#getting down 20 levels with strong enemies and an even tougher boss is so much more thrilling than just skipping everything

[darkdragon768]

Nintendo games have become too easy...

[grailfinders]

Fate and Phantasms #184

Oh shit we’re a day late. Sorry. Now that Summer’s over, Fate and Phantasms is heading out to Shimousa, starting with the Archer of Inferno! You know the deal by this point; true name spoilers and build breakdown below the cut, character sheet over here, but still expect a little bit of spoilage because you can’t spread out a character over 20 levels and not spoil a bit about them.

Next up: I thought the ghost of an occultist driving a car made by a talking lion would be the most convoluted character design for a while. I was wrong.

Tomoe Gozen is a Battle Master Fighter to talk with her fists and throw people around as well as a Hunter Ranger to get her fiery arrows and to specialize in fighting massive crowds.

Race and Background

Tomoe is kind of halfway between an oni and a human, never quite at home in either world. Thankfully that’s exactly what Tieflings are as well, so getting her race is pretty easy. As a Mephistopheles Tiefling she gets +1 Dexterity and +2 Wisdom, Darkvision for night raids, Hellish Resistance to fire damage (it would be awkward if you died to your own inferno), and the Legacy of Cania. This gives you the Mage Hand cantrip immediately, with one casting of Burning Hands and Flame Blade with your Charisma per long rest at third and fifth level respectively.

As the wife of a Lord, you’re the definition of a Noble, giving you proficiency with History and Persuasion. People just like you, y’know?

Ability Scores

Step one; Dexterity. You’re an archer, this shouldn’t come as a surprise that this is pretty high. (I mean I say that, but there’s ton of archers that don’t use bows, so...) Anyways, second is Strength. You throw people around like sacks of potatoes, so you gotta be pretty good at lifting them. Go with Wisdom as your third highest ability. Large scale battles are hectic, you’ve got to have a sharp eye to do your best work in them.  Your Constitution isn’t half bad, oni tend to be able to take a beating. Your Intelligence isn’t that high purely because we need other stuff more, so we’re dumping Charisma. You’re a bit awkward no matter which side of the family you’re talking to.

Class Levels

Ranger 1: Starting off as a ranger gives you plenty of goodies, including plenty of proficiencies, like Strength and Dexterity saves, plus three skills; Insight and Perception to read your enemies and Athletics to make it easier to haul them around. First level rangers also become Deft Explorers, which makes you Canny with athletics. That doubles your proficiency bonus for extra oni strength when you push and pull objects. You can also set a Favored Foe as a bonus action, dealing an extra d4 of damage once per turn after hitting them with an attack. You can do this proficiency times per long rest, and the damage grows as you level up.

Ranger 2: At second level, you gain the Archery fighting style for an extra +2 to your ranged attack rolls. The archer class is really made up of archers, huh? You also learn how to cast Spells using your Wisdom to cast them. Theoretically. You don’t actually have any spells that bother with that. At first level you can use Longstrider to move around the battlefield easier and Absorb Elements to add a little bit of fire to your arrows immediately. That helps less than the other elements since you’re already resistant to fire damage, but we suffer for our art here. Well, you do.

Ranger 3: Making it all the way to third level without burning out grants you entrance to a shiny new conclave, and the Hunter conclave turns you into a Horde Breaker when you take the subclass, specializing you towards dealing with large groups. Once per turn you can make an extra attack, as long as your second target is within 5′ of the first. You also gain Primal Awareness, letting you Speak with Animals. I don’t think anything in canon says you can do this, but your event is one of the only times we hear the servant animals talk, so I’m counting it. You also learn how to cast Zephyr Strike, speeding yourself up and possibly dealing extra damage at the same time. Controlling your spacing is vital when it comes to dealing with tons of enemies.

Ranger 4: Use your first Ability Score Improvement to bump up your Strength for stronger punches. They’ll get even stronger in a second, don’t worry.

Fighter 1: Bounce over to fighter for the Unarmed Fighting fighting style. Now your punches deal 1d6 damage (or 1d8 if you have both free) and you can deal damage to grappled creatures at the start of your turn. You also get a Second Wind, which will heal you as a bonus action.

Ranger 5: We’re done multiclassing for a while, since heading back over to ranger will net you an Extra Attack each action. Now you’ve got two attacks against one target, or three if you can use horde breaker. You also learn second level spells, like Beast Sense and Enhance Ability. I don’t think you’re strong enough yet, so that latter spell will give you advantage on strength checks for the duration. (Or a target creature advantage on any one kind of checks, that’s just the most in-character option.)

Ranger 6: At sixth level Favored Foe grows to a d6, and you also become Roving, which increases your speed and lets you climb and swim without slowing down.

Ranger 7: Seventh level rangers will find it a lot easier to Escape the Horde, forcing disadvantage on all opportunity attacks against you. Right now you’ve still got to keep your distance from your enemies to use your bow and arrow, so this will help. You can also cast Aid to increase your maximum HP along with that of a couple of friends for something that will really excitate your whole lineage.

Fighter 2: Bouncing back to fighter gets you an Action Surge for two actions per turn once per short rest. Now you get up to five attacks in a turn thanks to Horde Breaker and your extra attack.

Fighter 3: If we keep on trucking we’ll hit third level, which is where things get really spicy. As a Battle Master, you get four Combat Superiority d8s per short rest, and you can add one per attack to attack you make, dealing extra damage and adding effects to the blow. Technically. Only one of your maneuvers actually deals with attacks, but that’s Pushing Attack, which will do a lot of work for you. When you hit a creature you deal extra damage, and if they’re smaller than Huge and fail a strength save, they get pushed 15 feet away. Your other maneuvers are Evasive Footwork, adding the d8 to your AC while you move to make fighting you even harder, and Tactical Assessment, adding the die to an Investigation, History, or Insight check. We might not have been able to make you smart, but this should cover whatever tactics you need. You’re also a Student of War, giving you proficiency in any one artisan’s tools. Pick your fave, you’re not exactly Hokusai.

Fighter 4: Our last level in fighter grabs the Crusher feat for +1 Strength and once per turn you can push someone an extra 5 feet as long as they’re large or smaller. Also, critical bludgeoning hits give all attacks against their target advantage until you start your next turn. Now you can fling someone 20′ away, and while that technically doesn’t let you throw them in the air I’d allow it. Honestly, if someone’s moving that far away their feet have got to be leaving the ground at some point.

Ranger 8: Going back to Ranger for good now gets another ASI right away, and Gunner is a weird feat to pick, but hear me out. It’s basically the crossbow expert feat, but it trades that bonus action attack for a +1 to Dexterity, which is way more useful since you don’t use a hand crossbow. You also get proficiency with and can ignore loading on firearms, but most D&D games don’t have those anyway, so it’s fine to be a bit out of character. The real good reason we’re here is to ignore disadvantage on your ranged attacks if people are near you. Archery and brawling don’t normally go together, now they do. You also get Land’s Stride so you can move through difficult terrain easier and have advantage on saves against magical terrain. You leave a lot of corpses around in Shimousa, but this’ll help you keep your footing in that demiplane of skulls you do your boss fight in.

Ranger 9: Ninth level rangers get third level spells, like your Primal Awareness spell Speak with Plants. That might sound totally out of character, but it turns out there’s a legit reason for it: Hey look over there, it’s Flame Arrows! Finally, you can dip 12 arrows into fiery goodness, and each one deals an extra 1d6 fire damage on a hit. You’ve got up to an hour to use all of them, but it also takes concentration so don’t get too attached.

Ranger 10: Tenth level rangers are Tireless, letting you heal yourself with temporary HP as an action Proficiency times per day, and you heal exhaustion on short rests. Some people call that inhuman, I call it efficient. Gilgamesh wishes he had what you do. You can also use Nature’s Veil to turn invisible for a round as a bonus action Proficiency times per long rest. Think of it like a smoke bomb. Or a wildfire bomb. Just set things on fire, hide in the fire, done.

Ranger 11: At eleventh level, hunters can let out a Volley of ranged attacks, letting you attack every creature within a 10′ radius of a point you can see. Technically, this means you can pump out up to 50 attacks per round thanks to Action Surge, assuming a lot of creatures are dumb enough to clump up next to each other. 51, sorry, Horde breaker’s still there. To make getting into position easier you also learn the UA spell Flame Stride, negating opportunity attacks, bumping your speed up by 20 feet, and dealing fire damage to nearby creatures when you run by them. It also explicitly sets items on fire, so now we know how you caused so much damage in Shimousa.

Ranger 12: Use this ASI to round up your Strength and Dexterity for stronger punches, tougher punch saves, better arrows, and a higher AC. A banner level for you.

Ranger 13: Your new fourth level spell from Primal Awareness, Locate Creature is way easier to justify than the last one. You just know where the enemy general is located, even in the thick of battle. We’re basically building a Dynasty Warriors character at this point, aren’t we? You also get Freedom of Movement, just in case you need to speed around the battlefield without setting stuff on fire. I know, it’s boring without the fire. You just have to make due for two more levels.

Ranger 14: Your Favored Foe grows again, and you can Vanish as a bonus action, hiding yourself without any way to track you, bar magic.

Ranger 15: Your final spell of the build will turn you into a mighty inferno that can burn down all of Shimousa! Well, not really, but if you Summon Elemental then Vanish away, it’s almost like you turned into a fire elemental, right? You can also Stand Against the Tide, using your reaction to redirect a missed melee attack at another creature. It’s really hard to hit you when you run away, so I suggest fishing for attacks of opportunity for extra damage.

Ranger 16: Use your final ASI to grab the Tough feat for an extra 40 HP. Onis, man. They’re hard to kill.

Pros:

You specialize in dealing with large groups of enemies, with plenty of ways to move through them and attack over large areas at once.

Working with your bow and fists means you’re never in a bad position in a fight. Hah hah, you ambushed the archer, I guess you’re just getting your skulls bashed in instead.

Your range and speed, combined with your punches’ pushing power, means you are great at choosing your fights. For the most part you can determine where and when you fight an enemy, giving you a pretty solid advantage. As long as your DM doesn’t make all the fights take place in a vacant plain somewhere.

Cons:

Your charisma is pretty dismal, so even if you have a plan in mind good luck getting people to follow it.

You’re also pretty unfocused, and I mean that in every sense of the word. You’d be a lot more consistent with damage if you only focused on punching or arrows, and since you’re specialized for bunches of weak enemies single bosses can be tricky.

Most of your magic damage is Fire, which is easy to resist. If you’re up against a demon or devil, you might just have a bad time.

[theultimateegghead-blog]

Modest Media Game Reviews Sonic Series Extravaganza! Sonic CD

Game – Sonic CD Year of Release - 1993 Developer – Sonic Team Publisher - Sega Rated - Everyone Genre - Platformer Platform – Sega Cd, P.C, Gamecube, Ps2, Ps3, Xbox 360, iOS, Android, Ouya For all sakes and purposes, I am playing the Whitehead remaster on the Ps3.

Sonic CD, a bizarre yet nostalgic title in the sonic franchise. Sonic CD is a spinoff sonic title that was made for the Sega CD expansion, and later PC. This game, unlike other spinoffs, plays very much like a classic sonic game. Sonic runs through various levels, collects rings and defeats bosses. There are a lot of new gimmicks and ideas introduced in this game. Lets take a look and see!

Gameplay – Sonic CD is a side scrolling platformer much like its predecessors and successors. In the main game you play as Sonic. Sonic has access to some of his iconic moves such as the spin dash. His new move includes the super peel out, which is essentially another version of the spin dash but with no defensive qualities. Levels are larger than before, and exploration is more of a factor now. Each level has secrets and various paths, along with 4 different possible layouts depending on the time zone you are in. A large part of this game revolves around time travel, with various sign post being crossed to dictate if you are to go to the past or future. Most levels are linear despite the large layouts, but many stages have gimmicks that can make traversing them tougher than just running to the right. These gimmicks are things like conveyer belts, bouncy floors, speed tubes and so on. Enemies come in various forms like any sonic game, but don’t pose much of a threat. Most bosses are very easy as well. The biggest challenge in this game is the race against Metal Sonic. There are no chaos emeralds and thus no super form. The bonus stage involves getting time stones which can affect the games ending.  These bonus levels are a bit jarring. Sonic needs to run on a semi 3D plane and hit UFO’s out of the sky. The control is weird and judging the distance of jumps is tough. Sonic will not stop moving during these stages either, and touching water will make your timer count down very fast. Even with that gripe being addressed, the gameplay is fun and is worth a try. Score - 18/20

Graphics – Sonic CD was for a long time the most visually vibrant and colorful classic sonic game, only recently losing that honor to Sonic Mania. Every level is blushing with color and character. Palm tree Panic is a lush tropical level, its bad future is a heavily industrialized and polluted version of its old self. Every level has its own character and story of sorts. Sometimes levels can move very fast or be a bit to colorful like wacky workbench. Character designs look great and timeless. The Whitehead port makes it more high definition and makes it look even prettier than ever before. Also, the game begins and ends with an animated sequence made none other than toei animation. Toei is the lead animators of the Dragonball franchise, and we are talking classic 90s DBZ style animation. It looks great. Score - 9/10

Story – The story does play a role in the opening and closing cinematics and plays a mild plot in the game itself, but it’s too small to warrant a score. A small planet has appeared and Robotnik has taken it over. Sonic goes to save the day. Turns out Robotnik has found out how to manipulate time and created a future where he rules unopposed. Series newcomer Amy Rose appears, she approaches Sonic early in his journey. She seems harmless but then suddenly a new villain, Metal Sonic, comes and takes her hostage. The game arrivers on until the end where Sonic must race his metallic doppelganger, free Amy from her captivity and defeat Robotnik at his main base. Like most early sonic games, the plot isn’t the most important factor. Score – N/A

Replay Value – Strong! This game primary item is the time stones. To get the true ending you need all the time stones. The time stones are obtained by entering the bonus stages at the end of the stage if you have enough rings. The other way to get the true ending is to ensure a ‘good’ future in all zones. This means you need to go to the past of each zone to destroy both holograms and machines in order to change the future for the better. Levels are large and can be explored in 4 different times, past, present, good future and bad future. With this in mind, it makes revisiting this short game worth it, as two playthroughs can be very different depending on the paths you take and the time zones you play in. On top of that, in the Whitehead version you can play as Tails after you beat the game and that’s awesome. Unfortunately, if you are playing the ps3 port, you cannot unlock trophies as Tails. Score – 4.5/5

Music – The most controversial thing of this game, besides its spooky hidden message in the sound test, is the soundtrack. This game has two official soundtracks. The America soundtrack and the Japanese/European soundtrack. I am not aware as to why this is the case. Luckily, the version I am playing allows for both OSTs to be used during gameplay. Both soundtracks carry their own atmosphere to the levels. Some good tracks from the American OST include the chilled out Palm Tree Panic theme, the eerie boss music and the theme song “Sonic Boom”. The other ost includes songs such as the techno themed Stardust speedway’s bad future, the catchy yet menacing Metallic Madness present theme and the much funkier boss music. Both soundtracks are good, and I will include one song from each version for you to listen too. Score - 5/5

Overall – This is probably one of the best Sonic games in my opinion. Yes, its gimmicky level design may cause some people to look elsewhere, but technically speaking it is a fun and challenging game. It is rather short and not very expensive.  I would 100% recommend this game. If you are a sonic fan who wants to relive the classics, or someone who has yet to play the original games, make sure to include this title on your list. Final Score – 9.1/10 - Amazing

Have a cute Sonic.

[nsschaintale]

Chain 9: 900 Dunks

Tall pillars connected by chains, stained glass windows with the kingdom's emblem etched in, and a light that was once a pale moon silver, but now a blood moon red. They recognized this place as Tether stood ahead of them, a familiar stance like he was judging them with his right purple eye pulsing in yellow and a purple chain slithering across the same eye on the same side of his skull.

They were back in the Underground in the Judgment Hall.

Tether: Heya, Frisk. You've been AWFULLY busy, huh? Red-dy to be judged?

Frisk just stared.

Tether: Not red-dy, huh? You certainly look the part. You relapsed, kiddo. Couldn't resist the urge to kill? Couldn't resist that voice in ya head? Heh... I really trusted ya, kid. I was really rootin' for ya. (gazes at the windows) But ya had to paint this place red, didn't ya? (glances at Frisk) What do you have to say for yourself? Hm?

Frisk: ….

Tether: Nothing? Surely, you have some explanation. Help me out here. I mean, what point did you have to make by killing? Is this worth it?

Frisk: ….

Tether: ….Okay, let's go a different direction. Why did you kill Torquem? What did she ever do to you?

Frisk (flinches): ….

Tether: What about Kusari and Ketju? They were just going on a date.

Frisk (lowers their head a little): ….

Tether: Chaîne, I never really liked him, but he didn't have to die.

Frisk (lowers head further): …

Tether: Kette, he loved you like his own child! He of all people should have at least been given mercy.

Frisk (trembles a little): …..

Tether: And my bro. Thank the gods I took you away from him before you got to him. All he wanted was to find you. He would charge out into the streets against orders in order to find you and bring you home safe and sound. Why target him? Why try and kill him? Why would want you want to kill us all?!

Frisk (wraps their arms around their stomach, trembling): ….Hn...

Tether: You look a little shaken up there, buddy. That's okay. I was rattled by all-

Frisk: AHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAA!!

Tether (flinches hard, stepping back): What the...?

Frisk (takes a deep breath then exhales; their eyes opened and have a crazed red glow to them): Why why why, that's all you ask. Why ask me?

Tether: Because you're the only one who did all of this!

Frisk: True. But it's your fault for not realizing anything.

Tether (frowns): Realizing what?

Frisk (smirks): Hm. I guess I can indulge you a little. But for a price.

Tether: A price...?

Frisk: Yes. If you beat me, I'll tell you what you want.

Tether: If I lose?

Frisk: Well, I get to go past you and kill your brother.

Tether: Fuck that!

Frisk: Should you be cursing in front of a child?

Tether: I don't think you're even human.

Frisk: And you are?

Tether: I might as well be since you've become such a monster. Oh wait. “Monster” would be an insult to my kind. I'd say you're more of a “demon”.

Frisk: Heh, funny you should say that. (summons their three chained blades) I happen to be the demon who comes when called upon.

Tether: So I wasn't too far off. Well, let's stop chatting.... (watches Frisk bring out their Soul and the whole area turn black and white) ...and start playin' 20 questions.

Frisk: Okay. I'll give the first question you asked an answer for free. About resisting the urge to kill.

Tether: …

Frisk: I didn't resist the urge. I embraced it. Just like the first time I started.

Tether: The first time? What do you-

Frisk (wiggles their index finger, interrupting Tether): Ah ah! I gave you a free one. You'll have to fight me for the rest.

Tether: Grr... Fine. Ain't got much o' a choice, anyway. (listens for the crickets, but none are heard) It would have been a beautiful night outside. Crickets stopped chirping, the sky is red, on nights like this, kids like you... (grabs Frisk's Soul with his magic and slams them down to the ground; lifts them back up then throws them into a wall of bones; snaps his fingers, calling out four Gaster Blasters and gives them the signal to fire, watching them destroy Frisk's Soul; their Soul shatters in an instant) That was too easy.... (feels the rewind feeling happen) That feeling again... (sees Frisk standing ahead of him) You look like you have something in mind?

Frisk: ...Yes. And I'll answer your second question.

Tether: My...second..?

Frisk (points to their head): About the voice in my head. But before I do, why not write everything down in that little notebook of yours?

Tether (shocked): How-

Frisk: All of those previous Resets, I had sometimes caught you spying on me. I hope those notes helped you realize what's going on. (shrugs) If not, then it's too late. Go ahead.

Tether: …... (pulls out a thick purple notebook and a black pen; opens both)

Frisk: So, the voice in my head. What voice? There was never one.

Tether (scratches the page he's writing): BULLSHIT. Someone had to have convinced you!

Frisk: But no one did. Even if there was, you won''t find out.

Tether: And why not?

Frisk: Fight me.

Tether: Hmm.... (sends bones at Frisk as they dodge; conjures a circle of bones as he catches Frisk's Soul and sees the others strike them; encloses the bone circle on Frisk, watching them get impaled and the Soul shatter; gets rewound and takes out his notebook) Now, answer me.

Frisk: About the point I was making with the killings?

Tether: No, about-

Frisk: There was no point. I just did it because I wanted to.

Tether (glares): You can't be serious...

Frisk: I'm as serious as your name is Tether.

Tether: ….. Not the answer I wanted. (conjures an area of bones that shoots up from the ground, stabbing Frisk in the chest and shattering their Soul; gets rewound) I'm not happy about how this is going.

Frisk: Then you won't like how I dealt with Torquem.

Tether: Ah..

Frisk: Oh, I forgot. She would have been “Mother” to me, or perhaps, the “old lady from behind the ruin doors” you made a promise to?

Tether: You-

Frisk: You did do a good job at doing that, but now? What would she think?

Tether: She wouldn't, because you killed her!

Frisk: Right, and do you know what she said? She still calls me her “child”. Sad, isn't it? I even told her “I love you, Mother”, before I cut her Soul out.

Tether: And you just....killed her outright?

Frisk: We struggled for a bit, but I had injured her beforehand, so it was easy to end her- (gets a sharp bone driven through their chest) A bit much..?

Tether: She loved you like her own child. Made me promise to take care and protect any human that fell down here. You're giving me a good reason to not promise anyone anything anymore. (watches them drop to the ground dead and Soul shattered; gets rewound)

Frisk: Ketju and Kusari. They were fun. I did have some trouble with Ketju, but Kusari was so easy. Too bad she took my picture. I should have gotten rid of her phone, but I had to get rid of witnesses.

Tether: Those innocent people...

Frisk: Those weak people. I had to kill enough of them to raise my LOVE, even with monsters. Seven days of killing before taking on you guys.

Tether: Seven...?

Frisk: Heh. (sends their chained blades at Tether) Kill me for the answer!

Tether teleported away to dodge the three blades and reappeared catching Frisk's Soul. He sent the child flying forward as he teleport-hopped with them, stopping them with a spot of spiked bones.

Frisk (spits out blood): Hahaha... (gets a bone through their Soul)

Tether: Why seven days? (gets rewound after seeing the Soul shatter)

Frisk: I needed time to figure out how much EXP I needed from humans and monsters before I can take on you Boss Monsters. But so far, it was easy.

Tether: Easy for you to say. It couldn't have been that way.

Frisk: You're right. Ketju was one of the tougher ones, but in the end, she got dusted, too. I had to bide my time with Chaîne, since he was elsewhere, but he was easy, too, once I knew where to strike him.

Tether: Kaede, too? (dodges a barrage of knife swings and stabs before using a Gaster Blaster on them and blasting them point-blank; gets rewound)

Frisk: Caught her off-guard. Stomped on her friends and family, too.

Tether: Grrr.... And Kette!? (dodges another knife swing while teleporting away from Frisk and wrapping an energy chain around them; watches bones explode from their body and the Soul shattering, get rewound)

Frisk: He was upset about everything. When he saw me, he was happy. By that time, I wasn't strong enough, so I had to kill him in his sleep. After that I needed more humans and monsters to reach the level I'm at. I figured that there was one more person, or monster, I needed.

Tether: ….... (eye sockets widen in horror) ..Catena..

Frisk: Bingo! He's the last one I need!

Tether: Wait, last one? What about me?

Frisk: I guess I can answer this one, since I'm starting to run out of time.

Tether: Wha-

Frisk: Once I kill your brother, you'll be useless EXP. (giggles) No, not even that. You'll be useless, period. Useless as an early-game enemy taken out in one shot.

Tether: …..

Frisk (glances over their shoulder): ….?

Tether (tries to look past Frisk's shoulder): What are they looking at..?

Frisk: Well.... (smirks at Tether) It looks like time's up.

Tether: What? No, I still have questions!

Frisk: Too bad. I got places to be and people to kill!

Tether: Not happenin', kid.

Frisk (readies their chained blades): Move.

Tether (a thin line glows above his shoulders and a purple chain with five bones each appeared): Make me.

Frisk charged at Tether with every intention to kill. Tether dodged their knife swings like before, and caught their Soul with his magic. He slammed them down towards a row of bones, but Frisk managed to avoid them by sticking two of their blades in the ground and holding themselves up. He caught and threw them along the hall towards the entrance near the box and star, seeing them zigzagging their way past the bones before stopping themselves. Frisk found themselves cornered by four Gaster Blasters, and they dodged the blasts as they ran back towards Tether. Before they reach him, Tether had conjured up his bones and threw them at Frisk. Frisk batted the bones away with much accuracy before two struck them. They took a chance at swinging at him, but he sidestepped from the swing path, sending a bone at them in the process, only for it to be sliced in half.

Tether: Almost had you there. No wonder people never use their strongest attack first.

Frisk: Hrr....

Frisk charged at Tether again, swinging their hand knife and trying to stab him with the chained ones. Tether kept deflecting the chained ones with his bones and stepping out of the way of the hand one as Frisk tried to grab him. They were grabbed instead by their Soul and thrown into a pillar, bones stabbing them after and their Soul shattered. The rewind feeling came as Frisk and Tether returned to their spots. Frisk didn't give Tether time to ask any questions as they charged at him head-on. They tried cutting at him again, but they were thrown to the ceiling. Frisk saved themselves again before dodging a Gaster Blaster that tried to bite them and another one that blasted at them. They got grazed by it before they realized part of their arm is missing. They watched the blasters return to Tether's side and chains grew on one of them before he moved his left hand and a wave of bones rushed at them. Frisk jumped over the wave before a pair of indigo blue and normal bones rushed at them. Frisk froze with the blue bones and dodged the normal ones. Five sets passed and they swung at Tether, getting tripped up by a line of chained bones.

Frisk (sees the chained bones snake around Tether in a spiral): Wha..?

Tether: Yeah, I've learned a few tricks. Although, I didn't really 'ave much of a use for 'em before ya started killin' everyone.

Frisk: Grr....

Tether: Look, let's just- (dodges a chained blade) Hey!

Frisk: Just die.

Tether: Not until you finish answering my- (dodges a second stab) Questions, damn it!

Frisk: Then ask me! (jab their hand knife forward)

Tether (sidestepped Frisk and grabbed their Soul): What did you mean by “running out of time”? What will happen?

Frisk: …...Hahahaaaha. The signs were all there, Tether. You just didn't see them. (struggles against Tether's magic)

Tether: What signs?

Frisk: 8.

Tether: Eight? Eight signs?

Frisk: Wouldn't you like to know? (gets blasted back then followed by a Gaster Blaster)

Tether: Eight signs.... Were there something like that? (sees a chain blade aiming for him and leans back to dodge; gets by a few inches and falls backward, teleporting away as Frisk swings the blade)

Tether reappeared behind Frisk before sending more bones into their back and Soul. He watched as the Soul shattered into pieces. He felt the rewind sensation again before the fighters returned to their positions. Tether decided to try and figure out what those eight signs Frisk alluded to were.

Tether: Think back, Tether. If there really were signs, what were they? (slams Frisk into a pillar then slings several bones at them) What was the first sign?

Frisk: Trying to figure it out? Ha! (sends all three chain blades at Tether) It's no use!

Tether (dodges all three; gets a tear in his left sleeve): Crap. (conjures a sea of bones and sends them off at Frisk) First sign.... (hears a phone ringing) Wha-

Frisk: Grrr.... (pulls out a cellphone and answers) What do you want?! I almost got him!

Tether: They have a phone..?? A phone... That phone call from the first.... (dodges a chain blade) That was the start. Hey!

Frisk: What?!

Tether: You remember that phone call you made long ago? I know you do. You told me to “live”. Why?

Frisk: Live? No. But I want you to die! (sends off their blades again)

Tether (gets ready to dodge; feels an odd pulse from nowhere): What was- (dodges all but one; feels the blade graze his arm) Shit! Damn it, forget the signs! I need to concentrate!

Frisk: It's almost time, Tether. You got eight chances, no, seven now. To kill me fully before I kill you.

Tether: That won't be too hard. What are they talking about...?

Frisk: Seven. (charges at Tether)

Tether dodged Frisk's swings as they shouted out curses at each miss. Each time, Tether would hit them with a bone. In the face, in the back, into their Soul. Tether had caught their Soul and slammed them down into a sea of bones before they crawled out and charged at him again. Only to be stabbed by a line of bones and their Soul shattered.

Tether: Are they... (feels the area rewind; sees Frisk alive) Of course not.

Frisk: Six.

Tether sent off a wave of bones toward Frisk while trying to raise more as the child kept weaving between them. Frisk chased Tether around the area as he started to run and leave a trail of bones behind him. Frisk used their blades to cut down the bones before running into four Gaster Blasters. They cut down two, but were blasted away by them, nearly shredded by the chain shrapnel hidden in the blast beams. Tether teleported behind Frisk and was about to strike them, but he felt the odd pulse again. He could have sworn he heard a faint ringing sound.

Tether: What the hell? (sees Frisk turn to him to stab him; jumps back and stabs them with three bones to the chest and the Soul shatters) What was that? (feels like everything is going backwards) ….Frisk...

Frisk: Five.

Frisk sent the blades at Tether again, their knives stabbing the spot Tether was before jumping out of the way. Tether was strangely getting tired from the constant fighting and he began to notice the area getting darker, only for it to get brighter whenever he commanded his Blasters to fire. Tether set up some chain platforms to jump on and send bones and blasters at Frisk, but Frisk took a chance to climb on them and chase Tether. They hadn't counted on giant bones jutting out of the ground and catching them with their chains and several sharp bones stabbing them from behind. As they frantically tried to free themselves, Tether saw the area become a little more darker, like clouds were slowly covering the moon. He also heard that same ringing sound again a little louder.

Tether: And again. What is that? And is it just me or is it getting darker?

Everything Tether made disappeared as he saw Frisk's body drop to the ground from the multiple stabs from his bones. The rewind feeling returned to him after he heard the Soul shattering and he turned to see Frisk say “four”. Again, the area grew darker and he had to start using more of his energy chains as light to keep an eye on Frisk. He had several close calls as a result. He was nearly impaled by all three chain blades, but he managed to escape with a few tears in his clothes. He managed to dodge Frisk's hand knife at the last moment before it got lodged in his skull when they tried to get him from behind, and rewarded them with ten sharp bones in their back. Tether had three chances now, according to Frisk, and the ringing sound along the odd pulse was becoming like a reverberation from a church bell.

Frisk and Tether are the only ones in the Underground.

Tether had to act fast again as the area was getting darker again, but as he tried, he was becoming weary. His right leg got caught on Frisk's chain as he sidestepped them, so he stomped on it, tripping Frisk as he teleported away. He snagged their Soul and slammed them around a few times before slamming them into a pillar. Tether made energy chains wrap around the child in order to keep them tied to the pillar.

Tether: You have any idea why the area is getting dark, kid?

Frisk: Two chances left, Tether.

Tether: That doesn't answer my question. Why am I also hearing a bell? Can you hear it?

Frisk: A bell? I don't hear- (grins) Oooooh.

Tether: What?

Frisk: Kill me for the answer first.

Tether: …. (sighs) No, you know what? I'm getting tired of fighting you. I know I can't beat you. You'll just keep restarting the fight. I'm getting sick of it. None of my attacks will stick because you'll undo everything, so no. I will NOT kill you for the answer. (sits down) I'm going to sit here until you give me the answer.

Frisk: Then I hope your brother likes knives, because I'll be stuffing him full of- (gets a giant sharp bone driven through their body)

Tether (realizes what he did; facepalms): Son of a- (flinches at the sound of Frisk's Soul shattering) That was a stupid move. (feels the rewind and hears the bell sound louder) Hey... It's getting really dark here.

Frisk: Last chance. After this, it will be the end.

Tether: The end? Of what?

Frisk: You'll see.

Tether conjured more energy chains to give more light around him since it became darker again. Using his eye and his Chain Arts were taking their toll on him and he's not liking it. He had to dodge more times than he had attacked, and if he had decided to attack, he would try to find the red of Frisk's eyes. Which was difficult since he realized that they had closed their eyes as they tried to get close to him. It was getting bad and Tether knew that there's no point in trying to kill Frisk on top of getting exhausted. He only had to last long enough this time until he's able to hold his turn, and prevent Frisk from escaping past him. He managed to fend off the child's attacks while avoiding trying to hit them, concentrating on dodges the entire fight until Frisk became angry.

Frisk: WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?

Tether: What does it look like? It's pretty dark in here.

Frisk: WHY ARE YOU NOT ATTACKING ME?!

Tether: Because I know it won't matter if I kill you or not! As I said before, you'll just keep restarting from the beginning of our fight until you kill me. So what's the point? It's not like I'm letting you go.

Frisk: ….. (eyes shift left then back at Tether) You're right. There is no point in you killing me. (a glowing red heart floats around) Not like this is mine anyway!

Tether: What- (sees the heart get pierced by something pointy) Frisk, what are you doing!?

Frisk: You lost your chance to kill me. So, I'm...doing it myself. (drops to the ground and the Soul shatters)

Tether: Did they just... (feels the rewind and hears the bell ring loudly; only sees the glow of Frisk's eyes) Did you...kill yourself...?

Frisk: Someone had to do it. And that someone was me. You had your chance to completely beat me, yet you started to avoid it. So now, it's my turn to kill you.

Tether: How are you going to do that? (conjures his energy chains and white bones) You can't touch- (feels something sharp pierce through his chest) – meeh...

Frisk: I just did. (lifts Tether with their chain blade in his chest) Like I said, it's my turn to kill you. And I won't miss my chances.

Tether felt himself getting flung around before he was thrown at a pillar. He felt his Life Chain breaking as another blade hit the same spot before he teleported from the path of the third blade. Tether summoned several Blasters to shoot Frisk away, but they dodged each blast, drawing closer to Tether as he struggled to move away. When he did, he was struck again and his Soul was hit dead-on.

Tether: N-No... I can't... I can't die here!! (feels his body break apart; sees Frisk move towards the exit then stops to look back at him) Don't you dare go after my brother... (collapses) Don't.... (eyes dim out then closes his eyes)

Tether's body crumbled into dust as he cursed and pleaded in his dissolving mind at Frisk to not go after Catena. What should have been the end of him, became torment for him. Every time Frisk restarted their battle, they always caught him off guard. Whether they stabbed early in the fight or he becomes too exhausted to watch them, it always ends in his death. Frisk's favorite place to slice Tether at is where his Life Chain is; across his chest over his Soul. The fifth time they fought, Frisk took their time with him. Cutting into his Life Chain then his sternum as they pinned him down through the wrist and ankle bones with their chained blades. That was their favorite killing that they did this round. Too bad they had to restart. What was worse was that Tether felt like the wounds weren't healing properly, even when they started over clean.

Tether (kneeling down, bleeding a little): Hey.....stop this....please.... Haven't you...done this already...?

Frisk: Yes, but it's so much fun killing you in so many ways! But you're right. (walks up to Tether with a skip in their movement) It is time to stop. Time to move on from this world to the next.

Tether: Wait. The next world....? What's that supposed to mean?

Frisk: Exactly what it means. You stopped me from destroying this world once by dragging me down here. But now, you're too weak to do anything. (taps the tip of their hand knife on top of Tether's skull)

Tether: Damn you..(gets bypassed; grabs Frisk's pant leg)...Frisk....stop...

Frisk (turns, kicks Tether's hand off and stomps on it): No.

Tether: AAAAAAAGH! (tries to pull his hand away)

Frisk: Pathetic. You considered yourself powerful enough to persevere, but that's nothing... (glows red) ...to DETERMINATION. I guess I can go for a little EXP. (raises all three chain blades and their hand knife) At least before I kill that stupid brother of yours.

Tether: No... (raises his free hand to conjure a bone, but it get impaled to the ground) Aaagh!!

Frisk (smiles): Goodbye, Tether. I'll tell Catena you said bye.

Tether: No!

Tether waited for the blades to end him and turn him into dust for the last time.

But nothing happened.

Tether: Nothing...? (sees Frisk shaking hard) ….Frisk...?

Frisk: …....(struggles to speak)......T...Te......Teth.....

Tether: Huh..?

Frisk: Teth....Te....Teth...er....

Tether: ...Frisk..?

Frisk (Soul pulses a brighter red than the dull red he had noticed before; a higher pitched voice comes through): Tether.....please....

Tether: That voice...Fri-

Frisk: You! (grabs their head) Stop! Nnh..Tether, please! Nngh...how are you- I have your Soul! Tether!

Tether (crawls back after his hands are free): What the hell is going on?

Frisk (struggles to keep standing as the knives stab the ground; their body glows brighter): Stop! We are going to...destroy... Nnnagh! Tether...ru...Shut up! This world is....going... Tether... Te-Tether...Univer...

Tether: Frisk..?

Frisk (glows brighter while their Soul is surrounded by red chains and pulsing furiously): Tether...LIVE!!!

The whole hall exploded with red light as red chains shot out from Frisk's body. Tether had to dodge the chains as best he could before he realized there was a giant hole in the floor and a whole section of the hall falling into what looks like a tear in space leading into a black abyss. He then realized he was on that falling part of the floor.

Tether: Shit. (teleports and lands on the edge; gets nearly struck by a chain) Frisk!

Before Tether could get close to Frisk, the red chains reentered their body then exploded out again. The shock wave from the blast launched him from the crumbling hall as the light nearly engulfed everything. He couldn't tell as much, but it looked like everything from the hall to the ground to the world itself was being ripped asunder by slithering red chains. He started to lose all of his senses as he started to slow down in this black abyss.

This void.

He couldn't see the world being split apart as his vision of Catena split apart at his neck.

He couldn't taste Catena's near-edible pasta he had eaten before.

He couldn't smell Catena's god-awful combination of CîH-brand colognes he tried to wear for his date.

He couldn't feel Catena's forehead when he finishes reading his bedtime story and patted it before going to bed.

The last thing he heard before he drifted here was the thunderous echoing of an earthquake, a shrill ear-piercing scream, and what sounded like the voice of his brother.

All that was left was his and Catena's laughter.

Then he couldn't hear it anymore.

There is only silence now.  

CONTINUE?