Clover couldn't sleep. He also couldn't ask his mom for help. Not because he couldn't, well, ask... But because he didn't feel he deserved to ask for help. He felt ashamed, ashamed of himself and ashamed of his actions. He... Didn't deserve it.
Asgore, King of Monsterkind. The man who had ordered the deaths of all the fallen human children. And Clover had just been... Perfectly happy to live under him?
He tossed and turned in bed, how could he have ever...
Clover's heart felt thunderous in his chest, the still rapidly beating organ demanding activity, but his was body completely unable to give it. Contrary to the tremulous power he felt coursing through him, he felt weaker than ever...
In other news... He'd certainly realized what had been wrong with his magic... He'd been denying it a key part of itself. That sense of anger he felt at himself over his own neglect had been exactly what he'd felt had been missing from his magic. It was inexplicable to Clover, he just... He just knew. Despite that, despite finding the missing pieces, he couldn't find it in himself to muster the energy to put them together.
Clover had only barely cracked the door open, he couldn't bare the weight of everything that he'd forgotten quite yet, but even the fraction of his memory that he'd recovered refused to go down easily. Above everything else, there was one prevailing issue that Clover found himself facing.
His fear of remembering had always been related to another deep seated fear, he realized that now. Clover knew full well that his life on the surface was by all accounts, terrible. He'd throw it away an uncountable amount of times if he got the chance to do as much. But now... Now that he had a life he truly wanted to live...? Was... Was his goal worth it?
But, what was his life to five others? Five children who could still be suffering up to this very moment? Could he truly just continue to live despite knowing what he was leaving to suffer?
Clover clutched at his father's hat again, not his hat, his fathers hat. He'd come to that realization almost immediately. Clover had to wonder how exactly it was that he hadn't realized this beforehand... But, he supposed it made sense. They were eerily identical hats, after all. Without... Remembering much, it would be perfectly feasible to mistake one for the other.
Clover breathed in shakily, and closed his eyes uneasily. But... He just couldn't manage to complete his goal. This time, the fear of remembering was something else entirely. Something heart stopping, a source of pain that he could viscerally understand without even having an inkling as to what it was. And so soon after practically upending his world, Clover couldn't bring himself to try and remember his dad. All he knew was that he had his hat... And that it was a source of comfort. Anything else...? The hurt that hung just behind that door would be incomparable, yet just as terrible as what he currently found himself suffering through.
Clover tossed and turned in bed, his mind raced with questions and debates that he found himself unable to ignore. It was almost unbearable, but he couldn't say that he regretted peering into his memories. If anything, he would say he regretted not doing it sooner. A large majority of his subconscious was currently still screaming at himself for turning a blind eye to this injustice for so, so long... But, there was still a vocal minority very much for allowing this life to continue.
Did Clover not deserve happiness? That's certainly what he would've told you a month ago, maybe not quite in those words, but he very much would easily value honoring the fallen children over the chance of having a better life. But... Even that majority of himself couldn't deny that he had come to love his life in the Underground. That however, wouldn't change that there was justice to be served.
He... Had to do something, it wasn't a question of if he could, or even should, it was a question of how. Clover... Couldn't just carry on with his life any more. Perhaps in another time, he could've been convinced otherwise... But, ignoring this need for so long had only allowed it to fester. Justice needed to be served. At some point, at some time in the future. It needed to be done.
Clover cursed himself, for opening the door, for leaving it closed for so long, for building attachments, and for not valuing the time he had nearly as much as he should've. He turned over again, grimacing to himself.
He... Needed a plan, of some sort. Some way to go about delivering justice. What would he do? What... Should he do? Monsterkind being trapped was wrong, he knew that... But, King Asgore was also wrong. An injustice corrected by an injustice, what did that equal out to? Was Asgore ultimately deserving of judgment, even if his actions had given hope to thousands... Albeit at the cost of innocent lives?
Clover closed his eyes again, this wasn't something he could just go guns blazing about. Not like he had initially intended to do it. There was nuance, depth to the story. There was no black and white, no clear cut villain or hero. Admittedly, he needed time. More time than he'd already had. That thought seemed to sate his more vocal half, at least, somewhat... But, he still felt miserable. Even if he had a course of action, if only a flimsy one, the fact stood that he had ignored this problem for so... So long...
He wasn't sure if tears would begin to roll again, but he never had the opportunity to find out.
The feathers of Clover's plume stood on end, the weakness he felt in his body began to dissipate, replaced by a deep seated sense of unease.
"...Who's there?"
...Silence. Only the wind of the blizzard continued to howl outside of Clover's window. But still, that dread did not leave him. He sat up slowly, gently setting down his fathers hat on his night stand. His eyes rapidly flicked around his room, he no longer felt safe. Something was deeply wrong.
"...I don't rightly appreciate whatever kind of prank this is." Clover got himself up and out of bed, it was a good thing he wasn't in pajamas yet.
...Now that he thought about it, he hadn't really intended to sleep in the first place, had he?
Clover tried his best to steady his breathing again, it had gotten a little bit more difficult ever since he'd begun showing his true feelings more often, but he still had the knack for it. As he closed his eyes, his hand drifted towards a very real handle. He slid open the cabinet of his nightstand, and pulled out his wild revolver. Yes, his mom did make him keep it at home, but he was properly trained. Clover could handle a gun.
...Though it had taken a bit of insistence for his mom to actually let him keep it in his room.
...Good thing he'd insisted.
"Show yourself."
...Still no response, his feathers however still stood rigid. Clover had no reason to doubt them, they hadn't been wrong before.
"I'm... I'm goin to count down from ten. If you don't..." Clover was starting to get a little paranoid, he half trailed off into a mumble before he even finished the sentence, but simply shook his head after he became intelligible.
"Ten..."
The wind was chaotic.
"Nine..."
The room was dark.
"Eight..."
The silence was deafening.
"...S-seven..."
It threatened to swallow Clover whole.
He breathed in again.
"Six."
Was there really somebody here?
"Five."
The blizzard outside seemed to calm for a moment.
"Four..."
Or was that just Clover?
His fingers began to twitch. He raised the gun to nothing but the air itself.
"Three..."
...Maybe he really was just being paranoid?
"...Two."
HOOOOWLLLLL
Clover's attention snapped to the window, it had bursted wide open, and the cold wind found its way inside. He flinched and covered his eyes as snow filled the room, was that what his sixth sense, or whatever it was, was warning him about? Jeeze... Now he just felt dumb.
Well, it wouldn't be a good idea to let the window remain open. He'd catch a cold, or something. The chill wasn't exactly pleasant either.
"Jeeze... I'm such an idiot." Clover mumbled to himself as he holstered his gun. After rubbing at his temples for a moment, he made his way over to the window. "Guess I'll take a look at it tomorrow with mom, or somethin... That's not supposed to just come... U-undone...?"
Clover's eyes widened as he took a look at the lock. It had been... Broken, utterly and completely. Not just broken... Crushed into pieces.
Shattered.
...
Martlet woke up to the sound of wind, she then almost went right back to sleep, wind was normal.
But something felt wrong, very, very, wrong. Martlet wasn't sure if she'd ever felt something this dubious before. That wind had been loud, too loud. It sounded like it was shrieking directly into her ears...
"...Clover."
It sounded like it was coming from inside of the house itself.
Is Clover alright?"
Martlet blinked the sleep out of her eyes as quickly as she could. And with an all encompassing yawn, she got herself up and out of bed. She wasn't really used to this, given she never did it, but her own concerns kept her from second guessing herself. Worst come to worst, Martlet was sure Clover wouldn't mind the company all that much right now, even if they had asked to be left alone...
She rubbed at her eyes again as she quickly stretched with one wing, and then the other. She threw on a shirt, and switched on the lights. It was late out, very late. The blizzard was thick enough to blot out the natural light that permeated the Underground. She threw a quick glance towards her clock, one AM. That seemed about right, though the blizzard should be clearing up in a few hours. It was probably at its peak right about now...
As her eyes adjusted, Martlet made her way to the door, and with another yawn she pulled it open.
Clover's room was only a few steps away from her own, so the trip didn't even bear mentioning. A moment later, she stood nervously at Clover's door.
Knock... Knock.
"Clover? Are you awake?"
There was no response, only the quiet howling of the wind, barred off by the security of their home.
"...I'm going to come in, if you'd like me to stop, just let me know, okay?"
...Still no response.
Martlet sighed, and grabbed the handle. She hoped he was just asleep... Martlet wasn't sure if she could bear to see Clover having another breakdown. He... Deserved better.
"Alright, opening the door..."
With a slow creak, Martlet slowly pried the way open.
"Are you... A-a..." She lost her words in confusion, Clover's bed was empty, was he downstairs...?
Her face began to pale as she took in the rest of the room. Snow lightly covered the window sill, and the carpet was damp...
"...Clover?"
Her feet carried her to the window before she even realized she was moving.
The lock was broken.
BANG
...
Clover stared wide eyed at the broken lock, how had that...?
He felt both vindicated, and absolutely horrified at the same time. His prior "paranoia" had been no mere paranoia, there was legitimate cause for concern.
HOOOOOWL
The wind and snow slapped directly into Clover's face as he flinched back, he immediately backed off and once again reached for his gun.
"M-"
But before he could cry out for help, Clover felt something else besides the wind coming.
It was purely on instinct, but he just barely managed to dodge to the side as an attack came barreling through the window, A solid object that pierced through the sound of the wind in his ears for but a short moment.
"You-"
And then he felt it wrap around his leg.
His world turned upside down.
"GHK!"
Thorns dug into Clover's ankle, and before he could make another sound, he was dragged out of the window.
Whoever his assailant was, they were certainly quiet. Or maybe he just couldn't hear them over the blizzard, that was equally as possible. Did they... Know he was a human? Then...
His thoughts were rudely interrupted as his body forcefully crashed into the ground, Clover supposed it was a good thing that the snow was so heavy right now, it cushioned the impact fairly well.
...It still hurt though. A lot, a lot a lot. He coughed violently as the impact wracked him.
The object wrapped around his ankle let go, and Clover quickly scrambled to his feet. It felt as if the winds could blow him over at a moments notice, and it was beyond difficult to see... But even still, he strained his perception to its limits. Where-
"Howdy!"
Clover froze on the spot, he recognized that voice, he recognized it... From everywhere, he'd heard it so many times, yet at the same time never before.
"Wh-what are..."
"Aw, what's that buddy? You don't remember me? That can't be right! You've been sure to be as ANNOYING as possible when it comes to that! Go on, dig a little deeper!"
Clover took a step back through the snow, his head hurt... His head hurt so much...! Why!?!
"What are you!?"
"Gee pal, don'tcha think that's a little rude? It's me! Your best friend!"
Clover's world turned black and white, the cover of the storm fading away in the battle.
Flowey.
"And I'm here to say hello."
The flower smiled wickedly, and Clover couldn't help but take another step back. He remembered, but at the same time he didn't. He was conflicted, scared, confused... But more than any of that, he felt an overpowering urge to flee.
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"Running is pointless y'know?"
Something felt wrong, incredibly wrong. Clover wanted to move, but he couldn't... He... He WANTED to move, but something told him it'd be pointless. He wasn't sure what it was in him that was telling him that, but he... Was almost certain it was true. It wasn't because his leg was injured... No, his leg was barely even bleeding. It was basically just a scratch, which was odd, because Clover could've sworn he felt the attack dig in deeper.
...Had it been magical?... Now wasn't the time for idle thought. Clover refocused himself and stared the still smiling flower down. It was still his turn... But, Clover wasn't sure what to make of the situation quite yet. He braced himself for any possible attacks, and his turn ended.
"You've kept me waiting for a real long time, you know that pal?" Flowey grinned incredulously and leaned to the side. "Almost a whole season now, if we count all the loads and resets. It really took you that long to finally face up to your own past?"
"...What're you talkin about?" Clover narrowed his eyes at the plant, his hand hovering just over his holster in case he needed to fight.
"I doubt you'd realize it, but you've kept me on QUITE the wild goose chase buddy! You're always such a tease about this stuff, you know that? Too stubborn to just lie down and accept your fate. So, I had to think of alternative methods."
"...?" Clover tilted his head as Flowey started to ramble, why wasn't his turn passing yet...?
"That SOUL trait of yours was always a pain in the stem, ruining any of my plans... So, I had to plan around it instead." His grin widened at the last moment, that was all the warning Clover got.
A huge vine shot out of the ground in almost an instant, Clover just barely managed to evade the attack with Flowey's telegraphed smile, glaring right back at the demented flower as they began to frown.
"Stubborn, so stubborn, aren'tcha Clover? This would be so much easier for us both if you just lied down and died... But I guess that's why we're here in the first place, aren't we partner?"
Clover whipped out his revolver and aimed at Flowey almost instantly, he took aim and unloaded all six bullets straight into the bastards f-
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and unloaded all six bullets straight at the flower, but they popped into the ground just before the attack landed and completely evaded it.
They resurfaced a moment later and carried on unbothered, as if they hadn't just narrowly avoided a trip to the dentists office. "Justice, Judgment, always so difficult to deal with. Always so DRIVEN. So, I had a thought! What if I just removed that drive?"
"What the hell are you on about!?" Clover shouted at him over the storm, but the flowers grin only grew wider.
"So I tested a theory! Oh boy, did you make it a REAL, LONG, test! I've almost gotta applaud how uncooperative you are! But what do you know!? Every experiment bears fruit eventually."
Clover felt as if Flowey was staring straight through him. Their smile was beyond unnerving.
"It's not as if you'll remember any of this, but I just really FELT THE NEED-" dozens of pellet-esque bullets formed around Clover "-to tell you! I, HATE you. If you were any less stubborn, any more stubborn, just a little more DETERMINED, we would've never had any of these problems to begin with! But no, you made me take the hard way, spend MONTHS guiding you along a perfect little path! So there's my little spiel buddy! Here's to hoping I'll never need to tell you it again, if I'm lucky, maybe you'll just fail to resist after a little bit of prodding? I doubt it, but who knows?"
There was an awkward pause, both in his ramblings and his attack.
"...Ah hell, who am I kidding? I just want to see you die a few more times before it's all over."
Clover glared as he began to laugh, the pellets closing in...
He breathed in with as much serenity as he could muster in the situation. He had no idea what was going on, but he needed to fight back as best he could, he couldn't let himself die. He breathed out, and the pellets came whizzing in.
With a whistle, the first of many pellets shot past Clover as he evaded the attack, then another, and another, another step, another dodge, another bullet. Again, and again, and again, until they started coming in greater number.
Dodge-dodge-drop to the ground-roll as a cascade of bullets impacted the snow he fell into a moment ago-shoot up as vines rise from the ground around him-leap backwards over a wave of bullets, and through a wall of the stuff. Unfortunately, one of them managed to clip his arm as he flew through the air, dealing two points of damage. Clover landed unevenly on the ground behind it, just barely managing to stop himself from collapsing, but the attack wasn't over yet to his shock.
Another, and another, all of them shooting at him faster than he could blink. He dodged, again and again he dodged, but something was wrong. Every other time he got into a battle in the Underground, it always felt like he had some sort of premonition on what a monster was going to do. It was odd, but he could just sort of tell... That... Wasn't happening right now. He was facing an almost complete unknown. Sure, the pellets stoked some distant memory in Clover's conscious, but he had no idea as to what was really coming.
So he took a hit, and another, one grazed his arm, another solidly marked his chest, he leaped back as another barrage smashed into where he had been a moment ago, and a stray pellet clipped his leg on the jump.
After what felt like an eternity, the flowers turn finally ended once Clover landed. Clover wasted no time in delivering a retaliating strike. Despite not having an idea of this monsters attacks like he would any other, all of his instincts were screaming at him to fight. He already knew running wouldn't work, somehow. So... His only way out of this would be through it.
HP 46/55
Once again, Clover whipped out his revolver and-
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fired five bullets straight i-
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at the monster before him, but they dodged much the same way they had before. Luckily, Clover had expected that and quick d-
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drew another shot at its still smiling f-
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face, but it simply dodged again.
"What the..."
"Hmm... You look confused! You ought to have figured out how things work around here by now!"
"Shut u-"
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"S-"
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What was happening?
Why did he feel as if he'd already said that?
...Why did he feel like it wouldn't work?
"I guess little old me will have to explain things to you! You didn't forget about your best friend's ability now did'ja? I sure hope you didn't!"
Clover didn't even bother speaking, he only continued to stare at the flower as he waited for its next attack.
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"Well, let's just put it like this! Nothing you do matters, you're going to die. And when I kill you, I'm going to destroy everything you love, mmm, just for fun! But, regardless of that, I want to see how long you can last, how long you can STRUGGLE. Show me just how much more durable you've gotten! You already survived past the first attack, and that's pretty unusual! So go on, entertain me, struggle against me, keep me entertained for as LONG as you possibly can."
Clover's eyes narrowed as the corners of Flowey's smile tugged upwards. It didn't feel like he was talking to him as a person, just an object to be toyed with. Clover didn't like that. But there was still that deep, underlying sense of dread in his mind... The feeling that he couldn't do anything about it.
Crck
Clover's eyes flashed downwards as the earth cracked beneath his feet, they widened precipitously as he leapt backwards with a burst of speed, a feeling he remembered distantly coursing through his body. Moments later, dozens of vines broke upwards from the earth, skewering the air where Clover had been mere moments ago. Unfortunately however, Clover didn't stick the landing.
He tumbled into the snow as his momentum carried him further and further, but there was no time to stay down. He could already hear the air splitting as more pellets whistled towards him. He rolled to the side and just barely managed to evade them. Turning the motion into a movement to get him back up on his feet, Clover pushed off of the cold snow and once again drew his gun, it should be his turn any moment, maybe if he managed to catch them off guard with a quick shot he could-
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and once again drew his gun-
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Clover reached for his gun as he shot up, but his hand trembled just above the firearm.
Whoosh
More pellets came, he didn't have the time to waste on indecision. Clover felt that familiar power surge through him again, but something went wrong. He couldn't make it work... Why!? It was supposed to be his magic, wasn't it? Why didn't it answer him?!
Unworthy.
That was the answer he gave himself, because he had failed himself. Himself and others. He had committed an injustice.
The pellets slammed into Clover, sending him back to the ground with a hefty eleven points of damage.
"Y-you..."
At least that had been the end of their turn, if it had gone on much longer Clover might've died on the spot.
"What's the matter buddy? Come on! Get up! Take another shot! I'm sure you'll be able to hit me THIS time!"
He shakily pushed himself to his legs once again, wobbling up while he could still do so. He panted heavily as he once again reached for his revolver.
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"...What is this? What are you doing?"
"Hmmm? Whatever do you mean? You know exactly what I'm doing partner!"
Clover tried to center his breathing again, but he just couldn't do it. Panic was finally starting to set in.
"...What the hell are you!?"
"Your best friend."
Their smile didn't change for a second.
Clover's turn passed without him so much as making an attack.
"Aww, you're just giving up? You just can't stop being a buzz kill, can ya pal?"
As he continued to taunt Clover, more and more roots began to pierce through the ground around Flowey, all of them aimed at Clover himself.
His legs tensed as he prepared to dodge again, but apparently Flowey had more to say.
"I thought you might at least pose a bit of a challenge with all your newfound abilities, but hell, maybe you really are weakened enough at this point! Well, partner, if that's all you have to show me... I guess it might just be time to say goodbye! When I take your SOUL, do try to struggle, more than you have been, wouldn't you? I just can't wait to crush all that resistance."
"S-"
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"Ah-ah-ah!"
"..."
Clover glared with enough heat to carve a line through the blizzard. Flowey didn't so much as flinch.
"Well, I can't say it's been fun, but if this is the end, just know, I hated every second of it."
The attack finally came. From all directions. Clover hadn't noticed the roots behind him, and he cursed under his breath.
"CLOVER!"
...
Martlet ran down the stairs as fast as she could possibly manage. She couldn't see anything through all the snow, but she knew Clover was out there. The cabinet where his gun was had also been empty... And left open. The lock was broken from the inside, and the window had clearly been opened, so what the hell could've happened...?
There was an indescribable feeling of dread building up in Martlet's SOUL, so when the cold winds began to bite against her as she threw the door open, it hardly even bothered her. It was difficult to see, but she had a pretty good sense of direction for the most part. First things first, she NEEDED to check around Clover's window. It was fairly apparent that he'd somehow gone out of it, but why would he do that...?
Did he... Run away?
Martlet shook her head as she forged ahead against the cold. No, that wouldn't make any sense... That COULDN'T make any sense, Clover loved her, remembering a little more about his life surely wouldn't have changed that. Something had to have happened, something bad.
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG
Martlet flinched, that was gun-fire, and it was nearby. But why in the world would Clover...
Her face paled, had somebody broken in?
BANG
Martlet clenched her beak and started to run, straight towards the source of the noise. The blizzard was a constant obstacle, but she would not be denied. Instead of slowing to brave the storm more easily, Martlet began to use her own magic to counteract the strong winds. It was difficult, but Clover was in danger! Out of all the possible times to show any hesitation, now certainly wasn't the time.
Her boots crunched against the thick snow with every frantic step, her magic pulsed through every fiber of her being as thoughts of the worst case scenario rushed through her head. Why was Clover being attacked? Had somebody figured out that he was human? Who was it?
Martlet swore she could make out two figures in the distance, scratch that, multiple figures. Various masses... And... Clover!
"CLOVER!"
Every single object that had been surrounding Clover shot toward him at a blistering pace, almost as fast as Martlet could blink... But, she did react. With a swipe of her wing, Martlet launched her wind magic straight at Clover in tandem with whatever was attacking him. Launching him up and into the air, far away from the dozens of what she now recognized as... Roots, which would've pierced him had he remained where he was a moment ago.
Clover had been knocked out of immediate harms way, but now Martlet realized she herself was the target. The plants swiveled towards her, and in a mortal moment of Clarity Martlet tried to take off and get away from the attack. But... The blizzard was just too much, she couldn't get away fast enough with the strong winds, especially after redirecting her magic to save Clover.
Just as she managed to get into the air, she felt her SOUL shiver as something wrapped around her leg.
Her beak opened in wordless terror as it dragged her back down to the ground, directly into the path of the multiple dozens of oncoming attacks.
"MOM!"
...
Clover was running before he even realized it, his mom was weaker than he was, it was just an objective fact that he already knew for certain. This wasn't an opponent that she would be able to deal with, especially not when her magic which was primarily wind based would be so heavily hindered in a blizzard like this...
So when he saw Flowey's smile... He knew he had to move. He had to do something, he had to do anything! His mom was going to be killed, right in front of his eyes and he-
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couldn't do anything! That same sense of awareness was telling him that it wouldn't work, that anything he did was pointless, but he didn't care. He kept trying no matter what, his legs wouldn't stop moving, they COULDN'T stop moving. Time seemed to slow down as the attack got closer, and closer... It could turn around and spear him at any moment, but he didn't care. With each step, he felt himself getting faster and faster, the power that previously denied him flowing freely as desperation began to set in.
He wouldn't make it at his pace, he ran faster. A vine wrapped around his mom's leg as she took off, he ran even faster.
He still didn't make it.
"MOM!"
A dozen different roots pierced Martlet's body.
"C-Clover..."
Her dust was scattered to the blizzard.
"You know what? Maybe I really should've just done that from the start! Save us both the trouble."
Clover stared at the open air where his mom had been not five seconds ago. He fell to his knees.
It was Clover's turn.
"Aww, what's the matter partner? Are you upset? Gonna cry to mommy?"
"You..."
For a moment, Flowey let his smile abate and put on a very fake apologetic look. "Oh, right! Gee, I'm soooooo sorry pal! It's my fault for not cleaning up that bird brained waste of space earlier!" He taunted in a sing-song voice
Clover's hand started to twitch.
"...What? Did'ja think I was sorry about killing her? Pfft! The only thing i'm sorry about is letting you enjoy your pathetic little life for any amount of time at all." And right back to the grin.
"..."
LV 1
"What? Are you angry? Gonna kill me buddy? Go on! Give it your BEST shot!"
Clover slowly rose to his feet, an unintelligible expression plastered over his face.
LV 2-LV 3
"YOU..."
LV 4-LV 5-Lv 6
"You... You MONSTER!"
"Pfft, out of all the insults, that's the only one you could think of? Come on partner, I know you've got better material than that."
He... IT... It showed no remorse, it laughed in the face of his anguish, a monster in every sense of the word... No, monster was an insult to the species. This... CREATURE, deserved no mercy.
"I'll... I'LL..."
LV 7-LV 8-Lv 9
Asgore? The fallen children? Monsterkind?
Forget all of that.
"I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!"
LV 10-LV 11-LV 12
Blinking wasn't even a fair comparison.
In one moment, Clover was yards away, in the next, he was ripping Flowey out of the di-
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he was grasping at where Flowey had been just a moment ago as they barely managed to avoid Clover's claws. A molten trail of brightly glowing yellow energy left in his wake. His eyes practically bulged out of their sockets when he saw nothing but open air where his claws, enhanced by his magic, had attempted to rip into.
"Rghhk-RAGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
With an ear piercing scream, Clover stomped with all his might. Despite the blinding rage he felt, his magic had never felt clearer. The ground glowed with an unearthly yellow, cracks of the piercing energy spreading outwards, steam rising wherever his magic spread. The ground was literally melting beneath his talons.
"Where did you FUCKING GO!?"
It was difficult to see through the steam rising around Clover, his magic was LITERALLY dripping off of him at a steady pace, the yellow energy-sludge creating a cloak of steam around him as it came into contact with the heavy blizzard. With a wave of his arm, a mass of his magic appeared in front of him and swiped away the oncoming snow, creating a brief pocket of visibility within his vicinity.
Roots had been forced to the surface to avoid Clover's attack, the rock that they would have otherwise rested in had been heated to survivable degrees. So it stood to reason that the main body itself would also be around, and with little delay, Clover saw it.
With a glare that could only be reasonably compared to the sun itself, Clover held out his arm in the shape of a finger gun. His breathing turned to a frenzied pace as he felt his magic surge yet again, and it came to a head at the tip of his fingers.
LV 13
A veritable wall of energy burned into existence, creating a huge gap within the blizzard and roasting it al-
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and searing the earth in which it had been a moment ago.
Clover's turn ended.
He couldn't breathe, he couldn't think. All that he felt was a murderous rage, absolute hatred towards the creature that had robbed one of the few good things he'd found in life.
LV 14
"Wowee, since when could you do all of this partner? Did she really mean THAT much to you?"
That smug, remorseless, snide, piece of filthy MOLD.
"I'LL, KILL YOU!"
"Hmm, no, you won't. You're going to die here, just like your stupid, worthless mo-"
File 2 loaded
Flowey ducked again as another blast of energy almost wiped him off the face of the earth.
Clover ground his beak as he continued to heave in and out, the steam had come back. He wasn't sure how he attacked, it hadn't even been his turn, but he just sort of felt that he'd be able to do it. He didn't bother to question it, if it helped him annihilate that weed, anything went.
Once again, Clover heard various projectiles whistle through the air. He turned around, only to see what seemed to be hundreds of pellets flying straight at him. With another grunt, he waved both of his arms, and from them came a huge amount of his magic, an amorphous blob of energy yet to be formed into anything. With another gesture, he formed it into a massive shield, standing firm between him and the projectiles.
By now, Clover's senses had adjusted to the constant veil produced around him, and through it, off in the distance, he could see Flowey's visage. With another grunt, he shakily raised an arm and began to form another construct, this time, a spear. It was massive, almost as large as the shield he'd just conjured into existence. He wound back, and threw it straight and true with all his might. The thing practically broke the sound barrier, piercing right through his shield and destroying the construct. It didn't matter, it had already served its purpose.
YOU WON!-
File 2 loaded
The spear zipped right over Flowey's head as he just barely managed to avoid it. Clover heard trees fall, somewhere off in the distance, but he really didn't care. It was Clover's turn again.
Clover initially raised his hand again, to attack the flower which still hadn't moved places, but he paused, pure brute force wasn't working. He'd need to go about this in some other way if he wanted to actually kill this thing. Clover breathed in with immense difficulty, and began to wave his arms again, he needed to test something. His magic had changed, somehow. Well, that was obvious, but a key part of it was different. That feeling of it missing something, of it being hollow, that was completely gone. Whatever had been missing, now filled his magic in spades. So, he spent his turn experimenting. Somehow he doubted that the thing would run now of all times, given it hadn't done so when Clover pulled a damn scorched earth.
Clover closed his eyes, a difficult feat given the only thing he felt right now was overpowering rage and sorrow, but he managed it somehow. There was a whole new power flowing through him... No, that wasn't quite right. It wasn't a new power, he'd always had it. He just... Neglected it, he neglected himself. He neglected his very SOUL, his justice. That's what he had been missing, Clover had full use of whatever abilities he'd gained a monster, but he'd left his previous power behind. That wasn't how it was meant to be, they were always meant to co-exist.
With that energy back, with a drive to deal out justice to this thing? His magic had reached an effective full power. He opened his eyes again, and in his hand he held a gun. A yellow gun, in the shape of his wild revolver, made purely from Clover's magic. He raised it to the air, and fired.
WHOOSH
Exactly as he thought. What was practically a flare shot out from the conjured weapon. It had served the exact purpose he created it for. So had the spear he'd used moments ago. Clover's turn ended, but he had valuable information about his own abilities in return for it.
Roots, again. Flowey wasted no time in delivering his attacks, but roots weren't going to cut it. Clover leaped up into the sky with his magic, dashing upwards and leaving the attack behind. Before he could fall, he conjured up a platform made from his own magic with a thought, and landed roughly on the sturdy surface. He wasn't in the clear, certainly not. More pellets formed around him at a moments notice, but Clover simply scoffed and waved his arms around, leaving a trail of yellow behind. With a thought, that yellow expanded, creating a bubble that shielded him from the attack.
Clover closed his eyes again, and he thought back.
...
"What exactly have you tried with your magic?" Sparrow calmly questioned Clover.
"Well... Not much, honestly. I haven't really, uh... Been working with it for long? All I've really done is... Make a few objects, a ball, a spear, n'y'know. Stuff like that."
"...I see. Well, I'm certainly not an expert on matters such as this, wind magic has been a staple of our family for a long time now. But... If I may, make a suggestion my dear."
"Sure, why not? No harm in it, right?"
"If you can, always try to push the limits of what exactly your magic can do. You may discover faucets previously unknown to you through the effort, for example, even if wind magic is usually rather straight forward, some may find the ability to control other elements closely related to it, such as snow, or frost through practice and experimentation."
"Well, alright, that's reasonable." Clover shrugged.
"Yes, it is." He smiled back evenly. "Now, you say you can't fly?"
"...Yes?"
"If you can create objects, why not try?"
"...M'fraid I don't get what you're gettin at." Clover frowned.
"Oh, I apologize. I should clarify."
...
Clover dashed through the platform created out of his own magic, having created two constructs during his time in his bubble.
"Try using your magic to create wings."
Clover stifled a sob as he thought about his family, but he sent a silent thank you to his grandfather. They were the one who gave Clover the idea of creating constructs like this in the first place.
If his theory was correct...
Clover stretched his wings forward, brilliant yellow feathers shining amidst the furious blizzard. The dripping magic that had coated Clover moments ago now funneled into this creation. If his magic worked how he thought it should...
With all his might, he flapped his wings one, singular time.
Clover's claws dug into the things stem, he stared into its eyes as a look of shock crossed its face. One moment, he had been yards and yards away, the next? Clover was tearing the life out of it.
The next moment...?
Clover was staring at a door.
This door was not his door, this door was a different kind of ominous.
But he walked forward without hesitation, it called to him. Clover grabbed the handle, twisted it, and-
and he felt a searing pain in his chest.
Clover's eyes opened.
A root had stabbed straight through him.
A real root, not a magical one.
He coughed up blood.
...It wasn't Clover's turn.
...
Clover woke up panting and heaving for air, he clutched at his chest and reached for his fathers hat. It felt as if he had woken up from a terrible nightmare.
Mom.
Was his mom okay? Why would she not be okay?
That didn't matter, Clover found his feet moving before he could even think about it. He held his fathers hat close, and walked out of his room.
The wind outside felt deafening.
Knock-knock-knock
"Mom?"
He knocked again
"MOM!?"
"...Huh? Clover? What's wrong?"
Clover felt like he was on the verge of tears, he wasn't sure why though.
"Can-can I spend the night with you?"
"...Of course, feel free."
He opened the door without further delay.
"...What's wrong Clover? I thought you said you wanted some alone time?"
"...I... I'unno... I just... I think I had a nightmare." He mumbled as he got himself into bed.
"...Okay, it's alright Clover, you're safe here. I love you." She reassuringly patted Clover on the head as she closed her eyes again.
...So why didn't he feel safe?