404 is finally located...but is it far too late for Karma?

——

Between Omniverses

"Nix! Nix! Where are you going?!...they are way too fast. I hope they are ok"

Karma had barely managed to catch himself on a nearby wall, after a blinding flash of light and now Nix had run off in this strange place. There was no way he could catch up to them, as he was struggling to even stay standing!..Could today get any worse?

Dad was going to be so upset he wasn't in the AntiVoid, as he had promised to stay put but this so wasn't his fault. He hadn't touched his magic in ages, so how had he ended up here?!

"Karma, are you alright?" Traveller called running over, Nix at his heels.

"I'm fine, dad! You need to stop worrying so....."

Karmas voice trailed off when he saw who spoke, looking at the new monster in suspicion. His wings bristled when he saw them move, bones beginning to rattle in fear due to the situation he had found himself in.

"...Your not dad"

He accused, trying to keep any fear out of his voice but truly terrified of how he got here. Was this a 'kidnapping' that his dad warned him about? He heard Nix loudly meow, distracting him from his spiralling thoughts. He glanced down at them, seeing them calmly sit by the new monster, making him feel unbalanced. Nix barely went near dad, so why was this monster different?

Making sure to keep an eye on the monster, he cautiously leaned most of his weight on the wall, twitching at how he squished his wings but relieved to no longer be standing up. He was tired and in pain but not enough to let his guard down fully, otherwise the floor would have been his preferred option.

"Hello. Sorry for intruding, i seem to have gotten lost"

Karma quietly spoke, trying to be as polite as possible. He was placing his trust in Nix, of them not purposely leading danger towards him but he was still rather unhappy about being here.

"No I'm not.. you forget this place again I see," Traveller sighed, the loss was worse this time and his SOUL felt like it was breaking at that fear.

Fear from Karma! They truly we're running out of time.

"Did you need food again or magic supplements, Nix was supposed to make sure you took them since your father didn't seem to have the right type of magic?"

Traveller asked carefully, leaning down and scratching Nix behind their ears.

Karma took a moment to process their question, looking at Nix in realisation. So that's what those pills had been for! He had been so confused when they kept meowing at him until he took some.

"I'm good on food, thank you. Dad already fed me a SOUL recently. The supplements might be an issue though"

He had no clue how many pills he had left, as he could no longer open his Inventory, to his supreme annoyance. Dad had reminded him that this type of magic could be rather difficult to master, so hopefully it would get easier as he practised more.

He flinched at a sudden pain around his neck and frowned when he realised he had been scratching himself. Bringing his hand down he stared at his magic now staining it, baffled why he had done this. At least it wasn't bone marrow but still not great. Maybe his dad was right in worrying, he must be getting sick again.

Traveller internally winced at mention of a SOUL, 404 clearly knew nothing of child monsters.

His poor baby brother, his SOUL child.

"Why don't you come inside Karma, you can have your hot chocolate and some supplements," Traveller told him smiling, as if this was a totally normal thing Karma always did. "And you can take a bath to get clean, your father needs to remember babybones need baths."

When was the last time Karma got clean, 404 was taking a lot less care of them. But it was also harder for them to hide, there were very few places for them to hide now.

".....'Chocolate'? What's that? Does it taste nice?"

Karma felt his mouth water at the mention of this mystery food but still no memory popped up to indicate if he had tried it before. A bath was very tempting though but there was still an issue with that.

"I have no clue how to wash, mister"

Dad usually took care of everything..that is when they were actually there.

"Don't worry Karma, it tastes very nice... and I can help with your bath," Traveller said, he wanted to cry.

"Oh right, my name is Traveller," He said "Do you need me to carry you inside?"

Karma was hesitant to agree to be held but when he looked between the door and where he currently was, he felt like crying. That was way too far to walk and his legs ached with the mere thought of moving.

"I would appreciate being carried, T-Traveller"

He was still wary but the idea of being clean and trying something tasty, was slowly winning him over.

"Just tell me if you want me to stop alright Karma," Traveller said slowly moving forward, and picking Karma up. He walked inside the house, as Nix made happy sounds towards his owner. Once in the kitchen, he placed Karma in his chair and quickly got their hot chocolate ready making sure they wouldn't be able to feel his magic donation in the liquid.

Karma stared at the mug placed in front of him and cautiously sniffed the dark brown liquid, deciding he really liked how it smelled. Taking a small sip he lit up at the taste, soon greedily drinking the rest of it. Chocolate was awesome! Why hadnt dad ever introduced him to this before?

"You were right, Traveller. It does taste nice!"

Karmas wings were now relaxed behind him, feeling much less stressed about being here, it was helped by the fact that Nix was peacefully napping by his feet.

"Hot chocolate is always the best," Traveller chirped sipping his own drink "Would you like some food, I have everything for pancakes."

Karma burst into giggles, accidently waking up Nix in the process.

"Now you are just making up words, Traveller"

He was finding Traveller rather amusing and fiddled with his scarf, his laughter eventually trailing off. What would a 'pancake' even be? Sounded like a funny word to him.

"Oh.. is that a challenge I hear," Traveller laughed jumping to his feet, he walked to the stove and easily made chocolate chip pancakes placing it and some syrup choices on the table.

"Pancakes."

Karma examined the new food, zeroing in on the brown parts of the 'pancakes'. That looked like chocolate to him, so it was already off to a good start. He ignored the other weird items on the table and just grabbed the pancake, biting into it. He hummed at the taste and liked how squishy it felt in his hands. He decided that pancakes was now one of his favourite foods and he really hoped dad would let him eat more in the future. Much nicer than SOULS, by far.

"This is good too"

He grabbed another pancake, hopeful that the rest were for him as well.

"Glad you enjoy them, go ahead. Did you want to have a syrup on top?" Traveller asked, pointing at the other items.

Karma eyed the many bottles and instantly gravitated towards the one that said chocolate. Grabbing it he put a generous helping on his plate and dipped his pancake in it, chirping at the taste. Who knew so many different foods existed?

He finished off his pancakes, trying to wipe his hands clean on a napkin but they were still rather sticky. This was nice but eating a SOUL was much less messy...huh, now that he thought about it he felt rather full. Weird.

"Thanks for the food," he happily chirped out, eyelight already much brighter than when he first arrived.

"You're welcome sweetie, but it looks like it's time for that bath. You got syrup everywhere," Traveller chuckled.

Karma looked down and could see they were right, wondering just how he had managed to get syrup on his trousers. At least his scarf still looked ok!....nope, He was mistaken. There was syrup on it as well.

"Can you help me wash my clothes later? I don't want dad to notice"

It felt deeply important that dad didnt see this, although he had no clue as to why but he trusted the feeling. His SOUL thrumming in agreement only cemented his decision.

"Don't worry sweetie, I'll get everything clean. You have clothing from past visits here, time passes differently here so when you leave it will be as if you never left your dad," Traveller explained.

Karma twitched at the reassurance, frowning at the words. He felt he had heard this before, many times in fact. Now if only he could remember from wher..........what was he thinking about? He rubbed his head in frustration and when he looked up, it took him a few seconds to remember what they had been talking about.

"R-Right, yes. That sounds good"

"Now let's get you your bath, do you want a bubble bath like usual?" Traveller said picking Karma up, feeling the urge to cry at the tiny flinch of fear that brought to the child. Quickly getting to Karma's bathroom.

"Sure? Whatever you think is best" Karma distractedly answered, busy scanning the new room. He was fascinated by all the different soaps Traveller was adding to the water, standing by the bath to be able to watch closer. He smiled when he saw the colourful bubbles. Unable to help himself he reached in the bath to pop one, wings puffing up at the little sparkles it released.

"Alright, clothes off so you can get clean and they can get clean," Traveller chirped, internally amused at the reaction even if it was because Karma couldn't remember doing it in the past before.

Karma took off the majority of his clothes with no issue but it was when he got to scarf a problem arose. He clutched on the item and he briefly wondered if he could just go in the bath with it on, but knew it needed a proper wash.

"This has to come off too, right?..The bath is just for cleaning...I don't need any healing as well, right?"

He was mainly trying to reassure himself but the idea of having another healing session made him pale, even if they weren't dad. He did not like healing magic at all!

"No, not unless you ask for it," Traveller promised taking clothes and scarf, he'd hand clean the scarf. As it was, he'd been stuffing Karma with his magic since he got here which would help him heal.

Karma felt almost dizzy with relief and readily accepted the help to get in the bath, purring at feeling some of the grime come off him. He started to play with the bubbles, unsure what else he was supposed to do here. He briefly dunked his wings in the water and after examining them he thought they looked clean enough, so went back to playing.

Chuckling Traveller helped clean Karma, the child chirping happily as his bones became even cleaner. Once Karma was just playing, he left and grabbed Karmas towel and his favourite set of animal pyjamas.

Karma cooed at the clothes and eagerly put them on once dry, loving how soft they were but more importantly, they were clean!

"Traveller look! My bones are white!"

He giggled while twisting his hand in different ways, thinking they looked much more like dads now, apart from the missing blue parts of course. His dad was much more colourful than him.

"Yup, pearly white like they're supposed to be," Traveller giggled "Now do you want to nap or read in the library while I get your clothes clean and dry?"

"Library please"

Karma was going to take advantage of being here and experience more interesting things than the boring white. He already napped way too much already, so reading it was. He automatically raised his arms to be picked up, not thinking much about the action.

"One library coming up," Traveller said picking him up, and walking to the library. He settled Karma in a reading nook on the first floor, making sure he could reach the books nearby.

"Is this a good spot nebula?"

Karma nodded, looking forward to some reading. He chirped a greeting when Nix lazily walked towards them, before they jumped to sit beside him. He grabbed a random book and set it in his lap, smiling at Traveller.

"This is great, thank you"

"If you need anything, just send Nix to get me okay," Traveller told him.

Karma gave an unreadable look to Traveller but nodded when he saw they were serious.

"Ok.." He clutched his book tighter, feeling an odd emotion bubble up at their words. Dad was never around to call.

He smiled, wishing he could take away the sadness around Karma caused by 404. That monster has a lot to answer for, but soon... they would be unable to hide. "You just relax, I'll be back soon enough with your scarf okay. That one will take less time to clean and dry."

"I'll stay right here, Traveller. I'll be good"

Karma often had to say this to dad but it always made them smile, so maybe it would work on Traveller as well. They had been so nice to him, after all. He was also dearly missing his scarf but the books should be a good distraction.

"If you decide to explore and get lost, just follow Nix, they know their way around okay," Traveller chuckled, and left Karma to the books.

Once Karma was sure they had left he looked at Nix in question.

"Just how often have you been here? And why didn't you tell me? This place is great"

He giggled as Nix meowed at him, before they nudged his book out of his lap, so they could sit there instead. He knew Nix couldn't talk but it was still nice to speak to them and he found their reactions so amusing. He opened the book and squinted at the words, rubbing his sockets in hope of making everything clearer. Looking again he pouted at the blurry words, putting the book down in annoyance.

"Who knew they made such weird books..maybe the next one will be different"

Karma didn't notice the tears falling down his face or his flickering eyelight and just kept trying to read the books, idly stroking Nix when they let out soft mewls.

Nix made a sad sound, wishing he could talk like his big monster self. Their monster was sad and hurt, and nothing Nix could do to fix it. His person didn't seem to remember coming to see big self before, or remember their terror of nasty big monster in the white place.

It was always a new adventure with their person here, but nasty big was making their person fade.

"Murp," they mewed butting their furry head against Karmas face, and licked their face. They didn't like the taste of tears, but it always made their person giggle.

Karma burst into laughter as the ticklish feeling, putting his book down so he could nuzzle Nix. He thought they would have wanted to nap but he enjoyed surprise cuddles as well.

"What's wrong, Nix? Are you bored?"

It had grown tiring trying to read the blurry text, so he didn't mind doing something else instead. Looking around the library he did remember Traveller saying he could explore..but that warred with the instinct to stay put.

"..want to look around?"

He left it up to Nix, feeling too indecisive to choose himself. He giggled when they licked his face again and took that as agreement. Pushing off the chair he wandered between the many shelves with Nix, occasionally taking a book down and scowling when it was also blurry. What weird books Traveller had.

He hummed a random tune as he walked, no longer bothering to grab books but instead just admiring the room. It was very large and he could see why Traveller thought he might get lost, as he had already lost count on the number of bookshelves he had passed.

"You know Nix, this place would be perfect for you to live in. It's much less boring then the AntiVoid"

He smiled at how they puffed up in offence, giggling as they started to paw at his leg. He crouched down to pick them up, proud he was currently able to do so.

"You are such a silly kitty but i'm also rather glad you want to stay with me"

He smiled softly and kissed their fluffy head, knowing he would be so much lonelier without them. He held them closer, whispering the next part.

"Want to know a secret, Nix? I sense something has been wrong with me for a very long time "

Karma continued smiling as he walked with Nix in his arms, having no true destination in mind. His magic might be unstable but his SOUL had no such issues and he tended to listen to what it told him, even though there was little he could do about it.

"Don't tell dad, ok? You know how they can get"

He stopped by a window and looked outside, petting Nix as he did so. It was nice seeing something new.

"Ah there you are," Traveller chirped; entering the area he was in, in his hands was Karmas scarf nice and clean "here you go."

Karma turned to face Traveller, relaxing at the sight of his scarf. Putting Nix down, he eagerly accepted his scarf and wrapped it around his neck, nuzzling into the clean fabric.

"Thanks for washing it, Traveller. I really like your home!..even if your books are weird"

He mumbled the last part before showing off his scarf to Nix, not remembering the last time it had been so clean.

Traveller ignored the weird book comments, as he had seen their eye lights.

"Murp," Nix purred over the pretty scarf.

"I'm glad you like it Karma, you're always welcome here," he smiled softly.

Karmas smile twitched and his eyelight went hazy at their words, words soon spilling out his mouth without his input.

" Oh brother. You know he won't allow that"

His eyelight went back to dark blue, with him giggling as Nix batted the trinkets on his scarf, none the wiser to what he said.

Traveller kneeled down to Karmas height, forcing himself not to cry or react to those words.

"Remember, you can always call upon me. As long as you mean it, I can follow you anywhere... even if you don't use my name," he said softly, his Karma still existed underneath this broken version of him.

"...You want to visit me? You will actually come, when I call?"

Karma lit up, liking the idea of having a potential friend come over. He hoped this wasn't a 'promise' like dad usually made and that they actually meant it.

"Does this make us friends now?"

"Yes, friends," Traveller promised softly, gently rubbing Karma's skull.

Karma boldly wrapped his arms around them for a hug, purring at having a new friend. This made two now!

"This is great!..What do normal friends do together?"

He loved Nix but there wasn't much to do where they currently lived, so they both mainly napped. He doubted that was what you were supposed to do with friends but he could be wrong.

He unconsciously nuzzled into Traveller, while thinking of what else they could do together, his eyelight blazing red with due to his subconscious desire to not forget about them again.

Traveller nuzzled his brother softly "They eat food together, they play games, have sleepovers and just have fun."

Karma was relieved that he hadn't been totally wrong about what friends do and chirped in interest at the list. He could easily do those and had already completed the first one.

"Do you want to play with me?"

He asked hopefully, letting out a trill at the nuzzles. He had missed soft touches and unconsciously leaned further into Traveller.

"Sure, do you know what you want to play?" Traveler asked, he gave a purr like sound then yelped as Nix purring butted between them knocking him back a bit, he laughed a bit at that.

Karma started to pet Nix, giggling at how smug they looked at getting their way. He discarded his first thought of playing hide and seek, knowing he just didnt have the stamina. It was rather annoying but its not like he could do anything about it, his body was just weak according to dad.

Many other games that popped up in his mind were also ignored, finding himself rather confused why he knew so many high active games. He shrugged the thought off, thinking he must have read it in a book.

"Does painting count as playing? I've always wanted to try it"

Dad made a funny face when he last brought it up and muttered something about 'nosey Creators'? Dad could be so silly.

At this Traveller grinned.

"We have an art room, we'll have to wear smocks to keep clean unless you want another bath as its a go crazy with art as much as you want room," he chirped.

Karmas wings twitched in delight at this, glad he had picked well.

"Thats fine. Can we do it now?"

"Of course little crow," Traveller said picking up Karma and nuzzled him again, and walked towards the art room Nix at his heels.

Karma was starting to enjoy how tactile Traveller was, feeling rather lucky he had appeared in this strange place. He knew he would have just been sitting in the AntiVoid and waiting for dad to come back, otherwise. He chirped as they entered the art room, eyelight sparking at all the colours in the room.

"Wow. It's so big"

"Its a fun room," Traveller giggled, he reached into a closet and pulled out two art smocks that shimmered with magic to prevent accidental spillage on people.

Karma wiggled to be let down and put on the smock, following Traveller as they led them him a multitude of art supplies. He felt a tad intimidated at the quantity and was thankful when he was shown which ones were good for beginners. Traveller even set up a canvas for him, telling him to do whatever he wished.

He stared at the pure white canvas with unease, feeling as if it was taunting him. His fingers twitched with the urge to throw it far away from him but instead splashed the nearest paint at it, which just so happened to be pink. His features relaxed as the majority of the white was covered and he was finally able to focus on what he wanted to do.

He hummed as he painted, not trying to make anything in particular but just enjoying adding colours to the canvas. Standing back he squinted at the canvas and decided it was missing something.

" Palette, can you help me please?"

"What do you need Karma?" Traveller asked, or rather Palette shifting into the driving seat.

Karma briefly startled as he looked at Traveller, feeling something was different about them but swiftly became fully focused on his painting again.

"I think it needs something but i'm unsure what. You enjoy creating, so i hoped you could tell"

He shivered as he examined his canvas how did he know these things? Who is Palette? , feeling an ache in his SOUL the longer he looked at it.

He blankly decided it still had far too much white and thought covering the whole thing in black was sounding like the best option but would wait and see.

Karma didnt notice the lack of blue he had used in his paining, unconsciously shying away from all shades of it and looked up at Palette Traveller, waiting for a response.

"Give me a moment, I think I know what you looking for," Palette hummed, and went to a storage box of paints that were harder to make.

"Aha!" he cried cheerfully, and grinning he went to Karma and put two things of paint in front of him, one that looked like a star filled night sky and one that looked like Travellers wings.

Karmas demeanour became more lively when he was shown the paints, already filling in all the white spots on his picture with the pretty star paint.

"Much better," he whispered, before glancing at the other paint with a thoughtful expression.

"You know, I think I might have painted before.."

He offhadly said, dipping a brush into the rainbow paint and splashing it on his canvas. He grinned at his picture and slowly grew more confident with his opinion, feeling a memory filter in his mind.

"Yes, I definitely have. Dad said he liked my picture but then it vanished when we got home...now that i think about it, i think i drew someone who looked like you. What a funny coincidence! Thanks for the help, Palette "

"No problem Nebula, did you want to put it on the fridge after it dries?" Traveller asked smiling, he wanted to grab and scream at Karma to remember. He wanted to cry, but he had to keep Karma as stable and healthy as he could.

Soon...

Soon Karma would be back home with Oneiro or himself.

"Yeah!...can i also have something to eat, that isn't a SOUL?"

Karma shyly asked, wondering if he was asking for too much. He knew he had to eat SOULS but his magic rolled in discomfort, at the thought of having to eat another one so soon. He wished he could just stop but dad was rather insistent on it.

"Well now, I do have fresh bread. How about Grilled Cheese sandwiches?" Traveller hummed, it should be cool enough to eat now.

Karma instantly nodded, not wanting to ask a clarifying question, on what exactly he was being fed. It was getting embarrassing at this point, realising just how many things he didnt know and he was thankful that Traveller was being so patient with him.

"Alright, are you done painting for now? or do you want me to come get you once the food is ready. They don't take long to make," he asked thoughtfully.

"I would like to paint longer, please"

Now that Karma had these new paints, he already had some new ideas he wanted to try.

"Alright, how about I come get you in twenty minutes. You can paint more after eating if you want to," Traveller chirped pulling off the art smock.

"Sounds good"

Karma waved goodbye to Traveller and went to grab a new white sheet to paint on, placing his last drawing in the drying rack. It was much easier to ignore the white this time and he snickered when he realised he was painting the monster similar to Traveller again..but who was the golden winged monster?

"Hmm. How can I finish this off? Ooo! This can be just like my made up story!"

He stood back as he added the last detail, chirping at his success. He could actually tell who each being was supposed to be now now and he really wanted to show Traveller.

Hopefully they would like his story, more than dad did.

"Oh wow, these are really nice," Traveller said when he arrived a bit later, cooing over the paintings. Oneiro would be thrilled, that subconsciously Karma remembered him even if it was only via painting.

Karma preened at the compliment and started to point out all the details, thrilled they were showing so much interest in his made up story.

"See, this is the parent and that one is the brother!..i think. I'm still not sure about the exact details yet but i hope to finish it soon. The little one is a kid but he cries a lot. See? I even added the sparkly blue paint to show it"

Traveller had such a cool selection of paints and Karma had wanted to use it all but he managed to restrain himself.

He was still annoyed that the kids features came out odd but he supposed it would do, considering he didnt paint much. It was fun to do at least and Traveller didn't even look angry, like dad did when he talked about it. So he counted it as a win!

"They're wonderful," Traveller said pleased, putting them up to dry.

"Ready to eat?" he asked offering to take there smock.

Karma handed over the smock and when they put it away he lifted his arms to be carried again. It was weird, how different it felt to be carried by dad compared to Traveller. He guessed It was probably due to their magic he felt safer , considering he hadn't been around other monsters to truly compare.

"Yep. I am hungry again"

"Well foods all ready, some hot chocolate. And if your still hungry cake," Traveller chirped walking to the kitchen, humming he set Karma up at the table and placed his grilled cheese sandwiches and hot chocolate in front of him.

Grinning he sat down also with his own meal of grilled cheese, but tea instead of hot chocolate.

Karma discreetly watched how Traveller ate the meal before copying them, not wanting to eat it wrong. He hummed at the taste but thought that chocolate was still vastly superior. He purred as he cradled the mug of the magical liquid, making sure to savour the taste, knowing it could very well be ages until he could have it again.

"Can we try a 'sleepover' next?"

"Don't want to try the cake first?" Traveller asked amused.

Karma lit up, taking that as a yes to his idea and enthusiastically asked more questions, forgetting his early reservations.

"Is it like pancakes? Does it come in different flavours? What does it look like? Can it be made of chocolate?!"

"Chocolate chip cake," Traveller laughed at the questions, going to the counter and dishing each of them up a large slice.

"And yes, they come in multiple flavours."

Karma hummed in understanding and examined the slice put in front of him, with a bright blue eyelight. He thought it looked even squisher then a pancake, feeling the urge to just smush it between his hands but he didnt really want a bath again, so he reframed.

"How do I eat it?"

It looked far too big to just stuff in his mouth but the wrong shape to eat like a sandwich. Food came in so many different shapes, it was kind of fascinating.

"Use a fork like this," Traveller said showing him.

Karma carefully followed Travellers instructions, grinning at how much easier it was to eat the cake like this. Less messy too. He kind of wished he had used cut-le-ry with the pancakes now but he didn't regret taking the bath, still thrilled at how white his bones were.

Traveller sipped his tea, refilling Karmas hot chocolate between eating his own cake slice.

Karma made sure to eat every last crumb and looking at his now empty mug, he was convinced he had drunk his weight in chocolate, which he was very pleased about. He was feeling rather content right now, letting out a quiet purr due to his happiness.

"Its getting late for babybones, lets get in pajama's and into bed," Traveller said putting their dirty dishes in the dishwasher.

Karma felt no urge to complain about this plan, considering that sleep sounded wonderful about right now. He had been awake for longer then he could ever recall in his life and he was unsure what to think of it. He had done a lot today but it was awfully tiring but still fun.

"Sleep sounds good"

"Come on now, we can sleep in my rooms bed there is big enough for both of us. A lot of pillows there," Traveller said offering to pick him up again.

Karma sleepily cheered at the talk of pillows and chirped when when he was picked up, purring in Travellers arms. He was thankful it was close by, as he felt like he was going to pass out any second now. He was not made to stay awake for so long!

Traveller helped Karma into animal themed pajama's, changing into his own. he briefly left, coming back with the rest of Karmas clothes now clean and dry for the moment. He tucked him in and turned on the bedside lamps before turning the overhead light off, then climbed into bed himself.

Karma sleepily whined as he felt the bed shift but seeing that it was Traveller, he merely shifted to get closer, before clinging onto them. He nuzzled into their warmth happily, feeling totally relaxed right now.

"Night Traveller.... Thank you for still loving me "

Karma soon fell limp, having instantly fallen asleep due to the familiar magic suffused in the room, his SOUL calm for once.

"I'll always love you Nebula. Even if you destroyed reality.. Shell might be upset though..." Traveller whispered kissing Karmas skull, he turned off the lights and pulled Karma into his arms. Sheets pooling over there bodies.

"Hang on... we'll find you soon," he whispered, joining Karma in sleep.

------

Ḁ̷͈͛n̶̜̻̳̑̎̕t̶͓̋̽ȉ̴̭͎͉V̵̧̮̫͝o̶̲̱̓̈́̕ǐ̴̭̬͜d̸̡̘̆̌̐

"No no no no. Why is this happening?! I did everything right, so why isn't it working?!"

Karma keened weakly in his dads hold, unable to do much else due to his state. He felt terrible and he just wanted it to stop. Why wasn't dad healing him? He didn't care if he usually disliked it, he would take anything right now. Even a mercy dusting sounded heavenly right now!

"Shh. It's ok, little raven. It will be ok. P-Please don't talk like that"

It felt like Karma had been in pain for years, the pure white surroundings not helping to dissuade that thought. Why wasnt he dead yet? Surely there had to be a limit?! He silently sobbed at the pain in his neck increased, finding a burst of energy to rip off his scarf, feeling a smidgen of relief at the lack of pressure near that area.

"I can fix this. I can. I d-did it before, so it will be fine"

Karma ignored the nonsense his dad was spewing, not comforted in the slightest. He had heard them say the same thing far too often to trust it and was just drained at this point. He whined when they touched his neck, hating how warm they felt. He just wanted to feel safe, was that really too much to ask for?

He shivered as he felt their magic begin to rise, an uncharacteristic spike of fear coursing through him in response. His instincts demanded he act now and he felt compelled to obey but he still had no clue what to do. His magic currently wasn't an option and he didnt know anyone els-...wait. He did! It was faint but he did remember a kind skeleton monster who fed him.

He tried to think of their name but it felt just out of his reach...He really hoped that they still heard him, as he was running out of options.

"Rainbow monster..please help"

------

?? Multiverse

"So we're down to these three multiverses AntiVoids," Traveller said, showing an Omniverse map to Oneiro. He tapped the three ones that they needed to search, "404 must be getting desperate as we get closer and Karma still keeps remembering things."

He worried, Karma had not come back since the 'sleepover' and he'd been in such bad condition even though Traveller had given as much magic as Karma could safely take while they both slept. On Oneiro's fridge, was Karmas paintings he'd made that day.

At that point, he was pretty sure the proof of the paintings was the only thing keeping the taller monsters hope up. Losing Karma, would destroy them both.

Rainbow monster..please help

Traveller gasped clutching at his SOUL, feeling panic between himself and Karma. Nix was too panicked himself to share anything.

Oneiro shuddered as the sudden burst of Negativity that flooded the room, snapping his head towards the source.

"Traveller! What's wrong?!~"

He felt his SOUL drop at spotting their expression, his unease growing worse when they didn't respond to him. They were so close to finding Karma, despite the numerous obstacles they had to overcome. He rightly feared that another issue may have just cropped up.

It would be just like a CHAOS Deity to plan this. To let them have some hope and then just sweep it away, for their own sadistic amusement. Reminding himself of the pictures his child drew was his main driving factor, as it was proof his child was still alive out there. He instinctively knew that if he bothered to look at his stats, he would see drastic changes to what he was used to, feeling a grim but accepting smile at the cause.

Who knew that having a child would be his greatest joy and the thing that may end him in the long run.

Of course he didn't regret his past decision to bond with Karma but he felt a flicker of dark amusement, imagining the reactions to all the monsters that feared him seeing him right now. The 'mighty Destroyer' taken down by a mere child, CHAOS must be loving this.

"We need to go, Karma just called me in full desperation!" Traveller said holding out his hand, he didn't have time for portals.. he was ripping his way to his SOUL child.

Oneiro's body had already reacted when they offered their hand, grabbing it tightly before feeling as if his body was being squeezed through a tiny gap.

Ḁ̷͈͛n̶̜̻̳̑̎̕t̶͓̋̽ȉ̴̭͎͉V̵̧̮̫͝o̶̲̱̓̈́̕ǐ̴̭̬͜d̸̡̘̆̌̐

Oneiro steadied himself when they landed, stiffening when his gaze landed on 404. He bared his teeth in pure hatred, eying the way they cradled his child in disgust. How dare they! What had they done?!

Karma sniffled, body still racked with pain but let out a relieved sob when dads magic spluttered out. He had no idea why he was reacting like this to dads magic and his mind felt far too foggy to think about it more, instead he closed his sockets to just focus on his dads SOUL beat to try and relax.

He twitched when he heard more noise in the AntiVoid, too tired to look over to see what caused it.

"Dad, is someone here?"

He whined when dad adjusted him, so his head now rested on their shoulder, his body very unhappy about the movement but at least he could see who else was here now. He let out a quiet chirp when he spotted the rainbow monster, weakly tugging at his dads clothes to get their attention.

"See! I told you he was real"

"..so you did, little crow. You are so very clever"

Karma was limp as his dad nuzzled him, staring at the two new monsters in curiosity. He may have called for the rainbow monster but felt lost on what was happening now, feeling so very tired.

To say 404 was displeased, was putting it lightly. He had to use his magic on his child far too often lately and it no longer seemed to work as well as it used to. He gently stroked Karmas back when he felt them jolt in pain, making sure to keep watch over the two intruders. He mockingly grinned at Oneiro, impressed they had even found him. He had initially kept them alive due to his child's bond with them but suddenly felt those reservations swept away, just really wanting to see their dust.

"Why hello, Oneiro. Who is this with you? Don't you know it's rude to barge into others homes? Such a terrible example to set for a child"

He mockingly scolded, grin sharpening at the tense stance of the two monsters.

Traveller released Oneiro's hand, and stared at 404.

"So.. you we're the one that took my little brother... my SOUL child," it all came out in a rather calm voice, he took steps towards 404 and Karma, realising this monster didn't realise he'd been part of this the whole time.

Or that he was the bigger threat.

"I'd like to say it was more a 'rescue' situation than anything. My poor child was just not receiving the care they deserved, so I just had to intervene. It's so nice to meet the monster that caused me so many issues though"

404 spoke frostily, glad to finally have a face to the name. It was good to know that 'brother' was a real monster but their gift was awfully annoying. No matter what he did to the pin it just went back to his child and he had a feeling they were to blame for his child's recent memory relapses. No matter, it just meant he would have to dust two monsters instead of one.

"What did you do with Pale, 404?~"

404 chuckled at such a silly question, as if he kept track of every pest he dealt with.

"Who knows. Probably still in the AntiVoid somewhere. I'll make sure to deal with him after you two. I seem to have been rather too lenient latey"

Oneiro's wings shifted at the insanity that came off them, horrified that it was somehow worse then last time they met. It was unnatural, it feeling as if their personality had been forcibly shifted. He really hated dealing with Deity's.

"You really shouldn't have touched Karma, but.. you made your choice so it's time I made mine," Traveller said with a savage grin, their eye lights shifting to pure orange.

"Yes, you made your choices very well... CHAOS should have stayed away... it's not the first time I've taken care of a Deity," he hissed.

"You would take a child away from their parent? How very cruel you are. See this, little raven? This is what I'm trying to protect you from. This is why you should listen to your dad"

404 was finding this situation hilarious, already planning where they would live once he dealt with these irritants. What could they do against him, after all?

Then Traveller smiled, and for a second his form seemed to flicker and it wasn't Traveller he was facing before he went back to normal.

"Take care of Karma," Traveller said, placing Karma into Oneiro's arms... Karma who was suddenly not in 404's arms.

Karma readily cuddled into the new being, feeling oddly comforted and safe in their hold. Did dad call both monsters here for help? He couldn't think of any other reason he was now being held by someone else, considering how clingy dad could be. He cooed as it suddenly got dark, nuzzling into the fluffy thing near the new monsters neck.

This was rather nice.

"You can rest now. We will sort everything out, little one~"

Oneiro covered his child with his wings, knowing they usually enjoyed feeling his feathers against them and also not wanting them to see what would happen to the thing. He took a few steps back, to be far out of the way of any attacks and stood on guard, not wanting to miss a second.

He was sensing so much controlled fury from Traveller and he sneered at the thing , wanting to laugh at how ignorant they were about what was going to happen. His magic buzzed in anticipation, preparing to defend his child if the need came, as he refused to lose them again.

404 snarled when his child was stolen, glaring at the thieves in pure hatred.

"He is MINE! Why can't you just understand that?!"

"Poor Poor 404, you and CHAOS.. didn't actually check who big brother was, did you?" Traveller said taking a step forward, for a second his form seemed to glitch showing orange wings and Traveller wearing strange armour before it went back.

CHAOS started to panic at that split second image.

"You made your choice, and now...I made mine." Traveller voice changing at that last part.

Chains of glowing orange ripped through the AntiVoid, chaining 404 into place and blocked them from view.

He's Interrupting the Trials The voice seemed to come from everywhere now.

My SOUL Child, my little brother. He is no child of yours

I agree, this can not stand Another voice from nowhere said.

404 furiously tried to get free, throwing all of his magic at the chains so he could get to the intruders but it just wouldn't budge. The bindings were too strong and for the first time in what seemed like centuries, 404 had a spark of sanity, realising for the first just what was happening. He wanted to freeze in horror at what he had done but that feeling soon faded, to be replaced by increased desperation.

He was about to lose everything again and he let out a howl of fear, trying to claw towards the last thing that had driven him to keep living. Who did these monsters think they were?! They had been happy, so why were they interfering!

CHAOS felt it time to leave and cut his losses with his latest puppet, who seemed to have finally snapped. At the beginning he had thought the monster would be useful entertainment, so had gleefully lent his power to make things smoother for the ' poor lonely monsters' plan. It had been fun, especially watching them mentally deteriorate, adding even more chaos to the omniverse!...but it seems he had miscalculated.

He didn't want to deal with that or whatever they had claimed as theirs.

..hmmm, maybe a distraction would give him time to escape? It might even prolong the game~.

Oneiro watched the spectacle in awe, holding his child closer at the power he could feel in the air. He tensed when he heard muttering from Karma, sensing something was very wrong.

"....Dad, dad, dad, dad. I want dad! Let go! "

Karma felt like a live wire, no longer relaxed in this beings kidnappers hold. His body ached when he moved but his mind dismissed it as inconsequential, just wanting to get back to his dad. He tried to turn his head towards where dad was and hissed when golden wings blocked his view, his magic sparking in resentment at being kept away from them.

They wouldn't let him go, so he would just have to force the issue!

Oneiro didn't have to put any effort to keep his child in place, which was frankly alarming but he was thankful he could at least keep them away from 404.

However, he did not like how much energy they were expending, frowning at the dust flaking off them.

"You need to calm down, you are going to hurt yourself, little raven~"

He brought them closer to him, feeling his SOUL break at the cries of distress they were letting out. He hoped Traveller would finish this soon, as he could sense the pain from his child increase, fearing what the mark was doing to his child.

You take care of Chaos and there puppet, I'll help with the child

Softy..

Sleep little one Karmas body suddenly shifted into a deep sleep

Did you think you would escape Chaos, you have noticed you cannot escape that body right? Traveller stopped in front of 404, grabbing their chin and forcing the body to stare into his eyes.

CHAOS grinned widely using his puppets body, impressed they noticed him despite his best efforts to hide.

"Awww. Why did YoU stOp the FuN? It was JuSt geTtIng to tHe gOoD pArT"

He had been so close too. Just a little more and he was sure he could have gotten the tiny God back...or seen them dust. He wasn't that picky about what happened really, it was all for fun!

Watching Karma had always amused him but getting to watch up close was somehow even better! He easily pushed back the consciousness of 404, growing bored of their incessant whining. He really should have fully taken over them months ago but seeing them interact with others, had just been far too entertaining to pass up.

"WhAt nOw? SuRely you ARen't tHat atTached tO the little raven? I diDn't BreaK tHeM tHat mUch"

They were still alive and he thought that was good enough. He let out an insane giggle as he saw more dust fall from the child, briefly scowling at how weird it felt to be stuck in a body. Mortals were far too squishy for his liking.

"Try pIckIng One tHaT iS hArdIer nExT tIme"

He might be saying that but he was impressed they lasted so long with his magic. This was why they were one of his favourites and he pouted at his fun ending so soon. He had so many more plans, all ruined now.

Deities... I swear at least the FATES are constant when they go nuts, you're not even at the top of the food chain The being sighed through Traveller.

Well, could be worse we could be an Incarnation or a Greater God

Celestial not helping

Travellers hand thrust through 404's chest, easily grasping there soul and essence of both beings entangled within the body. He could feel CHAOS try to attack and escape his touch, but Traveller wasn't letting go.

The fact you don't know what Trials are means your a lesser deity a step above demi-god, and that you've strayed from the OverRealm much too long they smiled, orange eyes wicked

But as I said you made your choices, which means you face myself instead of Celestial.. Celestial is the nice side after all

I can be mean!

The being with Traveller, didn't respond to Celestial

And that means, I'm allowed to do whatever I want the trials don't bind me here

"Not that this isn't fascinating to watch but could you perhaps speed things up? We do have more important things to do right now~"

Oneiro was all for the destruction, especially of the beings that caused so many issues for them but his main priority was his child's health, who was not looking good. He stared back at Traveller, unmoved at the scrutiny he was put under, having nothing to hide.

"Wouldn't you rather be holding your SOUL child, then spending all your time on filth , Traveller?~"

He didn't bother asking questions on what the hell was going on, sensing he would not get a satisfactory answer. He didn't need to know everything about them, to know they cared for Karma and that was frankly good enough for him.

It's not like just anyone would break their own SOUL to help someone else, after all. It had initially rankled to hear they easily healed Karma, when he was unable to but at this point he was just happy his child was alive. He was exhausted and mentally drained from these past few months, needing this nightmare to just end.

Mortals... taking all the fun out of the drama

Finish it, their Codes so bugged there barely even of the OverRealm anymore and just causing innocents issues

Yes.. Traveller will be upset if we delay more

And with a simple twist of their wrist ripped all that was CHAOS and 404 from the body, the body dusting.

Take care of the trash, you can't leave that laying around

Yes yes... the being sighed, and ripped it apart till nothing was left of either and gathered the remaining shard of uncorrupted power and hid them away. Traveller could figure what to do with it later.

Then the chains all vanished and Traveller swayed for a moment, back to normal and looking a bit ill.

Oneiro waited until Traveller looked less likely to collapse, before carefully passing over Karma, pleased to see they looked more like themself again. He knew how to deal with Traveller, he did not want to learn how to deal with these two other..beings? Whatever they were, he was more than happy to ignore the whole thing, although he really admired the way they dealt with those nuisances.

Destruction really did make his magic sing~.

"Do you feel able to take us back now, Traveller?~"

"Come on.." Traveller said quietly nuzzling Karma, walking through a portal.

Between Omniverses

Traveller breathed a sigh of relief as he placed Karma on his bed in the between, with what was going on Oneiro deserved to see Karmas other home. Carefully he tucked Karmas quilt around his fragile SOUL child, tears shimmering in his eyes.

"...how long do you think it will take for them to be fully healed?~"

Oneiro had not looked away from Karma since they arrived in this place, wincing at the condition they were in. He was now able to look them over more thoroughly, due to no other distractions nearby and he was not happy. They looked so much worse than in the AntiVoid and he grimaced at the damage around their neck where the mark used to rest. CHAOS had not been gentle and he got a burst of sadistic satisfaction knowing they could never do this again.

"They won't get better..." Traveller said softly, gently running his hand over Karmas skull.

"..What," Oneiro was not asking, he was demanding a more extensive answer. This couldn't be the end. They had gone through so much to save them and to be told they were too late was not a pleasant feeling.

"Surely there is something we could do?~"

He was not above begging, uncaring what he would have to do to help his child. He would truly break if they died, most likely destroying the omniverse in his grief and letting his insanity run wild. He wouldn't be surprised if Traveller joined him to be honest.

"They destroyed his core Code, his SOUL is fine but a core Code tells a beings magic what their body should be like and traits they gain from their parents... I don't know the knowhow to build a new freaking body," Traveller cried tearfully and panic in there SOUL.

Oneiro felt numb at the knowledge of what had been done to his child, cursing the crazed Deity for their carelessness. It was not easy or a simple process to affect someone's Code and it was usually the reason why Destroyers were so feared.

He bet the idiot Deity just threw their power at the mark on Karma, using no finesse at all in order to get the result they wanted. Effective in the short run but will inevitably end in disaster for the affected party.

Like overloading a circuit, something will have to give in the end and in this case it was Karma paying the price.

"...Is it possible to donate Code to replace the damaged parts?~"

He mainly used his ability to utilise Code for Destruction but surely it could be used the opposite way as well?

Traveller frowned, and pulled a screen up to peer at Karmas Code and Oneiro's.

"They need two beings to donate Code, you sure you want to be a literal shared parent with me. Because with this, Karma will be our child even if neither of us sired or carried him," Traveller whispered softly "Once we do this, there is no going back."

Oneiro couldn't help but scoff at such a silly question and moved to stand by Traveller, looking down at his child with pure love.

"It's not like this would change much, Traveller. I'm willing to do anything for Karma and I know you are too~"

He had witnessed multiple times how they acted around his child and despite feeling jealous, he didn't disapprove of their treatment of Karma. He sensed the care they had for them and it wasn't tainted like he had witnessed in the thing.

He carefully reached to touch his child's wing, distressed at how such a small action caused their feathers to fall out.

"I want them to live. If that means both of us being their biological parent, then so be it. You should know by now, that i won't ever regret an action that keeps them alive and happy, Traveller~"

"Right... so I can do this," Traveller said nervously "half of me is a Goth, so I can use those Codes to keep their appearance the same. My Reaper would have been thrilled for a Grandchild and mama would act tsundere then totally spoil him, ma my Dream would have just accepted everything... and dad would have been thrilled... and an idiot"

Okay.. so he was spitting out info like crazy, but he was full on panicked still.

He placed a hand on Karmas chest, above his SOUL and concentrated as more screens popped around the three of them bearing strange almost eldritch script. Shell had taught him to use these screens and to read deeper Codes through it, he had just.. never thought he'd ever have to use them. Karmas body glowed and became see through, his SOUL visible through it.

"You know that Karma will not mind what you are doing, Traveller. He never did like his Birth multiverse and I bet they will love to hear all about your parents~"

Oneiro soothingly spoke, trying to calm the clearly overwhelmed monster and help them focus on the task at hand. He ignored the screens with the indecipherable text, his attention mainly on Karmas SOUL.

"It's surprisingly whole. I expected to see some damage at least...What needs to happen next?~"

"The damage in another level of his essence, place your hand on mine and start letting out small bits of magic while I scan and gather the Codes needed from you," Traveller said snorting.

"This will hurt, parents donate their Codes during conception.. we're ripping them out unnaturally to do this."

Oneiro trusted Travellers expertise on the subject and unhesitatingly placed his hand on top of theirs, making sure to follow their instructions to the letter. He braced for the pain, while thinking on how bizarre this whole situation was. Who knew that having a child would make life so very interesting?~

Traveller began the process, at first it felt like pins and needles then agonising. He took a deep breath ignoring the pain, Karma would die if he stopped or failed. Oneiro's magic felt weird filtering through his own, he saw them grit their teeth from the pain. Scanning wasn't the part that hurt, he was literally grabbing bits of each of their Codes and using them as building blocks for Karma's and rebuilding his core Codes.

Magic dripped down his skull as he did pretty much magical surgery, he knew Karma's body pretty well as he'd had to scan it to make sure he could recreate their SOUL. He was still pretty much doing this blind, one mess up or Code out of place could kill Karma faster then they could blink.

Thankfully, this process of rebuilding the core Codes and body, would also repair Karma's memories.

He swayed a bit before straightening, he was using mostly his magic as Karma's SOUL would adjust better to it at first.

No one better call him the mother.

Traveller had not been lying when they said it would hurt and Oneiro thought this might be one of the worst things he had ever felt, even worse than eating the apples. He made sure to keep his hand still, afraid any movement could interrupt this clearly delicate process.

He had never seen this procedure done before and being unable to tell what was happening, made him rather uneasy. So many things could go wrong..

He stiffened when Traveller suddenly stopped moving, causing him to look over at Karma, as if he could find the issue if he searched hard enough.

"What's wrong? Is it done?~"

"Almost..." Traveller said tightly, and started the final process of rebuilding his brother... who was now technically his son, not just in SOUL.

Slowly Karma became less see through, and then solidified into a healthy body that was still asleep but... it was Karma.

He blushed a bit, when he noticed Karma's now healthy wings, when the light hit them seemed to be edged with gold or rainbow shades.

So, he'd messed up a bit appearance wise but still he'd done it.

"Now.. it's done."

He pulled their hands back, then allowed himself to collapse beside Karma and cuddle up to him.

Never again, he couldn't allow anything like that to happen again.

He'd almost lost Karma for good, and with Oneiro and his own Codes as parents now no one would be able to do that again.

Oneiro shakily touched his child's wings, fearing this was a dream. He let out a breath of relief when he felt their feathers and approved of how healthy they looked, pushing their hood down to see their features better. They were alive but he could tell that they could all use some rest from the rather eventful day.

He sat on the bed and idly began to preen his child's wings, finding the task rather soothing. It had been so long since he had been able to do this.

"Thank you, Traveller~"

Traveller didn't answer, having fallen asleep exhausted himself.

Oneiro chuckled and covered the two in a nearby blanket, content to keep watch until they woke up. While he did want to explore the place his child talked about often, he was uneasy with the thought of being away from Karma and didn't think that would change for a while.

"Rest well, little raven. I can't wait until you wake up~"

——

Between Omniverses

Karma let out a sleepy chirp as he nuzzled into the warm thing, feeling so very comfy. He squeaked as he was suddenly in someone's arms, grumbling that it was way too early to be awake. He hummed as his wings were preened, finally recognising who was holding him but confused by the wetness near his shoulder

"Bro-ther. Yo-u ok?"

He let out a yawn and purred as he felt brothers magic, smiling as he felt dad nearby too. Was this a surprise sleepover?

"Hey nebula, you've had us really worried," Traveller said tearfully, Karma knew him.. recognized him. It would have broken him, if Karma failed to recognize him again.

"Mew..." Nix mewed from where he curled over Karma's feet.

"So-rry.." Karma was unsure what he was apologising for but it seemed like a good idea to do so. He giggled as he felt Nix purr, finding it ticklish. Why was everyone awake right now? Cuddling more into brother he got comfortable and prepared to nap again. When he felt his wing be lightly tugged he sleepily turned to glare at dad, alarmed to spot tears in their sockets.

"Dad?"

He was puzzled when they looked hesitant to get closer and made a slow whine, switching to purring when he was soon cuddled from both sides. He felt safe and warm....but something niggled in his mind.

"..why does it feel like a long time since we've been like this?"

"Because it has little one, your dad and I... looked for you for a very long time.. when someone bad took you," Traveller said softly kissing their skull "You were quite sick when we got you back. It's why your dad is here in the between, with us."

"Oh..."

Karma had wondered why dad was here but still didn't remember what had happened. Fiddling with his sleeve his hand made a sudden jerky motion and he suddenly saw a dull blue stone now in his palm. He puzzled why he had this in his Inventory, as he found it rather unnerving to look at. Twisting it around to look over it, he suddenly threw it across the room, not liking how it made him feel at all.

He jumped when he felt his dad throw magic at it but found himself relaxing when he saw it disintegrate, not realising how tense he had become.

" The bad monster is gone, little raven. He can't take you ever again. There is no need to be scared~"

Karma sniffled, still confused but feeling odd memories begin to trickle in.

"..i thought i was with dad..but he had no wings? How did I think that was dad?"

These new memories only seemed to confuse him further, giving him an almost double vision of certain events.

"..i think brother gave me Nix but so did dad?"

Why did both points sound equally false yet also true? He hid his face in brothers scarf, not liking these mixed memories at all.

"I gave you Nix little one, the bad monster played with memories and unless you called we could not find you.. but.. don't you think its time to make Nix your familiar. Now that you're well, you can?" Traveller asked, now that Karma was safe it was time for Nix to truly become its own being in a way no one could separate Karma from it.

Nix being a cat, would unlikely tell Karma he had been created from a part of Traveller for him. Familiars were special, Karma would be able to talk mind to mind to them and see through there eyes. Who knew what else, as it was different to every being.

Karma looked up at brother, hesitantly nodding at the question. He would like that, as he really did love Nix. Memories of them keeping him company in the AntiVoid popped up and he smiled as Nix got closer, before flopping down beside him.

"How do I do that, brother?"

"Remember how you tamed him?" Traveller asked, Karma frowned then nodded happily.

"Do that, but this time add more magic and think of linking yourself and Nix together," He continued, scratching Nix who patted a paw against Traveller's arm.

Oneiro watched as Karma took the steps to properly bond with Nix, snorting as both child and cat purred once they succeeded. Having a familiar was said to be a wonderful thing and now Karma would have someone always watching their back, which did help to alleviate some of his tension. This would only be beneficial in the long run and he could sense just how much Karma already cared for Nix, sending an approving look to Traveller for suggesting this.

"I bet you're starving, Oneiro and I haven't left the room since you got home so I've just been summoning food from the kitchen. Why don't I make us some casserole while you give your dad a tour and a bath or shower. I'll have my own shower once the foods in the oven," Traveller said nuzzling Karma, feeling weird not to see out of Nix's eyes but it was for the best.

Karma hummed in agreement and nuzzled back before getting off the bed and grabbing dads hand, tugging them towards the door.

"Let's go, dad! I have so much to show you. The art room is my favourite and the library has super comfy chairs. I bet you will lik-wait a second, i forgot to do something"

He ran back to brother and hugged them tight, nuzzling them happily.

"Love you, brother"

Picking up Nix he went back to dad, leading them around the tent, giggling at the face they made when seeing the library. He sometimes felt like he should be tired from walking so much, but tried to ignore that feeling, wanting to show his dad all the cool rooms in the tent.

They finished the mini tour at the largest bathroom, both getting clean, with Karma enjoying being carried to the kitchen when they were done.

"Did you have fun Karma," Traveller asked with a giggle, he was wearing animal themed pajamas having no urge to leave their home today.

He pulled dinner from the oven placing it to cool a bit, and quickly set up the table. Karma zoomed to his seat, cooing happily at spotting his usual mug of hot chocolate.

Oneiro sat down, wishing for a camera right now, due to the face his child was making at their drink. The heart eyelight was rather adorable and he snickered how their wings fluffed up in pure happiness.

Like this he could study their appearance more, quite liking the gold and rainbow edge to their wings, which seemed to sparkle in the light. He didn't think it was added on purpose, going by Travellers blush but it was a rather cute addition.

"Don't forget to eat, little raven. Your drink isn't going anywhere~"

He had really missed seeing these little moments, spending most of the meal watching Karma enjoy their food.

"Don't worry he always eats after his hot chocolate, knows he can't have more till he eats," Traveller chuckled, bringing over the bowls of their meal now cool enough to eat now and used blue magic to bring tea over for himself and Oneiro.

Oneiro was glad that Traveller was right, watching Karma practically demolish their food and took his time with his own meal, sipping his tea when he was done.

Karma chirped when he got another hot chocolate but paused mid sip, unsure whether to feel baffled or horrified by the sudden memory.

"...I hugged a Reaper. I went near two Reapers willingly!"

In a daze he took another sip, scowling at remembering hugging a Geno too. He didn't really hate those variants but he disliked that in his memories he had gone near them with zero hesitation. Where had his self preservation gone?

He blushed in embarrassment when he remembered calling another Dream type dad, wanting the ground to just swallow him up. No wonder they had reacted like that, he was surprised they didn't think he was insane!

"I called them daddy...at least it wasn't father"

He quietly mumbled, trying to be optimistic about this and rather failing at it...oh, right. 'Daddy' was dead, which suddenly made him feel rather sad.

These memory issues were not fun and he got off his seat to cuddle brother, wanting some comfort right now.

"Oh sweetie, none of this was your fault. You're allowed to feel as upset or angry as you want, that thing took advantage of you and didn't appreciate you for you. If you want to scream and swear, or destroy things just tell us.. if you want to rest and just have fun we can do that too. You Karma are a wonderful being, and you survived 404's fantasy," Traveller said rocking Karma in there arms, Karmas face right against his chest near his SOUL.

He kissed Karma's skull "If you just want to stay here or at your dads you can do that too neither of us will protest. Mind you, if it's here I'm afraid we'll have to lock Oneiro out of the library or we'd never find him."

A giggled escaped Karma at that last part.

"...I want to stay here but i don't want to be left alone..please"

Karma whispered, a tad anxious at the response even though he logically knew he had nothing to fear. He thought the same thing when he was with 404 and look how that turned out. He felt safe in brothers home, knowing no one else could come here without permission but the thought of being by himself again sent anxiety racing through his SOUL.

He did like the idea of using his magic though, as he rarely had the chance when with da- 404. ...That was an annoying habit and he really hoped he got rid of it soon.

"Then you stay here, this is your home also and Oneiro can stay while you're here," Traveller promised, he doubted Karma would be left alone for quite awhile. CHAOS and 404 may be gone, but they hurt Karma in so many ways in their game.

"How about we go set up your dad's room, as he doesn't really fit on your bed if you want cuddles. He just had to be too tall, silly man.. should have been tiny like you and I," he joked.

Karma quietly sniggered with it soon turning into laughter, when he saw his dads expression.

Oneiro was mock pouting at Traveller words, eyelights glowing brightly at sensing his child's glee. This was a perfect distraction from the serious topic and he looked on in interest when Karma wiggled down from Travellers lap and picked up Nix, before placing them on his lap.

"Oh? Why am i getting this fluffy menace?~"

"He agreed to look after you, while I set your room up with brother"

Oneiro could sense how important this was to his child and began to stroke Nix, amused when they playfully began to chew his fingers. Cats were such odd creatures.

"I look forward to seeing it, little crow~"

Laughing Traveller got to his feet, leaving the room with Karma to set up a room for Oneiro.

He had a feeling the next several months with Karma would be interesting, especially with Oneiro in the mix.

He thoughts stalled for a moment, Oneiro had made sure Ordeal knew Karma was safe right? Phones did work here?

Well.. either way Karma was safe, and Oneiro should be able to grab Pale any time.

Hopefully Pale would understand not being invited, he didn't need yet another person here. At least he knew Oneiro.

——-

Between Omniverses

"GO AWAY! I HATE YOU!"

Oneiro winced as Karma slammed the door in his face, leaning against the wall by the door to wait for them to calm down. At least Nix was in the room, with them often being the only one allowed near Karma during these outbursts. He tried to think of what could have set them off today and why they hadn't used their magic on him, but was drawing a blank.

He had grown used to being blasted with Judgement magic these past few weeks, as they often used it to check whether he was real or not and he was so thankful it didn't hurt.

He was also very glad he managed to find Pale a few days ago, surprised to just see them blank with no serious injuries, sitting in the AntiVoid. After dropping them off at a multiverse that was close to self-destructing, they got back to normal. They had been displeased with not being brought straight to Karma but with promised updates, things went much smoother. Karma even started messaging them, which was an improvement to how withdrawn they had been the first week here.

"We had to expect bad days," Traveller sighed walking down the hallway, a tray of food in his arms. It included soup, filling the air with its scent.

"Karma sweetie, I have lunch for you and some snacks for you," he called worriedly.

Karma felt so stupid that he kept getting things wrong and forgetting simple tasks. He was cuddling Nix to try and calm down, letting out a whimper when he heard the strange- brothers voice. Not taking a chance he let his magic seep below the door, pulling it back when it confirmed what he sensed. So it had been dad out there....

He cautiously cracked open the door, only opening it fully when Nix didn't react negatively to the two monsters. He felt a sense of revulsion when he spotted the soup, letting out tears of frustration at still having these issues.

"Not hungry.."

He lied, already feeling tired despite just having a nap.

"Would you give me a few minutes inside Nebula, I think it might help you?" Traveller asked.

Karma shrugged but stood back from the door to allow them in, still keeping Nix in his arms.

He placed the food on a table, hoping Karma would at least eat some of it later and closed the door with Oneiro outside.

"Karma. 404 and CHAOS are not coming back.. we made sure. Even their SOULS are gone," He said quietly, sitting on the bed beside them.

Karma had not known that, just thinking they had destroyed their physical vessel, like most deaths he had witnessed. That did mean there was no chance he would ever see them again..but why did he still feel anxious then?

"....Can I have a hug?"

"Of course," Traveller said holding out his arms to him, he had a few things he could do to help Karma also.

Karma practically tackled his brother for the hug, as if scared they would change their mind if he was too slow. Nix leapt away to avoid getting squished, meowing so their monster knew they were still here.

Karma shuddered, focusing on his brothers SOUL with desperation, trying to convince himself he was safe. His magic pulsed with his fear, ready to react to any perceived danger, which terrified him. What if he accidently hurt dad, when mistaking them for da- 404 again? He sometimes even forgot he could use his magic, which only elevated his fear. He hated this so much..

"I'm here love, I'm here," Traveller said gently rubbing their back, "I won't leave, it's okay. I have something for you to see..."

He pulled out three pale amber shards that seemed to be solidified magic "This.. is all that's left of them, you can do anything you want with them. Destroy them, use them as toys, eat them and make the power your own.. or even ask someone else to destroy them. I purified them, so nothing of them remains in the shards."

"For you to have closure..."

Karma studied the shards in his brothers hand and slowly went to touch them, a sense of unexpected grief overcoming him at the solid proof of their demise. He grabbed the shards and held them in his hand, making sure to stay in his brothers arms the whole time.

"...I miss them, brother. I loved them but i also feared them"

Even knowing what they had done to him, it didn't magically change his memories of them and it made things so much harder to deal with.

"Why didn't they want me ?"

His tears fell onto the shards, his burgeoning anger being snuffed out, replaced by resignation. He should have known things were too good to be true.

"It's okay to miss them love, you were with them for quite awhile. While it was all a game to them, to you it was real and you loved them... it's not right they didn't treasure you and love you like you did," Traveller replied, gently wiping away Karma's tears. "I can't say why they did anything."

Karma felt emotionally rung out, his gaze wandering back to the shards still in his hand. He could do anything he wanted with them and he had a brief thought of throwing them in the AntiVoid, to be left alone like he was..but he knew he couldn't do that. That would mean letting them go and he didn't want that. He refused to just forget what he had been through, never wanting to experience something like this again.

So with little hesitation he ate the shards, taking their remaining power for himself. He would like to say it reminded him of eating SOULS but it felt slightly different, a unique feeling he didn't know how to describe.

"...I want to use my magic today"

He cuddled back into his brother, just wanting to be held. He knew he didn't need permission but hearing the affirmative response always soothed the fearful part of him, scared this was just an elaborate dream.

"Of course, do you want to do it in one of the spare rooms or outside. By the lake if outside, as it has room and won't scare the animals," Traveller said softly, nuzzling his baby brother. He would have given the shards awhile ago, but he's been making sure they were safe before he offered them.

He'd been half expecting, to be asked to make them marble or something strange.

"But.. before you do, I.. want to teach you something.."

"I think inside would be best," Karma wanted to let loose and he did not want to accidentally kill any of the animals.

He should really go to see Sooty again, he had missed her.

"What do you want to teach me, brother?"

He chirped in question, wondering why his brother seemed hesitant.

"I'm going to teach you how to sense bonds between SOULS, so you can always feel them and the absence of them. Like the one we have, and the one you have with Oneiro," Traveller told them, mind you both bonds had grown as both were Karma's parents in all ways now "And how to use that bond to track them down if something happens."

Karma would have thought it would be an easy skill but the past few months showed he was not as good at it as he thought. It's not his fault he hadn't had a decent bond in years, he was just used to blocking them out then anything else. It had been useful in preventing Reaper from finding him that way in the past.

"Ok. How do I do that?"

"I'm going to pull out my SOUL, so you can feel it better. See if you can feel our bond that way, your SOUL should feel it easily as it was recreated by mine. It's why 404 had so many issues making you forget me," Traveller told him, summoning his SOUL which from sight one couldn't tell it had originally been two SOULS.

Karmas studied the SOUL in front of him, trying to focus on the bond between them. His wings twitched when he finally found it, thinking it felt stronger then he last remembered but he was just glad he had sensed it.

"It feels sparkly, yet cold to my senses"

He chirped out, with it reminding him of his Death magic which he had rarely gotten to play with lately.

The bond felt like a stabilising force in his SOUL, like a rope connecting the two of them that he should be able to follow to the source. How very odd, was it supposed to feel this nice?

"Alright, I want you to press more magic into the bond. See how that feels... I'll do the same alright," Traveller grinned.

Karma had never tried to do that before but readily did so, eyelight widening at how the bond practically lit up in response. It was so bright and he let out an unconscious purr as the comfort in his SOUL increased. It would be very hard to fake a bond with him now, as it was not a subtle feeling.

"No one can hide this, right?"

"Nope, no one can. After all, I made sure no one would be able to touch your SOUL," Traveller said with a savage grin, "now.. you should feel another bond... it should belong to Oneiro."

Karma shifted his focus to the other strong bond in his SOUL, finding it rather easily thanks to brothers assistance. He pressed some of his magic in it, giggling at how different it felt to brothers. It was warm and he mentally compared it to a raging bonfire, yet it didn't feel uncomfortable to be near. He purred at the answering pulse of comfort from the end of the bond, before withdrawing his magic.

"I found it but I am a bit confused. Why does dads bond feel different to Pales bond?"

He didn't think it was broken but it was very odd how strong these two bonds were..unless he was misremembering how it was before?

"Karma... Oneiro and I told you how we rebuilt your body right?" Traveller asked, he and Oneiro had to explain after he'd noticed the slight difference to his wings

"Yes, you did," Karma had been surprised by his wings but not disappointed, often amusing himself by shifting his wings in order to catch the light. They were rather pretty and still his favourite part of himself.

"We didn't say anything else, as you were pretty bad mentally back them. 404 destroyed your core Codes, meaning destroying the Codes representing even who your parents were. So... we kind of donated our own," he blushed at admitting that, he had barely gotten used to Karma being his SOUL child... now he was his child in truth.

He was an eternal child, but had a son without all that dirty mating business.

"..so that makes you my biological parents?"

Karma had never had the best relationship with his initial parents or the majority of them from before and was a tad uneasy what this meant for him now.

"You still love me though..?"

Maybe it was unnecessary to ask, considering he could feel it in the bonds but he had gone through this process too many times to not be wary.

"I'll always love you, you're my precious nebula. My SOUL child, being your parent means nothing changed as you still mean everything to me. It just means You're mine in all ways and my family in more than choice, I just have to share parenthood with Oneiro," he said the last part dryly.

Karma wetly giggled, still finding it funny how his dad and brother interacted.

"Do you want me to call you something different now?"

He was still fuzzy on some social rules but auntie had insisted he call Reaper 'father', even if he thought it was a meaningless title.

"Pfff... no, you can still call me big brother or Traveller. You can even call me Hearth, its a name someone gave me once. No matter how funny it would be to see peoples faces if you call me mom or dad, I want you to call me what makes you feel comfortable," Traveller said nuzzling him.

Karma chirped, nuzzling back into brother, feeling much less tense. He should have known brother wasn't like the rest but still adoring having this confirmation. It would be funny to see people's reactions but he rather liked the title 'brother', of the first being he had fully trusted in this life.

"I love you, brother"

They were still family no matter what the 'correct' title was and he was content with that. It's not like his life was ever normal anyway, this was just following the trend really...he was kind of morbidly curious what the next crazy thing to happen would be. He really hoped it didn't top this.

"I love you too brother," Traveller said curling his wings around them both, he didn't know what the future would bring. Nor did he understand those two voices during the time against 404 or CHAOS, or how the darker of the two voices had felt like greeting an old friend.

What mattered was the fragile child in his arms.

Karma could have easily napped right now but his body suddenly remembered it was hungry, making him grumble with the thought of moving.

"I think i want to try eating now, brother"

With one last nuzzle, Traveller shifted his wings and pulled over a table with blue magic and shifted the food tray to it the same way. He frowned seeing it had cooled a bit, and tapped the bowl with a finger and touch of magic to reheat it.

Karma was glad he didnt have to move far and accepted the bowl of soup, finishing it off rather quickly. He must have been hungrier than he thought.

He cooed happily as he was handed over some snacks, finishing off those as well.

"Can I go play with my magic now?"

His magic was bouncing in anticipation of being let free, with him grinning widely at soon being able to let some excess energy out.

"I don't know, I'm perfectly fine cuddling you here and leaving Oneiro to himself," Traveller teased.

"Brother!" Karma playfully whined, giggling at finding himself wrapped in a hug again.

"It's not like dad would stay in the room with me"

He would prefer it if they didn't honestly, wanting to let all his magic out.

"You can join me if you want but i don't think it will be that exciting to watch"

Casually destroying a room with his magic, uncaring what he damaged, did sound fun to him though!

"You don't know your dad enough, he'd love to destroy things with magic with you for fun," Traveller told him amused "Or even watch, you'd have to drag him away from you doing something. He's gushing over you like a dork."

"He is?" Karma blushed at the thought of his dad doing that, somehow not expecting that at all. It seemed they were full of surprises.

"..what if my magic hurts him though?"

He had always had to be vigilant with his Death magic and seeing Reaper lose control one time, had not been a pleasant experience.

"Why would his own child's magic hurt him, he gave part of himself so shared his magic with you. He's very powerful as a Destroyer you know, and if you did hurt him somehow he'd laugh it off proud you are so powerful," he giggled "You're his precious world."

Karma hid his face in his scarf, feeling way too many emotions. He did like that he could let his magic be more relaxed around his dad but everything else was far too much right now!

He felt so very loved and tried to wipe away his tears, but they just wouldn't stop.

A distraction was desperately needed and thankfully he had one.

"Can we go now?"

"Of course, did you walk or be carried?" Traveller asked, pouting a bit as cuddle time was over.

"Carried," Karma was staying where he was until he had to move, which would also give him time to calm down. His emotions had been far too erratic lately and he was growing rather tired of it.

"More cuddle time for me then," Traveller giggled getting up, he adjusted Karma as he walked to the door. Opening it, he saw a rather relieved looking Oneiro.

"How are you feeling, little raven?~" Oneiro had felt them tug the bond earlier and they looked fine but for some reason were not looking at him. He gently stroked their wing to grab their attention, relieved they didn't flinch but heard some indistinct mumbling.

"What was that? I couldn't hear it over your cuteness, little crow~"

"..you want to come and destroy a room with us, dad?"

Karma was surprised how enthusiastically dad agreed, guessing that brother had been right about this. Maybe they would all have fun.

"Come on Oneiro, we're just going to change a room into a training room with the tent controls so Karma can go crazy," Traveller grinned, fishing a book out of his item space. It was a control book linked to the tent, he could change room types and reinforce it to crazy levels.

Oneiro was looking forward to this, never having seen his child let go before. He waited for Traveller to do what they needed, cooing at the tiny sparks of magic coming off his child. Someone was rather excited.

"And done," Traveller said as he finished setting up the rooms settings, he opened the door and hummed happily. It was bigger than a football field and the walls glowed with magic, there was even a room off the side with windows so people could watch safely.

"This work for you nebula?"

Karma was hardly paying attention, looking around the new room in awe, with his wings held high in anticipation. This was perfect!

He belatedly nodded at the question, taking another moment to admire the room when he was put down.

"Go on. Do whatever you want~"

Karma grinned and summoned his scythe, letting his magic be free to roam. No limits, no one he had to worry about. Just him and his magic...wait, he should summon Blasty! They would love this.

He giggled as he was practically tackled by his Gaster Blaster, ignoring everyone else in the room.

"Let's play! We don't have to hold back here. You are it!"

He bolted, laughing as they let out growls, clearly enjoying the freedom to roam as well. He barely dodged their jaws, using his weapon to give him the extra boost to get away. He screeched as they suddenly appeared in front of him, ending up draped over on top of them.

"Where did you learn that? That was so cool! My turn to catch you"

Oneiro stood back for the moment, enjoying watching his child play. He could see this being a regular occurrence, snorting at the crater Blasty suddenly made.

"I'm glad they are having fun. This room was an excellent idea, Traveller~"

"Every kid should be a kid, even if it means blowing up things," he replied warmly.

Karma looked so happy, Traveller couldn't wait to see what he'd be like in a few eons.

He poked Oneiro with a speck of power, grinning as they shivered from it.

Oneiro pouted at their amusement but soon found a very affectionate Gaster Blaster nuzzling him, nearly causing him to lose his balance. He let his child's 'best friend' do what they wanted, sighing as he saw some chew marks in his coat but still pat the large weapon.

"Dad! You have to join in Blasty really missed you"

"I can tell, little crow~"

Karma was happy Blasty still liked dad, as they could be rather picky. He nudged them towards his brother, telling them all about what happened since they last met. He had no clue why others thought Gaster Blasters were just weapons, as Blasty was so very lively.

They made such cute growls and purring noises.

"Oh, your blaster is cute," Traveller grinning, he scratched its muzzle giving a chirp towards it.

"By the way, I just unlocked this place for your dad. So he can come here also, the library will still kick him out after five hours though," he giggled, that was why he had poked them.

Karma was smug at the comment, as he knew Blasty was very adorable. Others were just too blind to see it!

He lit up that his dad could now travel to the in between as well, thanking his brother before screeching, as Blasty tried to tackle him again.

"No fair! I was distracted!"

The clacking of their jaw was his response but he could tell they were laughing at him, having to dodge again soon after.

Traveller spared Oneiro a look before flying to another spot to watch, the tall monster better not take advantage of what he had just done.

Oneiro would have been offended by the look, if his track record didn't speak for itself. He was much better nowadays but before meeting his child he was a bit more.. free in his actions shall we say. His brother could attest to this but he didn't regret how his life had gone. Not when he had such a cute child to spoil~.

Karma threw his weapon at Blasty, clapping when they caught it but still having to avoid them catching him. They were so fast!

He tried to hide behind brother but shrieked in mock betrayal, when they cuddled him, making him a sitting target for Blasty. He didn't really try to get away and purred when Blasty joined the impromptu cuddle, hearing dads laughter ring out. He was glad they were having fun too.

"By the way, did you ever tell Ordeal Karma is safe and he's officially an uncle now?" Traveller said giggling from the cuddle pile.

"Of course! I'm just upset i couldn't see their expression, as they sounded absolutely overjoyed at being an uncle~"

Oneiro was pretty sure that's what the choking noises meant, which was followed by a quiet prayer before they hung up. Being an official uncle must be such a shock for his poor brother.

He will make sure to visit a lot later, as they must miss him terribly by now.

"Did you tell him who Karma's other parent was?" Traveller asked even more amused, pretty sure Oneiro was missing something.

He had noticed that the other monster missed a lot of things.

"I did. They started laughing for some reason but they can be rather odd~"

It was either laughter or hysterical crying, it was hard to decipher over the phone. He fully blamed the strays his brother kept around for their behaviour, especially Killer.

"..they did mention a 'wife' but I may have misheard, as they began laughing again. Do you think my brother found a mate? That would be wonderful~"

"Wife..." Traveller said flatly, a wicked grin coming to his face.

Looks like Ordeal was to be pranked and Trolled like crazy, wife him would he.

His revenge would be fun, for himself.

Oneiro, oblivious to Ordeals fate nodded in agreement, looking forward to hearing more about this possible mate. Who knew his brother was able to hide this for so long?

Karma yawned and stretched his wings, enjoying the ache from a good flying session. Blasty soon un summoned themselves, Karma nuzzling into his brother feeling rather relaxed. This had been very much needed and his magic was now a low buzz, as he had expended a large amount.

"We'll make it one day at a time sweetie, and once you're ready we can all explore reality again," Traveller said nuzzling the tired baby bones.

"After all, time means nothing here."

Karma sleepily chirped, deciding a nap sounded rather nice right now.

"Cuddle time?"

"It's always cuddle time," Traveller purred, curling his wings around Karma and himself like a blanket.

Oneiro barely made it towards the cuddling pair, before he heard light snoring coming from his child.

"At least we never have to worry about their sleeping habits~"

"You poor ignorant soul, you just jinxed us."

~~~~~~

404: I'm great with children. Just look at Karma!

*Karma looking close to dusting and passed out on some pillows*

404: *Too insane to see any issues* See? Im a perfect parent!
-
404:..'Food'? SOULS is good enough for my child

Traveller: *Twitching in the distance*...Why did my urge to dust 404 just rapidly increase?
-
*Traveller suggesting rebuilding Karmas Code*

Traveller: Are you sure you can do this? We would both end up being Karmas biological parents in the end.

Oneiro: *Having been fully prepared to collapse the Omniverse if need me* I can do this with no problem~
-
Traveller: *Handing over the shards of Deity Chaos and 404, to Karma* You can do whatever you want with them-

Karma: *Already eating the shards*

Traveller: *Hadn't even finished giving the options*...that is fine too
-
*Oneiro telling his brother over the phone all that has happened*

Ordeal: *Blurts out in sheer shock* You have a wife?! I was gone for a month!

Traveller: *Spite fully activated* Im about to make this mans life a living hell