. His grip was crushing on her throat, and she couldn’t breathe. “You know how dangerous it is up there! And yet you disobeyed my orders and snuck out anyway, and now look at you. You almost died.”
Undyne struggled against his pinning; fear made her want to fight back, but she knew that would only make things worse.
When she thought she couldn’t last another neck-crushing moment, his grip loosened, and Undyne backed away, her heart hammering and her mind on alert, just in case he tried to attack again.
Her mother just looked into the distance, like she hadn’t just seen her husband try to break her neck. Her eyes were clouded, her gaze distant. It was almost like she wasn’t there at all.
Defeated, Undyne left the room without another word.
It didn’t matter what happened.
It would always be the same.
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