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Dusk was spending her day drawing when suddenly she got sucked into her computer with a scream. She woke up.. in a bed that was not her own, wearing a green and yellow striped jumper that was familiar to her. “Ugh.. what..” She said, trying to get her bearings together “Ok.. With this outfit I’m most likely in Deltarune.. but how?” Dusk mumbled as she got out of bed “Dusk!! Oh, you’re already up.. My child, please go down to the car, I will wait for you there but we need to hurry, alright?” Toriel said gently to her, Dusk immediately ran out the door and straight into the car. “Still though… how did I get here?” Dusk idly asked as Toriel drove the car to the school.

---

A girl was fast asleep in her bed, the soft sheets cocooned around her small frame. She was breathing deeply, short little wheezes pushing past her throat. She had a phone with an ocean-themed case clutched in her hand.

The girl's face was calm, peaceful, her small brown face smoothed over, the shadows under her eyes hidden in the night. Her hair was splayed upon the pillow, glowing under the light of the moonlight which poured in from the window. The curtains billowed, flickering their shadows across the wooden floor.

Beside her, on her nighttable, her alarm clock glowed with an iridescent blue. 2:30am, it read in heightened letters.

Outside, yellow eyes glowed...

And Priya's phone suddenly lit up.

The girl shifted uneasily in her sleep, perhaps dreaming about her latest visual novel. Perhaps the latest horror game that she had installed on her phone. Or perhaps, the threads of the future truly do intertwine with our non-waking hours and she saw what was to come.

The yellow eyes vanished.

And Priya jolted up with a yelp. Her eyes darted wildly across her room and then... landed on her alarm clock. 2:32am, it read.

She exhaled. Just a dream.

Her shaking hands reached up to her head and smoothed down her hair. "It's okay." Her voice cracked with fatigue. "It's okay. Just... a nightmare." She exhaled... And then glanced down at her phone.

It was on and the 7 Days app was open.

She was instantly on alert. Sure, it was possible that in her sleep she had hit the power button. But she certainly hadn't been able to type in the passcode, much less switch to an app that hid in the depths of her folders.

Slowly, tremblingly, she reached down to it.

The screen was glowing now, the screen only a blank white. She pressed the power button.

Nothing happened.

She blinked. What? Was it just her, or was the screen growing larger? Was the white taking over her vision? Her eyes widened.

Crap.

Before she even had a chance to scream, she blacked out.

And from that, hell started.

---

It was a normal day for this boy...man...something like that...in a sleepy town tucked away in the hill, another day surfing the internet, and another day trying to pen a world to life. But...
He was currently just thinking about various things. He had been writing earlier but, he had ran out of things to write...and motivation.
Suddenly his laptop's screen flashed a little, which got his attention, which then flashed brighter...before he could say anything, he was pulled in, before losing consciousness

---

Everything hurt.

Everything was blurry. Everything was black.

Priya couldn't distinguish between the two.

"Uh, hello? Girl, you alive?" Something prodded her shoulder, like a pole. With a frown, she shifted deeper into unconsciousness... But for some reason, she forced her eyes open.

And she was met with a face only too familiar. Her eyes went wide with horror. She knew this boy. She knew the boy with the shaggy dark brown hair, the even darker brown eyes, the ashen skin that was sunk beneath layers of grime and blood.

"B-Balaam?"

Instantly, the boy who was kneeling over her was on guard. "How do you know my name?" he demanded. His brown eyes glittered. "Do I... know you, by any chance?"

"No! No!" Flashbacks stormed through Priya's head. Her only comfort was... He can't kill me... so long as I don't... Crap! She didn't remember!

He jabbed his gun into her throat. "Speak up, girl, or I shoot."

He's bluffing. He has to be bluffing. She prayed. "I-I'm Priya Knight."

He shifted a bit. That wasn't the information he wanted.

"I... don't know you. But... I've heard about you."

"Who?" He dug the gun deeper into her throat and suddenly, she couldn't breathe.

The only thought that came to mind- the only character- "H-Hilde."

He relaxed. The force lightened.

She tensed. This was her chance. She could escape... or she could steal his gun and-

A warning went through her head. That... was a mistake. She couldn't. Just. Answer. His. Questions.

"So, Priya. I suppose you're not who I think you are."

"No," she whispered. "I'm... not. I know I'm not."

He grinned, suddenly. "So, what do you say, we team up?"

She froze. Balaam? Team up with him? A thousand thoughts ran through her head, each of them warnings.

"Don't suppose I have a choice," she muttered.

"Great!" He hopped backwards, tipping his gun back over his shoulder. "You know, I knew you'd say yes."

"Because you have a gun?" she mumbled, sitting up. She attempted to fix her hair, which was splayed everywhere and now splattered with the mud that'd laid on the ground. How would she fix this? Or even explain it, once the dream ended-

Oh. She nearly exhaled a sigh of relief. Just a dream. She didn't need to be afraid. Or even worry about her hair. She couldn't die in a dream.

So why not enjoy it?

Priya tossed her hair back and stood up. "So, hey, buddy, where we going?" she asked as cockily as she could. "We going to tote more guns at innocent people and shoot them in the hopes that they're a certain someone we're looking for?"

He glared at her and put another hand on his gun.

She rolled her eyes and glared back. Oh, try it bud. I'll make the dream explode your stupid Hilde-Murderous face off.

---

The shadow seizes the current as its legs hopping through fragile sand incoordination, and its red shawl cuts through the thin air. The shadow was born without a name or shared memory of its birth, so it called itself Stranger, appropriate for a wandering traveler without an identity. Stranger continues to follow its heart through the harsh dry environment when an unexpected force push Stranger to changed its destiny; a dark vortex? The vortex engulfed Stranger before it had the time to react. It squeaked tiny gurgling noise in surprise before the vortex enclosed around Stranger.

Stranger woke up with both feelings of body teared up and numbness from that uncomfortable 'experience'. A cold touch pressed against its body, all of its senses are now conflicted by the new environment. It struggles around until it successfully lands on both feet.

Stranger heard voices in the background then, a "clack" sound, but their languages sounded nonsensical to Stranger. Stranger turned around to find different mortals in this building. It looks around -clearly there is a look of astonishment on Stranger's face- then shivers from the sudden drop of temperature. Everything from the interior design of the room to objects in the room almost felt like an illusion. Stranger tries to hide from these mortals' sight and walks around to explore this new place.

Toriel began the whole spiel of Asriel coming home from college but Dusk’s mind was too focused on other things. “We’re here!” The white goat monster said, snapping the teenager out of her trancelike state “Ah, alright, thanks Toriel!” Dusk said as the goat monster smiled at her, she hopped out of the school and mentally prepared herself for what’s to come as she entered the school. Dusk walked to the classroom, taking in all the sights. She honestly couldn’t believe she was here, it felt like a dream to her.. “Am I going to be stuck here forever? What about the food situation?” Dusk accidentally mumbled her thoughts out loud like she did on occasion and made her way over to Kris’s desk, ignoring Berdly’s pleas to be quiet, she kept mumbling until Susie came in. ‘Oh shoot, have I been numbing to myself for that long?’ Dusk thought

---

*Achlys, isolating herself from the rest of society, as she tended to do, played on her Switch, after a while, she just…blacked out, soon waking up to someone standing over her, she recognized the villager* k…Kyle? *she murmured, standing* what in the hell…? *she murmured, looking around*

---

Apollyon woke up in a sort of..hotel? Odd..wasn't he just studying over a script? He stood, looking around. This was..all too familiar for him. He looked around, freezing as he saw a little girl, holding a stuffed animal that was on fire, yelling the name 'Jimmy'. He cursed under his breath, seeing a spirit box on his bed. He couldn't be in this game, could he? He left the room, looking around, hearing a man calling his name. Seeing the shadow of someone around the corner holding a bat, he broke into a run in the opposite direction. "You can't hide forever, Apollyon~!" The mans sing-song voice echoed through the seemingly maze of halls.

Balaam cocked his gun. Ever so casually, he said, "Hey now... could I ask you something?"

"Sure, I guess." I was growing ever aware of the growing cold around us. Dreams aren't supposed to be cold...

"What's your quest? We've all been assigned different ones, right?" Balaam tilted his head to the side that would've been cute if he wasn't a murderer toting a gun. "Unless he lied to us, of course..."

My head was whirling.

"A-Actually, I don't have a quest."

I cursed myself. Intelligent, much?

"No quest," he echoed dryly. "Did Hilde buy that one too? Or Kirell?"

Kirell? Promptly my brain stopped working. So wait, the main protagonist... was here? And she was with Hilde?

My confusion must've shown on my face because he laughed. "What? Cat got your tongue?"

"You met them too?"

"No point deflecting, my dear. You might as well tell me. If you do, I'll share mine. Do we have a deal?"

Everything in my head was screaming No. I didn't have a task but- wait! this was a dream, right? So... I could just make one up? Or... not answer, but-

"I have to help someone with their task-" I blurted and promptly regretted it.

His eyebrows raised. "Someone?"

"Someone who I was friends with when I was alive. Someone... close to me." I just kept blurting these things out. I snapped my mouth shut and watched him closely.

Balaam seemed to relax a bit, but his eyes were still narrowed suspiciously. "And that's it? Helping people? That's awfully strange, for someone so cocky."

"It'll be... tough to do."

"But it rings true, with the way it matches with mine." Balaam sighed and stood up. "Let's get going."

"Aren't you going to share yours-?" I hesitated. Was that smart...? He clearly wasn't very mentally stable. And he didn't seem to like stupid questions much... if he'd just been playing me this whole time, this wouldn't be a very welcome question...

But to my relief, he just laughed. "You gotta learn something, Priya Knight. I'm not your friend. No one here is. We're all links in one big messed up story. I don't know how someone like you got linked into it, but there is a reason. And until I figure that one out, you're still my enemy."

My shoulders relaxed. But I was only more confused now. Oh, why had I chosen to play that dating simulator instead? Why couldn't I have stuck with 7 Days, so I'd actually know what was going on?

"So, you coming?"

"Yeah..." I murmured. "Yeah, I'm coming." I followed after him and cast an anxious glance behind me. The spot I had lay... the leaves were still imprinted. Like someone had fallen.

And with that one detail... something seemed to come to light. One fact seemed to luminate beneath the layers of dust and caked mud.

This was not a dream.

---

Apollyon quickly unlocked a door, running in and slamming it shut, locking it. He leaned back against the door, swallowing as much air into his lungs as he could. How was this happening? Why was this happening? He thought it may be a dream, but the fear he felt was 100% real. "Come on, Apollyon, think damnit!" He held his head. The phones were probably cut --if this was anything like the actual game-- and Jimmy could be anywhere, waiting for him to step out of the room.

The first thing Sol saw when he woke up was well…nothing. It felt like he was floating in some kind of void…but… he could see four tiny white dots around him. He tried moving towards one of them, and ended up flailing around on the spot. But, he eventually started moving of sorts by attempting to swim through the void.

He reached the first white dot, and reached out to it with his fingertips, and a burst of colour shot of in orbs around him. Shocked, and recoiling slightly from the effect…he briefly stayed still. But he figured he must do the same to the other three dots. The orbs accumlated spinning around in hues of blue, reds, oranges and yellows… his fingertips touched the white dots, and more orbs sprung out. Eventually, all that was around him was just colour, just spinning around forming…something.
And that was when he suddenly stopped floating and fell.

---

“H.. Hi Susie..” Alphys cowardly said to the purple monster, Dusk looked up. ‘Argh right! I was supposed to ask for a partner although… The game appears to be continuing on as if I asked Noelle to be partners.. I guess it was just a matter of time?’ She thought “... am I late?” Susie asked Alphys menacingly. “Ohh n-no ! You're fine ! W-we were just uh... Ch-choosing partners for the next group project and... Ummm Susie you're with Dusk!” Alphys replied, frightened at Susie’s glare. “...great..” Susie replied sarcastically to her teacher. “N-now that everyone's here I'll write the assignment!” The small dinosaur monster squeaked. “Uh.. . H-has anyone seen the chalk? This is the third time it's gone missing and... Y-you all know I can't start class without some! H-how about this ? If no one speaks up... E-everyone gets in trouble! A.. . Anyone ? P.. . please?” Alphys said to the class, shaking. “Hey there might be a box in the supply closet... Miss Alphys why don't Susie and I..” Noelle suggested but trailed off, blushing. “G-good idea Noelle! Susie s-since you came in last... Why don't you go get it for me...?” Alphys asked afraidly to her. “...whatever.” Susie said with a shrug, leaving the classroom and closing the door with a slam. “And D... Dusk.. Can you go with her and make sure she... Um actually gets it? And um stays out of trouble...? “Thanks Dusk! See you later!” Alphys stammered to her. “Oh, alright sure” Dusk had a small smile on her face, knowing what was about to unfold

---

He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard the doorknob being pulled and twisted. He dived into the bathroom, leaving it cracked so he could watch what was going on. Jimmy walked into the room, past the bathroom, and into the main room. This was Apollyon's chance. He bolted out the door, locking the room, before running, right for the elevator. The basement would be safe, Jimmy doesn't go down there!

*Achlys recognized the island that she stood on* I’m…Im in…the game? *she murmured, Kyle tilted his head* what are you talking about, Achlys? *he asked, the question mark appearing above his head, Achlys shook her head, walking back to her small cottage at the top of a cliff* don’t worry about it, Kyle, has nothing to do with you *she murmured, walking inside*

---

He made his way to the elevator, hearing the door he'd trapped Jimmy in fly open as the elevator door shut. When they opened again, he was in the basement. He sat down against a boiler, breathing heavily. A little girl, the same one from before, was standing in the doorway, looking down at him. "Did he get you?" She asked worriedly. He voice was..distant, echoed. Apollyon shook his head. "Don't worry Amy, I won't let him hurt anyone else." He said with a small smile, looking up at her. She sat down in front of him, hold a somewhat burnt stuffed animal bear.

He fell onto some soft ground...and bounced straight back up again. He was very surprised as he was flung back up in the air somewhat. He looked at the ground...it looked normal enough, there was no indication as to what bounced him back up. And he shouldn't bounce up from the ground as though he was a rubber ball...

He braced for impact...and was bounced up again. Not as high this time. But he witnessed the ground cave around him with a soft and squishy feeling. He looked slightly perturbed... as he let himself bounce until he stopped bouncing altogether.

It looked like a pleasant morning in this world... the sky had pleasant hues of yellow and white.

---

Dusk exited the classroom, bracing herself whilst Susie chomped on a piece of white chalk. “Dusk.. ...Didn't see you there.” Susie glared at Dusk, making her petrified. ‘M-maybe I wasn’t as brave as I thought I was, it’s really scary seeing her up close like this!’ She panicked. “...hey.. You didn't see anything just now did you?” Susie paused but Dusk was too scared to say anything to the big, purple monster towering over her. “Hmmm.. ...you can't even say? Dusk... Hey. Let me tell you a secret.” Susie said as she grabbed Dusk by the shirt with a tight grip, banging her afraid body against the soft green lockers. “Quiet people piss me off. You think just 'cause you don't say anything... I can't tell EXACTLY what you're thinking?” Susie replied. “It's OVER! I caught Susie eating ALL the chalk! This was her LAST chance ! Now she'll FINALLY be expelled!” She mimicked in a high pitched voice. “Haha.. . Come on Dusk. Don't act shocked. You know it's true. Everyone's waiting for it. Everyone wants it. So congrats Dusk. You got me. I'm done for.” Susie said with a tinge of sadness in her voice. “Just, lemme say one little thing. Seems like a waste to get expelled just for having a snack. So Dusk if I KNOW you're gonna pull the trigger... Heh heh heh...” Susie opened her mouth, revealing her large, yellow fangs.

“Why don't I just get expelled for some REAL carnage? Dusk... How do you feel...” She paused, bringing Dusk closer to her mouth, the poor teenager was shaking. “...about losing your face?” Susie paused and thought about something. “Nah.” Susie quickly said as she put Dusk down slowly. “Dusk. You've got a good mother... It'd be a shame to make her bury her child.” Dusk was trembling on the spot but was slowly recovering from the shock. “Alright. Let's get this over with. We'll get more chalk. Mosey back to class. And then Dusk... YOU'LL do our project. How's that sound?” Susie walked to the end of the small corridor, not waiting for the teen’s reply. “Don't bother answering. If you haven't gotten it by now...Your choices don't matter. Let's go, freak.” Susie scoffed as Dusk meekly followed behind her.

---

Priya hugged her backpack close to herself, watching Balaam carefully. He had shot a contestant- one she hadn't recognized. And now he was pilfering their pockets. At last, he gave a snort and kicked the corpse. "Useless. Nothing."

She shivered and hoped he didn't see it. How could she have gotten herself in league with this... monster? This was a mistake- this was a horrible mistake-

"Kirill!" Suddenly, a girl darted into sight. Priya exhaled sharply.

It didn't look like Kirill- the face was demented, covered in black and red and blue. The creature turned to stare at her and screeched-

Priya cringed back.

Balaam grinned.

Suddenly, Kirill stood in front of her. "Balaam!" She snarled. Her brown eyes glowed with fury. "And-" Her eyes landed on Priya and went wide with surprise. "Who's this?"

Kirill was the same now. Light brown hair in a mess everywhere. Brown eyes. Pale, ashen skin. The same strange outfit... And her face. Was too human.

She was shaking.

"H-Hilde-?"

Priya froze. Hilde?

"How are you-? I mean I saw-"

Balaam suddenly seized Priya by the back of her shirt and hauled her up. There was a click and suddenly, Priya felt something jab into her skull. "Get back. Or I shoot."

Numbness.

Terror.

Oh god! Oh my god. What was happening? Was Balaam- but she hadn't- but he hadn't-

She couldn't think. She could only stare at Kirill pleadingly.

Kirill took a step back, raising her hands in the air in surrender. Her eyes darted to Priya and quickly back to Balaam. She visibly swallowed. "H-How? I thought... She should've been resurrected."

"Guess she didn't complete her task. Like you won't. Your life for hers. We got a deal?"

Kirill's shoulders were shaking. "Oh my god... Oh god... what- but-"

"I'm-" Priya tried to say, but Balaam jabbed the gun further into her skull and she fell silent. So it came down to this? Her life or Kirill's?

Kirill gave her one last glance-

Then tore off.

Balaam cursed and ripped his gun away from Priya's skull, shooting after the girl.

But Kirill had vanished.

"Dammit!" he swore. He kicked at the ground. "God- dam-"

"You were going to shoot me." Priya's voice was disbelieving. He glanced at her. Her face was streaked with tears and scrunched up in rage. "You- you were-"

"Look 'Hilde'" He used air quotes. "It was just so I could get her. It was nothing personal. I wouldn't have really-"

"Just- shut up- shut up!" She slumped to the ground and clutched her head. "Oh my god... you wanted to- you would've..."

"Calm down!" he yelled.

Tears were flooding to Priya's eyes. She couldn't think. She wouldn't think-

---

Apollyon looked towards a door--it was the door that opened towards the end of the game, he knew that much-- but it was..different. It was grey, with an..odd symbol. He stood, going to open the door. It...didn't seem anything like a stage from the game. Maybe this was the way out? He felt a small bead of hope, holding onto Amy's free hand. "We're gonna get out of here" He told her, and she looked up at him with a smile. "Really?" He nodded, leading her through the room.

Sol attempted to stand up, only to fall flat on his butt and bounce. He saw this little door up on top of a cliff nearby...everything looked pretty. The bushes, the trees, the nature sounds...the rising...though it can't be seen...sun. He tripped his way over to the cliff and started to bounce up it. The bounces were extremely messy, nothing like the characters he wrote, he were experts at this... 10 minutes of face-planting, tripping over and crashing into the cliff, and falling backwards, he somehow made his way up the cliff... now that he looked at it...there was something different about this door...it didn't look like the doors that normally allowed him to progress...at least...it was grey and had some kind of sigil on it...he peered at it a little closer, doing his best to keep balance...while being amused that all of the bushes and trees caved in towards his movements.

---