She's More Than Determination

They are back. My team! I can have my life back again. I could get my freedom. My previous ship will never get their hands on Frisk and . . . and . . . 

"Here you go." Farrisk handed her his MP after helping to get the ball and chain off her feet. "The new teleporting location is ready. It was made during the whole catastrophe, and it's the only way out. " He smiled. "You know us FRISK's, we always find a way to win." 

No one is going to come to help you, he said. He told everyone. He took every measurement he could so that I couldn't leave. So that I couldn't win. Chance moaned in her arms. "Uh, Sans wasn't marrying me," Frisky informed them all. "He was committing to me. Him and Papyrus. There's a big difference, you know." 

"Uh?" Farrisk blinked. "You mean he was going to take you as a sister and Chance as his son? How would that have worked?" 

"He was going to go as Uncle," Frisky said, looking down at Chance. There are literally hundreds of thousands of monster skeletons outside Underground. I could get him the help he would need when he was ready for it. Why didn't that make her feel better? 

"You see?" Friskarino stared down Friskay and Farrisk. "You see, I told you that we should have just let it work itself out!" 

"There's no way Frisky would want to stay in the Underground," Friskay said in their defense. "And if it was just a simple committing, then why so hush-hush? They could have boldly told her without telling her about Frisk." 

"No." Frisky patted Frisk on his back tenderly. "They were so afraid I would leave. As FRISK, I didn't exactly stay in one place for very long. Or always listen too well." 

"Heck no, there is so much out there to the world, you can't help but explore," Farrisk smiled. "Being a soldier is the greatest thing. You never know what you're going to see next. Who you'll battle. What you'll be doing in the next five minutes." 

"Yeah." Frisky lifted her eyes toward Farrisk. "They were . . . they were expecting your actions from me. Your quick-wit ideas and active strategies." 

"Alright, so?" Friskay patted her on the back. "Look, the whole ordeal is done. We have a treaty in place for Frisk and everything. He is super dangerous now, so he'll have to live in a zone they control with 24 hour guard on him. But, they don't want him hurt either because he's still Classic Monster." 

"Yeah, they are kind of happy about him," Farrisk added as he gestured to the little guy. "He is going to be just fine. You and him." He grinned. "As for the rest of us, we'll head out of the Underground for new places and adventures." 

Farrisk. They were expecting Farrisk because I refused to meet Sans outside of Judgment Hall. He never got to know me as FRISK. What I'd do . . . It couldn't matter whether Sans really understood her or not. They would all come. They would all find their way around the barrier, and they would come for Frisk. They would come for her. There was never an escape. 

"I think we should get going. We have a limited time back down here, the Balancers were getting iffy on us earlier," Friskay reminded Farrisk and Friskarino. "They aren't going to assist us with protection much longer. Let's get out." 

"No, not yet," Friskarino insisted. "Come on, you guys. This isn't right." 

"Not this again, Friskarino!" Friskay complained. "Stop saying no." 

"I can't help it," he smiled, "it's-" 

"in my name," everyone said at the same time. 

Friskarino clicked his tongue and winked at them all. "You get the gist." 

The friendly buddy. Chum. Pal. The good moments when he wasn't being ignored so much for the name of GENOCIDE, for continuing the adventure, or because Friskay couldn't stand him. That was Friskarino. He was sensing Friskarino. Once again, not her. That wasn't her either. 

Sans expected the playfulness of Frisk, the audacity of Friskay, the 'I-can't-stop-for-anything' Farrisk, and the laid back kindred charm of Friskarino. But, none of those were her. Why was that hurting her so much? Especially when she'd probably . . . never . . . well, when she . . . 

"Look, I'm transporting first to get this party started," Friskay said as she gestured to Frisky's MP. "This is far from what your used to, so don't clown around. It took forever for Friskarino to figure it out. This thing is one of the latest. It's an MP20." 

MP 20? "How is that possible?" 

"We've been on this roundabout mission for a lot longer than a year. Try ten." Friskay looked over at the guys. "Never aging in FRISK and constant mindwipes. I am petitioning to never be a part of a conduit again." 

"Aw, calm down," Farrisk said gently shouldering her. "We've got Frisk safe and sound for the Balancers. Then we can head out for our next new mission. Friskarino should have the details for it." 

"Yep. We'll be STEVE. So, Stevy, Stevay, Stevisk,and Stevarino. At least, that's what I told Friskay." Friskarino winked back over at Farrisk. "Oh, she was so downright pissed with that name it was dribbling down her leg." 

"Don't even kid. Seriously, it better not be Steve again. I hated that name. I hope it's something like Mike 'cause Mikay isn't too bad." Friskay looked back toward them. "Well, I'll see you up there in a few moments." 

Farrisk nodded, following her up himself. 

Friskarino relaxed on the ground with Frisky still standing in the snow with Frisk. "It's Chara. The barrier is powered by Chara's DETERMINATION." 

"Huh?" Frisky came closer to him. "What do you mean?" 

"Chara and Asriel. When they died, their souls were a Monster and human together. The program wasn't ready for that. They didn't reset inside a re-reset because of that. The barrier however entraps souls to make sure they don't escape. Death of a Monster can't happen, remember? So, they've been stuck. It's not essence. It's not just a lot of DETERMINATION. They physically were the souls, but the barrier changed their way of thinking. Look." Friskarino gave him his MP. "Check out the actual facts. For thousands of years, they've been stuck down here." 

Frisky looked at the data. "If they couldn't be saved in a re-reset, why wouldn't they let them out?" 

"Risk bringing the barrier down for just two mixed-up souls? The Monsters would be free and see everything. Not worth it, to them. Not for two souls. Tragic." Friskarino moved away from that page. "You're like a sister, Frisky, and I know you pretty well. So what are you doing here?" 

"I got kidnapped," Frisky tried to joke. "I'm . . ." 

"Look, you gotta make your own decision on this one, but I'm with ya no matter what you decide," Friskarino smiled. "I know what scares you, Frisky. You're scared that barrier is going to come down. I'll tell you something, and I'll be real with you. We only got this teleporting way out because we were doing it during the catastrophe. And, I think, because Chara's allowing it. The barrier has the same strength as before, but now it's got the DETERMINATION of one hell of a mad spirit with more than a thousand years of suffering behind it." 

"Am I supposed to be happy to hear that?" Frisky questioned him. "Chara is still trapped. She's still tethered down. Even if she's controlling it, she can't rest in peace." 

"According to what's being analyzed right now?" Friskarino dug further into the MP. "And, yeah, they are analyzing and watching the barrier constantly, every second something is recording something about it. But, here. See? She can shoot out from it too. In fact, reports have shown her actually appearing on some researching ships above the Underground, cussing them out." 

"What?" Frisky looked at his MP. 

"She's staying willingly, but, when she's ready, I think she'll just leave the DETERMINATION, and just leave. She isn't trapped. Come on. Sans and Alphys would never do that." Friskarino touched Frisk's head. "It might be five days, five years, 500 years, or they might never break that barrier." 

"You don't know either?" 

"No, not really. But . . ." Friskarino touched her hand. "You've got more than DETERMINATION. And, yeah, things are going to be good up there. Frisk is going to be safe, we got the best allied ship around. You won your freedom. You can live up there. Totally up to you. I'm not gonna diss you whatever you decide." He stood up. "But I will say this before I'm going up with the others. No part of FRISK, even the weaker parts, ever turned away because they were scared of what might happen in the future. Hey, we only live once? At least now, right? How do you want live?" 

Frisky stood up from the snow. "Face my fears." 

"That's what it's always about. Oh, before I go. Uh, the whole dropping in while you were being committed, claiming it was a wedding, and then teleporting you out? That might have brought some unscrupulous eyes to the situation." Friskarino shrugged her shoulders. "Probably not possible to do a commitment if you decide to go back. Sorry about that. Hey, everybody makes mistakes? I'll see ya around, Frisky." 

Frisky looked at the MP. If I take Frisk, he'll be safe. Allied Balancers would be the safest thing for him. We could live with constant surveillance, but we could live. We could live with freedom. I could meet my parents. I would have my entire mind erased of being a soldier, and my civilian memories would be replenished. Frisk would never remember anything, he would have a normal life. 

It was perfect. Except for one thing. 

Sans we'll never see him again. His whole life had been torn apart. His memories were just as fuzzed up as hers. All he had was Papyrus. He was even willing to chain me just to get through everything. He battled me for him.  

Frisky started to walk through the snow. "Frisk would never know Sans was even his father. He'd never have any of these memories of him." No. Not Frisk. Chance. 

Barely keeping a grip on the MP3 she walked further. "I am 95452. I am not the exciting adventurer. I am not the patient one. I am not the funny one. I . . . am . . . the one filled with DETERMINATION . . . to do the right thing." 

Not what was best for her. What was the right thing. With every step, she already knew what she was giving up. 

Her freedom. Her chance to live a free life. She tried to walk through all the snow, back to the patches of trees ahead. "I can't do it to him. I just never could do anything to him. No, I don't care. Sans deserves Chance." She stumbled a little, but kept trying to go. The blizzard was getting intense. 

He could have left her that night with those carvings on her back. He could have just slept and let them fester and scar. He didn't have to take her out to Grillby's that one day. He never had to take her anywhere. 

And when she was ready to die to make Undyne leave them alone, he didn't have to care. And he never had to show me mercy. That sign. That Mercy sign. No. 

She wasn't going to lose it again. Dangit, Sans. Why can't you just teleport to me? The other Frisk's probably had something blocking it. 

"Momma," Chance groaned. "I'm c-cold." 

"I know," Frisky said as she kept moving through the snow as fast as she could. The others had really thrown her far away from the usual course. "It's okay. I have the DETERMINATION to make it because this is . . . the right thing to do." 

Marry a skeleton. She could have gotten her life back, but she'd regret it with everything she was inside. I've dealt with worse. Just not so life-changing that I couldn't get out of it eventually. But. No, there was no way around it. "I have DETERMINATION but I have faith too. I have to have faith that . . . I can deal with this." Sans was friendly. He was a friend. He was Chance's father. Her thoughts couldn't get much further than that now. 

"G-getting c-c-closer." Oh, damn. Why was it . . . oh yeah. The Frisk's had still been here, and now she was feeling the full weight of no more protection on the Underground. She truly was nothing but a mere human. 

She felt herself sink into the snow. Oh, great. I think doing the right thing is going to kill me this time. No need to worry about the whole marriage thing now. What was the temperature outside? Suitable for Monsters, not humans. Sans, just find us. Please find us. She hardly understood the basics of an MP and as she looked into it with her freezing fingers, she could see what Friskay was talking about. It was so different and complicated, it would take hours to figure out how to transport away to a safer place. 

She couldn't go to the Balancer ship though. If she teleported there, they would never let her come back to the Underground. Okay, I r-really should have talked this out with Friskarino. G-g-g-geez, Frisky! Why-didn't-you-talk-it-out? 

There was more than the marriage to consider. She was willingly putting her life on the line to try and get back. There was no way she could prove that Sans and Papyrus were forcing this on her. If the barrier ever came down, they'd know. And . . . and . . . No, I can't be afraid about it. Friskarino is right, I have to face my fears. I am the leader in ACTING! I have two choices. Take my freedom and the safe way out, and take away everything from Sans. Or, give in and accept the consequences if they make it back in. Those are it! 

And considering how much she'd already walked into that cold, and how freezing she was, she already knew that decision. In fact, her next decision was changing. 

Okay. I'm dying, I know it. Someone we'll get us, but I'll be dead. That's a solid fact by now! Okay! Now. Chance is a Monster inside. He doesn't seem to be affected nearly as much. He'll survive. He'll survive and he can live in peace with Sans and Papyrus. And if anyone ever came for him, they would never let anyone take him.  

Yep, that was it. Hit the button to teleport to freedom, or die to let Sans have Chance. Knowing which way she'd still ACT, she dropped the MP and held on tighter to Chance as she kept going. 

Every step further. 

One step further. One step at a time, until she could take no more steps. Sinking to the ground, she looked ahead. If she were FRISK, the length to safety would have been so easy. But not for her. 

"Momma. It's okay, we'll be fine." Chance placed his hands on her. A warm, familiar blue glow was felt on her. Usually, that glow wasn't so friendly when it came to contact with her. It was that same light that had taken her and thrown her around forcefully during Judgment Hall. But, it was a softer touch. A warmer touch. 

"Chance, yourrr sick," Frisky warned him. She didn't know the results of him doing that. She didn't want him to hurt himself to save her. 

"Uh uh." Chance laid back down on her. "Momma. I'm not gonna let you go, no matter what you got yourself into. It's okay. Just relax." He tried to hum a happy tune. "You know Sans. He'll get here soon. He'll get here . . . oops." 

A Balancer looked down at them. "Well. You're dying." 

One last ACT. "Yes, and I very desperate not to. To. Desperate. Son, drift?" Frisky was trying with all she had. She tried to move herself upward. "S-s-s-save." 

"Ooh." He picked her up with one hand and Chance in the other. "A desperate human and it's young. Let's head up ahead and see how you feel about your actions when you warm up." 

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