The tunnel Kris and Norman descended into was dark, though Kris could somewhat make out the faint outline of torches against the wall, long extinguished. They did nothing to light the way in the dark wet tunnel Normand and Kris found themselves in. Norman seemed a little hesitant as they both started through, but Kris knew they couldn't waste a second. After all, the trapdoor clicked open just seconds after it was closed. They needed to hurry up.

Norman snapped to attention, and Kris picked up the pace, intending to lead Norman... somewhere, but to their surprise, Norman pushed pass them and started running like he knew where he was going. Kris watched him, a little surprised, before hurrying up themselves. Norman seemed to know where to go.

Or so Kris thought. It only took a couple twists and turns for their light to completely disappear, and when it did, Norman stopped. Suddenly.

Kris crashed into him painfully, and they both fell down onto the hard rocks. Kris winced, and Norman cried out in pain. But why'd he stop in the first place?

"I-I couldn't see Finn anymore!" Norman explained, but in sounded more like a complaint. "I couldn't do anything!"

"Hey, there they are!" someone in the darkness yelled, and Kris and Norman turned in the direction they heard it. It wasn't hard to find, beams of light shone onto Norman and Kris like a spotlight. It reminded Kris of miners. Was that what this town was? Kris scowled. The darkness down here could have worked in their favour, but not when their attackers had lights to see.

This time, Kipo didn't even bother speaking, she turned away quietly, and Gale stopped the screen on his own. He let out a huff of annoyance when he did, but Kipo ignored him, picking up the boa and setting it on the table, none too gently.

"You don't have to... whatever," Gale said, giving up when he (rightly) assumed Kipo won't listen.

Kipo's brow furrowed as she rifled through the box. She knew time was paused and, technically, she had a lot longer than a few seconds, but she still felt herself selecting the little figurines urgently. She made sure to chose them carefully, but her hand was still shaking as she set them on the table.

"Ah, I see your thinking," Gale hummed. "The diligent Owl, that-."

"You don't need to do that," Kipo interrupted quickly. "The Owl and the Bat can lead them, right? Through the dark?"

Gale looked disgruntled, and when he answered, he sounded more annoyed than usual. "Yes."

"Alright, that's what I thought," Kipo said, nodding to herself. She points at the next figurine lined up. "And the tiger is an attack animal, right?"

"That is correct."

"And the sloth... what does that do?" Kipo asked. She has a suspicion, but she wasn't sure.

"The slothful Sloth," Gale said, dramatically, and Kipo sighed. It seemed the second she gave him an inch, he took a mile. "Will not be awoken by anything. Until its purpose is served, or perhaps, it is killed, it will sleep. Once it is placed, it cannot be moved aga-."

"Ah, I see!" Kipo said, pleased. "That's good, better than I thought, actually. Yeah, I've decided on these four."

Gale stared at her, and suddenly, Kipo felt a cold dawning on her. She didn't really know Gale, but also, she kind of did. He was sarcastic, selfish and... Kipo felt she should say something good to round it off, but she couldn't really think of anything. The point was, he had a personality. Usually. But when he was silent, like this, Kipo was suddenly reminded that she didn't know Gale at all. She was annoyed with him (she'd never tell him that), and sometimes, she thought he was kind of funny, but it was at times like this when Kipo got the sense that maybe she should look a little closer at his grumpiness.

Eventually, he rolled his eyes, and Kipo breathed a sigh of relief. "...Alright."

The screen started up again.

The four looked down on Kris and Norman, but they weren't doing anything, just staring at them. With the light in their face, Kris couldn't make out their expressions, so they couldn't figure out while they weren't doing anything.

One of them put their hands on their hips. "Hey..." he said, and Kris noted with some surprise that it was Fraser. "Wasn't there another one? The ghost girl?"

Suddenly, a noise clattered from the darkness inside the tunnel, one that sounded like a scream. Norman and Kris both jumped, looking behind them, but the four standing over them didn't even flinch. Where they used to this?

"She must have run off deeper in the tunnels," another one huffed. "Aw well."

Again, in the darkness, the tunnel rumbled, with strange noises shaking the ground and walls around them, but if it was supposed to be threatening, it was working. Norman and Kris were only confused, and the four miners didn't seem concerned in the slightest.

"She won't get far," a new voice said, and they knelt down to Norman, picking him up. "It's pitch dark!"

"Well, unless she get's to... er..." Fraser's voice sounded nervous. Kris felt hands on their arms that pulled them up, and though they weren't happy about it, they let themselves be dragged up. These four didn't seem too bright. Kris and Norman would have their chance. "Well, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, the river," someone else laughed. "It's not a secret."

"Fine, the riv-," Fraser started, but a sudden wail through the tunnel cut him off, and Kris was surprised to see one of the silhouettes jump, while the others remained unaffected. So, Fraser was the only one afraid of this place? "The hell was that?!"

The others laughed.

"What, you scared or something?" one chortled. "There's nothing even down here? Man, you overground types are spoiled. Want me to hold your hand, you baby?"

"Don't be an idiot," Fraser sighed. "Let's just get out of here. Are you sure we shouldn't look for the girl?"

"In here?" a voice scoffed. "Nah. Not worth looking in this goddamn maze with the four of us. She won't get far, not without light."

"But what if she does get to the river?" Fraser insisted.

Kris felt the arms on them shrug. "Good for her."

That didn't seem to be the answer Fraser was expecting, and it took a little bit for him to answer. "Isn't there that door-?"

"It's locked," someone said flatly. Fraser gulped, embarrassed.

"...Ah, ok."

In the darkness, a breeze blew through, and Fraser shivered. Kris noted that in the light of the headlamps, Norman looked embarrassed. He looked like he was whispering out of the corner of his mouth. When Kris listened close, they could hear Norman whispering just under his breath.

Kris could just barely make out the words. "Finn, you can stop now... it doesn't seem to be working... Finn..."

Kris stopped listening. So that's what all that was.

"Let's just go back already," someone complained. "So this guy doesn't faint on us. Seriously, if you think THIS is bad, you should see what we usually get-WAH!"

Suddenly, the person holding Kris let go, stumbling backwards. Immediately, Kris pushed forward, ready to run away. It was pretty easy, as it seemed that all four of the miners were panicking, suddenly distracted by something and barely paying attention to Norman or Kris. Finn?

Kris was ready to run away, glad for the distraction and not very worried about what it was, but they couldn't navigate the caves without Norman, and Norman was staring at the miners, so Kris resisted the urge to run away to stand by him, watching as well.

It looked like a very wild strobe show over there, with lights criss-crossing all over the walls of the tunnel and cries of panic from all the miners. Kris squinted, trying to spot what got them so spooked, but all Kris could catch a glimpse of was a small shadow when one of the beams of light happened to cross over it.

Was it a ghost?

Beside them, Norman shrugged.

"No? I don't think so...?" Norman couldn't possibly sound more unsure. "I don't know. Probably not."

Oh. Well, whatever it was, it probably wasn't as important as they were treating it. Kris turned away, and after a second, Norman did to. But they didn't move immediately. They stood, with Kris in front and Norman slightly behind, both of them staring into the darkness. They both were well aware it was a tunnel, but in the darkness, it suddenly looked as intimidating as a solid wall. The miners had said that there was almost no chance that Mabel could possibly reach whatever 'river' they had been talking about, and Kris doubted that belief was misplaced. So how were Kris and Norman supposed to do...?

Kris gripped their sword. Although dressed like one, and technically being something like one in the Otherworld with That Person, Kris was not a hero, or a knight. They could use this blade for whatever THEY wanted, and if they wanted to use it to hurt someone else for information...

That Person was so nice that being mean again felt even better than before. Kris begun to unsheathe their blade, ready to turn around...

Suddenly, something flew out in front of them from above their heads. Kris and Norman startled, and stared at the two things that had appeared in front of them. Kris and Norman blinked up at them, surprised. In the light from the miner's headlamps, they saw...

"A bat and an owl?" Norman asked, bewildered. "What are they doing here?"

Neither animal answer, they only hovered in front of the two, flapping their wings to stay in the air. Norman didn't saw any more, and Kris nor the animals said anything either. In the long silence, everyone waited, and it dawned on Kris that this felt familiar. Almost like NPCs in a video game...

Norman frowned, but Kris hadn't pegged them for a gamer anyway. Or a very big gamer, at least.

"I game!" Norman defended weakly, but it sounded awkward coming from him. "...In the arcade... what were you saying?"

Kris had been noticing that the owl and the bat seemed like NPCs in a video game waiting for the player to follow them for a side quest.

"Uh... oh," Norman said. "So we follow them?"

Kris didn't answer, instead, they just started after the animals, and, just like they said, the bat and owl started leading them. Norman said something, but Kris didn't hear. The important things are that Norman started running after them, and the miners still seemed distracted, yelling about the 'ghosts' that weren't actually there anymore.

However, the problem was still there: even though the two birds could see in the dark, neither Norman nor Kris could, and soon, they'd been fumbling again.

Luckily, the birds seem to have planned for this, and they both swooped down, one by Kris and the other by Norman, though they couldn't see which was which. That way, the two could hear the wingbeats to guide them, even with the yelling behind them, which had gotten even louder ever since the four had realized the birds weren't near them anymore, only to discover that something was blocking their way to the escapees. Kris didn't know what it was blocking them, couldn't even imagine, but when they glanced back, all they saw was a dark grey lump on the floor. Kris did not stop to see what it was.

The birds led them through the caves, and Kris was reminded of following Norman, but this time, they definitely felt more assured. The four behind them said it themselves, this place was a maze, and with the head start they had, the two were essentially lost in the maze.

Kris wasn't the type to count their chickens before they hatched, but as red, fiery light appeared before them, it was hard not to feel like they were home free. Kris' feet ran faster underneath them, almost unbidden, and they raced to the end of the tunnel. It was right in front of them...

Kris wondered if he could have taken down those guards themself. Probably. Oh well.

However, right as Kris was at the end of the tunnel, Norman called out behind them.

"Wait, Kris, don't-," Norman cried, but, really, it was two late for either of them. It did not open up into the outside, like they had thought; it didn't even open up onto actual ground. When Norman and Kris ran through the tunnel opening, full force, they sprinted straight out to an abyss, flying through the air to see a gigantic, lit up cavern, illuminated by the red, glowing river at the bottom of it. Also, throughout the cavern, there was a large metal sculpture that make it look like a giant metal spider with too many legs to count was crawling through it. At the center, connecting all the metal legs, was a black building, looking like an ominous shadow.

Norman and Kris weren't falling for long. Those metal bridges were everywhere, and soon, Kris and Norman landed on one, painfully. Kris and Norman bounced on the metal, and it shook violently underneath them.

When the two came to a stop, Kris quickly got to their feet. The sharp metal underneath them had cut into their hands and face, and so when Kris tried to wipe the wetness of their arm off on their sleeve, they weren't sure which one the red liquid was from.

Norman was still trying to get up behind them, but underneath their feet, the metal bridge still shook, becoming more and more unstable as they stood on it.

Without waiting for any more time, Kris was moving, running along the slender metal bridge until they got to Norman, who was looking at the cuts long his arms with an unnerved look on his face. He wasn't looking at Kris at all, so when Kris ran by him, he startled, jumping.

"Huh? Kris, what are you doing?!" he called, but Kris didn't need to answer, because as soon as Norman looked along the bridge, he got it, scrambling to his feet and following Kris along the bridge.

He was just in the nick of time, too, behind him, the bridge started creaking and groaning and finally coming apart, breaking into pieces that seemed like it was following Norman and Kris.

Too late, Kris saw that the way the two of them were running was probably the wrong way. There was nothing around this way except a wall, only slightly curved in by what looked like pickaxe and drill marks. There was no where to go this way, and the ground was already tilting beneath their feet...

Desperately, Kris looked from side to side, and all over, before, jumping over the side of the bridge, and, by sheer luck, hooked their fingers over the one just above it, and to the side. The pinpricks of pain in their fingers were nothing compared to the wave of relief they found washing over them. They swung themselves over, and safely onto the bridge, breathing a sigh of relief.

It was shattered almost immediately though, by a yell from Norman. Kris startled, and saw Norman doing what they just did, jumping over the side of the broken bridge to this one. But unlike Kris, he definitely wasn't going to make it, even with his hand stretched out all the way to this bridge. He was going to fall.

Without thinking, with that hero instinct drilled into them by That Person, Kris reached out, and took Norman's hand before he could fall, holding on tightly.

...

Kris didn't even think.

...

That was what That Person would do. Be a hero. Kris wouldn't.

...

So saving Norman... that was all That Person, wasn't it?

Kris' face twisted into a scowl, and Norman's eyes, which had held a mix of surprise, confusion and gratitude, went wide.

"Kris... just pull me up," he called, sounding panicked. "Pull me up!"

Kris really felt like they shouldn't, they were so angry... at Norman, at That Person, at themselves... they wanted to drop Norman to prove themselves again, that they were nothing like That Person. They were DIFFERENT. They were their OWN PERSON. And they weren't a HERO.

But still, they didn't drop Norman, instead, they pulled him completely up, onto the bridge. Norman gasped, like Kris had been holding him underwater.

"I-You-You saved-," Norman gulped, as if trying to physically swallow the words back into his mouth. "Thanks."

Kris didn't answer, they only got to their feet, looking around the large cavern. They seemed to have left their pursuers in the dusk, but Kris wasn't exactly sure how they'd follow them here anyway. The structures of the metal bridges spanning all over the cavern made no sense. Sometimes, they'd lead from the dark building into a solid wall, and others would have a doorway but no bridge, like the one Kris and Norman fell through. Only a precious few had both doorways and bridges.

As they looked, Kris wiped the sweat off their brow. It was hot in here, hotter than the church. Kris couldn't even imagine the intense cold outside, the heat accumulating in the tunnel burned away any memory of cold and snow. As they looked, Kris took a glance at the swirling lava below. On this bridge, they were at least ten meters above the lava, but Kris could still feel it, and it was almost unbearable, even up here, and they couldn't imagine what the lava was like even a little bit closer.

As they continued searching, Kris spotted the two creatures that happen been leading them before. Now that they didn't need to be guided so closely, the owl and the bat had broken away from them, and were now both hovering at one of the doorways, at the top of the cavern. Their destination, it seemed.

Kris started across the bridge, this one a lot sturdier than the last, towards the building, and though they told themselves they didn't care, they faulter when they didn't hear the footsteps behind that they were expecting.

They waited, but when Norman didn't follow, they finally turned around. So much for looking unbothered.

Norman didn't notice at first, and Kris was surprised to find him muttering to himself. Kris stared at him, before they shook their head. No, Norman wasn't talking to himself, he was talking to his ghost friend, Finn. If Kris squinted hard, they could see Finn's outline, and it looked just as confusing and strange as before.

Kris wasn't exactly too interested in waiting around for Norman, but unfortunately, they didn't want to continue on alone, either. So they decided to wait, sitting down onto the bridge with a sigh.

...They waited for a couple seconds and then stood up again, feeling stupid. Kris had already saved Norman once, so what would Norman think when Kris started waiting around to walk together. Kris started walking up to the building again.

However, they didn't get very far.

"Hey, Kris, wait!" Norman called, and to their own annoyance, Kris stopped, letting Norman catch up, feeling the metal bridge jump underneath their feet. When Norman caught up to them, he lowered his voice, covering his mouth so he was quieter. "Kris, I don't know if we should follow those things."

Kris gave him a strange look. Why not? They had gotten the two of them over here, hadn't they?

"Well, yeah..." Norman admitted. "But those aren't Finn's doing and he doesn't know what they are! They're just... an owl and a bat."

...Kris stared at him.

"There aren't any of those here in this... place... world!" Norman whispered harshly. "Kris, why are we following those?"

....Well, Kris didn't actually have an answer for that. They shrugged.

"...So we shouldn't follow them?" Norman asked.

Kris shrugged. Norman breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, I thought you weren't going to believe me," he said. "Oh, okay... what do we do instead?"

Kris stared at him. This time, Norman stared back, also waiting for an answer.

"...What do we do next?" Norman asked again. Kris shrugged. Norman looked backwards, at the wall where the bridge ended at the building. "I guess we can't go back... our only option is to go forward. But we should be careful... Kris?"

While Norman had been rambling, Kris started forward, leaving Norman to scramble after them.

In a way, Norman sort of reminded Kris of Ralsei, but only in the way they clearly didn't have a lot of friends and seemed to be a little lonely. Whenever Norman said something he wasn't sure of, Kris thought of Ralsei, or when Norman said something that he was sure no one would hear, and having everyone hearing it anyway, and then being embarrassed...

Kris and Susie didn't have many friends, either, but they didn't do that. What was this Norman and Ralsei anyway?

Why didn't Norman have any friends?

Norman's head jerked up, perhaps surprised by the question. "What?"

Why didn't Norman have any friends?

"...A lot of people I grew up with didn't believe that I could really see and talk to ghosts," Norman answered after a while. Suddenly, he frowned. "I had a friend."

A friend? One?

Norman's frown deepened. "...I guess. I was getting more, though, before I came here... and then..."

And then he didn't try to talk to any of the people here. Kris could fill in the rest. And, if they were honest with themselves, they could relate. Making friends for yourself was exhausting, and That Person had made all of Kris' friends for them, including, rather embarrassingly, fixing up some old relationships that Kris had all but abandoned (and they hadn't noticed a thing... that Kris was... different). Even if they didn't make those friends themselves, and even if it was worth it, it was still tiring and then going and losing them all and meeting strangers here...

Didn't sound worth it.

In any case, what Norman said was weird.

Norman jumped, and then sighed, rubbing at his head. "What's weird is the way you talk to me," he muttered under his breath, and Kris saw him roll his eyes.

"So, you think I'm weird, too?" Norman called out, and his voice made it sound dejected, though resigned.

Kris glanced back at him, and either Norman wasn't hiding anything, or he wasn't used to being noticed, because he wasn't hiding his annoyance at all.

In any case, that wasn't what Kris was saying.

Norman brightened. "So you... don't think I'm weird? What are you saying?"

Kris rolled their eyes. They didn't say they thought Norman was weird OR that Norman wasn't weird!

Norman glared at him. "Then what?"

Kris sighed, and then stopped, turning around to face Norman. Norman noticeably backed up.

What Kris MEANT was that it was weird that everyone else just ignored the ghosts. What, did they just not like monsters?

Norman gave Kris a strange look. "They don't ignore them... they just can't SEE the ghosts. Wha-?"

Why couldn't they see the ghosts?

Norman looked confused. Glancing from away from Kris and then back. He clearly didn't love this conversation. "...I have a special power from my grandmother that lets me see ghosts. Most people don't have that."

Norman glared at him. "Then what?"

Kris sighed, and then stopped, turning around to face Norman. Norman noticeably backed up.

What Kris MEANT was that it was weird that everyone else just ignored the ghosts. What, did they just not like monsters?

Norman gave Kris a strange look. "They don't ignore them... they just can't SEE the ghosts. Wha-?"

Why couldn't they see the ghosts?

Norman looked confused. Glancing away from Kris and then back. He clearly didn't love this conversation. "...I have a special power from my grandmother that lets me see ghosts. Most people don't have that..."

Norman seemed to struggle with himself for a second, and he opened his mouth several times before also closing it, several times. Even when Kris got bored and started walking away again, Norman didn't complain, or even mention it. He just followed.

"Um... can everyone where you're from see ghosts?" Norman asked. It was a strange question, but Norman couldn't see Kris' face, so instead they nodded.

"Oh, really? That's cool," Norman said, and Kris could hear the grin in his voice. Kris didn't know what he was happy about, they'd much rather live in a town with humans than with monsters.

...Or maybe a town with Toriel, Asgore, Noelle, Susie, Asriel and Ralsei, and with humans. Kris did like some monsters, just they wished there were a couple other humans, too, so they didn't look so strange.

Norman didn't know how lucky he was, to look like everyone else in his town.

...Okay, Kris hadn't tuned him out completely. Maybe he did know, a little bit.

Norman was still chattering on behind them. "Where do you live? Do you think I could go there someday? Probably when we get out of here, I'm just, um... I'm really tired of seeing things no one else can see and... wait, were you lying?"

Kris looked at Norman and debated saying yes, but, for some reason, the debate didn't go on as long as it should in their head. They shook their head, but Norman didn't seem convinced.

Sighing, Kris stopped, and pointed out to the outline of Finn. There, that was the ghost. Now did Norman believe them?

Norman blinked, before a grin split over his face. "Oh. Okay. That's good. Yes, I believe you."

By now, the two had reached the ominous black building in the center of the cavern. There was a door, thankfully, in front of them that probably went into the building, but before they opened it, Kris put out their hand and brushed it along the side of the building. Norman did, too.

A fine black powder came away on their fingertips, and Kris rubbed their fingertips today, wondering what it was.

They tasted it. Tasted like charcoal and ash.

Kris stepped away to open the door, and ignoring how Norman was staring at them, wide eyed (just like Ralsei would... Ralsei never did what Susie and Kris did), stepped into the building. After a second, Norman followed them.

A wave of heat hit them both like a rather harsh punch, but neither of them stopped.

The room they stepped into was... spacious, and at first, Kris' mind blanked at the apparent contradiction in the building.

Norman echoed their thoughts.

"It's bigger on the inside?" Norman cried, startled, but Kris shook their head. It looked that way, but in fact it was just that the building expanded into the building it was set on. Neither Kris nor Norman had been expecting that.

"Oh..." Norman said, but he didn't look completely convinced.

The two of them stepped further into the room. It was a strange looking room, and it was completely white, with a high ceiling and a back wall that was very far away. There was nothing in the room except doors that opened up all over the walls, and the stairs that lead up to them along the walls. Kris and Norman themselves had stepped through a door that had opened up onto a platform, with stairs leading down to some stairs and more doors. There were even a couple doors on the floor, and, when Kris looked up, a few on the ceiling.

Kris tugged at their sleeves. It was stifling in here, like a sauna.

The two drank in the strange room in silence, which was only broken a few minutes later by Norman letting out a big groan.

"Oh no, not again," he muttered, turning on his heel and wrenching the door they came through open again. Kris started, wondering if Norman was just going to walk out again, but Norman merely glanced out at the steaming metal hellscape out there and breathed in relief, shutting the door again.

"Oh good, that's still the same," Norman said, before he frowned again. But maybe that's what they WANT us to think-!"

Once again, Norman opened the door, but, to his surprise, it was still the same. Kris watched this deranged comedy in silence, feeling like they were at the circus.

As if just realizing this, Norman stepped away from the door and looked to Kris, embarrassed.

"I... There was a house that could change rooms like that," Norman quickly tried to explain, but Kris only shrugged, turning away and down the stairs. Norman followed later.

Now... where was the door that would lead to the bat and the owl?

Suddenly, the sound of a door opening echoed throughout the room, and Norman and Kris both whirled around to see what it was. They both jumped when they found Fraser, who had come in through the door just above them. He looked just as surprised as they did, and for a few seconds, the three only stared at each other.

Suddenly, Fraser blinked, and threw up open the door again. It startled Kris and Norman enough that they started running as Fraser yelled through the door.

"Hey! I told you! Their here, over here!" Fraser cried as they ran away, and as Kris and Norman started down the steps and Fraser hopping down so he was right on their trail, the other three miners burst in.

One of the miners frowned as they all hurried after Kris and Norman. "The girl isn't here either," they mused, but it didn't sound that they were too worried about it, more curious.

As Kris and Norman ran and the miners chased, Kris knew that it wouldn't be long before they would be caught, based on how easily their pursuers were gaining on them.

They needed to get out of here. Behind them, Norman nodded, and took the lead. Kris let him, because even though Kris could see the ghost, too, Norman could obviously see it better.

Their pursuers followed closely, but Norman led confidently, and when the miners got too close, Kris didn't hesitate to unsheathe their sword, swiping at the miners as they stumbled back to avoid the rusted blade.

Norman, and his ghost, led them up a set of stairs, ignoring all of the doors along the way to reach the one at the very top. Without wasting a beat, Norman threw open the door, racing threw it with Kris fast on his heels. For a split second, Kris glanced back, and noticed in the back of their mind that the two weren't being followed so closely anymore.

Kris shut the door before they could think about it too closely, hurrying after Norman. The metal bridge they were on had a steep incline, and the sharp metal cut of their shoes as they ran. It was a literal uphill battle, and Kris could see that Norman was quickly losing steam.

However, before either of them could get anywhere close to the owl and the bat, the bridge underneath them suddenly shook, and Kris and Norman had to stop, both trying to catch their balance, but it was impossible as the bridges shaking got worse and worse. Both Norman and Kris fell to their knees, desperately trying to hang on.

"Kris-!" Norman shouted, before a horrible screech cut through the air and the bridge underneath them suddenly fell away.

Kris' stomach jumped to their throat, and they froze in deep seated fear before their brain caught up to them. The bridge was descending, but far too slowly for it to be falling. Kris looked back at the building. Somehow, someone was controlling the bridge from there, and when Kris looked over the edge of the bridge, they could see three of their pursuers waiting for them below, menacingly. Fraser was weaponless, but one of them held a broken pipe, and the other, a gun.

Kris glared at them, grinding their teeth. Neither them nor Norman were going to give up that easily!

Before them, Norman nodded.

Kris and Norman quickly scrambled to their feet, and this time, Norman followed them. They hopped off the descending bridge and onto another on.

"Hey!" Fraser called. "You can't do that!"

Norman and Kris ignored him. Both of them knew since someone was controlling the bridges, the building probably wasn't safe anymore, so they'd have to go the hard way up.

"Come on, get us up there already!" one of their attackers yelled to the building, and their bridge started moving, too. Fraser and the others hopped to the bridge Kris and Norman just left, making sure to keep closely behind them.

And such began a wild, weird chase, with the person in the building trying to force Kris and Norman's bridges down to Fraser and the others, and trying to help the miners up to Kris and Norman. It reminded Kris of a video game platformer, but infinitely worse, because there didn't seem to be anyway to win this. The miners chased them relentlessly, not seeming to be as worn down as Norman or Kris. One of them, the one with the pistol, shot at them, but it seemed like more of a threat than anything. The bullets never came anywhere near them, and Norman and Kris never slowed down, so eventually, the shooting stopped

But no matter how much Kris and Norman evaded the miners, it was rigged from the start, and soon, the attackers had leapt onto Norman and Kris' bridge when the two had nowhere to run off to.

Annoyed, Kris stepped forward and swung at them with the sword again, but this time, someone came up to meet them. As Kris swung their sword, the miner swung with their pipe, and upon contact, the sword shattered on impact.

At first, everyone was too stunned to move, before the miners burst out laughing.

"That's what you were threatening us with?" one of them chortled. "That toothpick?!"

Kris scowled, sheathing the half of the sword still in their hand. Norman and them were going to have to move quickly...

"Don't just stand there, get them!" Fraser yelled. "Quick, before they run again-!"

Now! Norman, now!

Norman jumped, startled, and the two of them moved at the same time. But while Kris jumped up to the right, Norman jumped down to the left.

The miners followed Norman, and he didn't stand a chance. They quickly apprehended him, and Kris scowled. Dammit! They should have planned better.

Kris stood up on their bridge on shaking legs. Norman was looking up at them, his eyes pleading, and in the back of their mind, Kris wondered if they should run away. Kris wasn't a hero, they knew that very well, so they had no reason to do anything.

But that wasn't at the forefront of Kris' mind. What they were mostly thinking of was how they wanted to help Norman, and they were surprised that their conviction left no room were doubts.

Plus, Kris could see Fraser looking up at them, and though his eyes were narrowed, he also looked worried. Scared of Kris.

Kris leapt down to Norman's bridge, but to their surprise, at the last second, the bridge moved away. Kris' eyes widened, and just before it was too late, they reached out, hooking their fingers around the bridge, metal cutting through their flesh, and a searing pain being ripped through their shoulder.

The miners peered down at him.

"Should we get that one, too?" one of them asked, but Fraser shook his head.

"No need, this one is the one Father is looking for," Fraser told them. Another one shrugged.

"Whatever you say," they said, and Kris tried to swing their other arm over onto the bridge to pull themselves up, but a white-hot pain flared through their arm, distracting them. And by then, it was too late. The miner had lifted their boot, forcing Kris' fingers off the bridge easily.

"Kris!" Norman yelled, but there was nothing he could do. Kris fell a long time, but not into fiery lava, like they thought. Kris gasped as their back hit metal, forcing their air from their lungs. Their vision went black for a moment, but only for a moment. When Kris was able to open their eyes again, they saw Norman and the miners, just as they disappeared into a tunnel. There were four miners, so no one was controlling the bridge anymore. And Kris was... somehow... alive.

Only half of this registered.

Kris forced themselves up. If they were alive, and Norman was alive, then there was still hope to keep it that way.

Kris shakily got to their feet, their feet catching on a wetness underneath them. They wiped at their forehead, but it didn't clear anything. All over their body, it hurt, especially their back. Whenever they took a step, they had to lift their leg threw an entire hell in order to walk. They continued on, though, along the bridge and down the dark tunnel that awaited them.

Norman fought against them, but the miners weren't taking any more chances. They forced Norman back through the tunnels easily, and in an embarrassingly short amount of time, they were back on the surface again, and Father Arlen was glaring down at him. At a glance, it might have looked like a principal looking down on a misbehaving student, but when Norman looked up at him, he could see the fear and hate in his eyes.

Norman looked away. It terrified him. That look was the one that appeared in his worst nightmares, but even when he feared it above everything else, he realized he never expected to see it in real life.

Norman shuddered, and felt the miners fingers tighten on his arms.

"Let's get this over with," Father Arlen hissed. "Quickly, before it's too late. We'll do it, by the river, behind the houses."

"Are you sure?" one of the miners asked. "We always do it at Ascencon River..."

"This way people can still watch," Father Arlen explained. He gave Norman a sour look. "Besides... do you really think this one can be redeemed?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Norman could see Fraser giving him an unreadable look. AT the start, when Norman was first 'arrested', Fraser spoke with kindness, and seemed like a normal person, unlike everyone else in this town who spoke with the same insanity as Father Arlen. But it was a trick, first and foremost. Fraser was no different than everyone else in this town, he just looked a little nicer.

"I guess not," Fraser said, and with that it was decided. Norman was taken away, and with an efficiency that scared him (how many times has this happened?), Norman was tied up at the top of a pole, the metal of it digging deep into his back, and the burn of the ropes slicing into his skin. No matter how much he struggled, the rope only seemed to get tighter. The four miners carried Norman out with the pole hung between them, and Norman felt just like a pig on a stick.

Just as they said, they carried Norman out to the river, where Father Arlen waited.

At first, the miners set up, and waited for something. For a second, they all stood still, clearly waiting for something, before Father Arlen frowned at them.

"Um-," Norman started, but Father Arlen interrupted him quickly.

"What are you waiting for?" he snapped. "He isn't getting a sermon, just kill him!"

"Wait, no, stop!" Norman cried, but the four were already tilting his pole into the water. And though he desperately pleaded, as he got a look at the miners faces, his heart fell. There was no sympathy on any of their faces, only stone-faced resolution. There was no point in begging to any of them, they all hated him, somehow. Norman struggled with this as he splashed into the water.

The icy cold water was a shock and Norman gasped. It was a mistake, and immediately, water filled up his lungs and mouth. Norman breathed in desperately, looking for air, but there was none to be found. Still, he kept gasping, thrashing around in the icy as he fought.

He needed-he needed-he needed-

However, as Norman stopped fighting, he realized that everything slowly fell away. The pole, the rope, the water, the millions of eyes all around him...previous victims, clearly and his fight. They all disappeared, one by one. Norman found himself floating. There was a warmth in his chest, like a fire, but though Norman tried to curl around it, he found he had no limbs or body to do so. There was nothing around him but the fire in his chest and white, blanketing him like a blanket and pressing in on him oppressively.

No pain left. No hurt left. No Kris, or Mabel, or anyone else. And his fight had already been peeled away like it was nothing, so Norman succumbed easily, to whatever

That

Was...

Kris lumbered through the dark tunnel, feeling the wall with their hand. Whenever a rock or something poked into their wounds, or whenever they hit a wall, it was almost a relief, because that pain distracted them from their much bigger, much worse pain, but the distractions didn't stay for long.

They didn't know where they were going. Neither the owl or the bat were guiding them anymore. They just went on. Sometimes, they wondered if they were going down, or up.

They just went on.

And on

And on.

And on.

Suddenly, a light appeared at the end of the tunnel, and Kris stopped, staring at it. A light...

They didn't move for a long time, perhaps they wouldn't have moved ever again. It didn't really matter, because they wouldn't find out. Something came out to meet them.

Kris couldn't see it properly, but when they squinted, they saw a mass, and a thousand eyes from that mass staring out at them. Hands from the mass clung onto the ceilings and the walls, some, reaching out towards Kris.

When the monster spoke, it spoke with too many mouths.

"Another one, another one?"

"More... humans?"

"They're back! They're back!"

The mouths kept speaking, saying different things, but soon, they all combined into one chant: "They're back! They're back!"

Kris found themselves backing up. They weren't scared, even though the monster was creepy, but seeing a monster was almost a sense of comfort. A wave of nostalgia suddenly hit Kris.

Suddenly, the monster shuffled forward, and Kris shuffled back more. The most was blocking the wall to Norman, probably, so Kris would need to get back it if they wanted to get to Norman.

As Kris back away again and unsheathed their half-a-sword, and the monster hissed.

"No, NO!" the monster cried. "Come closer, come here!"

The monster cheered as Kris stepped forward. It reached out... one of its hands. "Yes... please... join us."

Kris charged the monster, painful as it was. But that was all they could do.

Quick as lightning, the monster's hand shot at towards Kris, enlengthening the thing until it pieced them through their armor and through their chest. Kris' limbs fell uselessly to their side as they stared dumbly at the skinny, grey arm.

The monster lifted them up, and Kris saw a town behind them, like the one on the surface, but different, too. An underground town. It was empty, except for a statue in the middle of a humanoid figure with claws and horns, wings and a town. A monster.

Suddenly, Kris was dragged forward by the arm retracting into back into the was.

This pain... it was a nice distraction, Kris thought.

At this pointed, the pencil marks on the paper were practically unreadable and the paper was folded so many times that whenever Mabel lifted it or tried to move it, she accidently ended up tearing it a little bit because the paper was so soft. Mabel had to be especially careful with it, or it'd crumble into dust.

Mabel had been playing with the letter, half because she was really bored waiting for, and half because she knew, she KNEW, that there was something here, hidden in the paper. She agreed with Father Arlen, the writer of this paper was not a God, probably.

The letter was straight-forward, addressed to Father Arlen and telling him that Kris and Mabel were doing what the god wanted, and that Norman was innocent. It reminded Mabel of the letter sent by Kipo, and the one sent by the person she was with. Was it... Gale?

The letter was probably sent by Kipo, then. Definitely not a God. But that was why Mabel was looking so hard in the paper for a clue, some sort of answer to whatever was going on. Mabel was, well, confused, and she had a lot of questions. Was the God that was destroying their town the same one these people worshiped? Where was Kipo in all this? Was everyone else ok? Was Dipper ok? Were Kris and Norman ok? Because Mabel had been waiting for three days at LEAST, and she was wondering how many more she'd have to wait before she had to go back into town and look for the two of them.

(...Mabel knew she probably should have went back a while again, but well... she was still kind of guilty. About Bill, and the apocalypse. No matter how much Dipper reassured her, Mabel couldn't shake the feeling about how clearly she got tricked, how obvious it was that Blendin was actually Bill in disguise. Dipper never said outright, but Mabel wondered if wanted to go out and explore this new land, but didn't, for her shake. Mabel wondered if they were really equal partners at all, really, or was it her fault, all over again, that all this was happening? Was Mabel... holding Dipper back again?)

Mabel shook out her head. She didn't expect Kipo to know most of those answers, but really, the answer she was looking for was the answer to her biggest question, like she had been doing a lot of these days, she glanced at the three red flowers clutched in her hand.

What were these flowers?