Time passed very oddly in the Art Dome. I couldn't tell if it was morning or night or if it's been a few days or a few weeks. All I know if after we went to Crashtale, Pen plotted out a course over several other AUs, and we visited them, doing the same thing we did for Crashtale. Patch and Seed searched the Ruins, Pen and I talked to Alphys (Or whoever was the Royal Scientist for that AU), move to the next AU, repeat. We visited several AUs, the ones that stuck to me were the one the roles seemed to be switched (There was a giant fish monster in Alphy's place, Pen said her name was Undyne), the one with a ton of stars, and one with a lot of dust. That one was scary. We also visited UnderFV, which didn't seem like such a bad place. After that was done, we headed back to the Doodle Sphere, where Pen said we would stay until we got a notice from one of the scientists.
While I was waiting, I explored the Art Dome. It seemed to be the same thing going on forever, but the papers floating around it were very interesting. They had these weird symbols on it that I couldn't quite understand, but I was trying to figure them out. After a moment, I feel a calm aura walking over to me.
"Howdy, Night. How's it going?" Seed asks.
"Pretty good. Just trying to figure out what these symbols mean."
"Oh, those ones?" He grabs the paper I'm looking at and pulls out his notepad. I look at the page he has open and see it's a translator for the symbols. "Pen is the only one here who is able to read these the right way. Patch and I can vaguely understand them."
"Do you know what language it is?"
"No, but I know it's not very common." Seed glances from the paper with the symbols to his notebook. "This one is the paper for Comettale, the Outertale for this multiverse."
"Okay, how about this one?" I grab another paper.
"That one is... UnderFV."
"The Fell line that got mixed with another AU's Code Virus?"
"Yup. I hate that AU. Especially the Sans for that AU he's a nightmare... Metaphorically, of course." He said, glancing at me.
"Alright, what about this one?"
"This one... Is Dreamcrash."
"As in the AU where I'm from? Wow."
"Hey, Seed! Night!" Patch yells. "Come here!" Seed and I head over to where a happy Patch and very annoyed looking Pen were standing. "We got an alert from UnderFV."
Seed groaned. "Of all AUs, it's that one..."
"Seed, you don't have to go. Mainly it should be only these two-" Patch motions to me and Pen-"But I'm making sure Pen doesn't wimp out."
"Oh. Okay." Seed says calmly, but I can see from his face he's relieved.
"Question: Can I not?" Pen asks.
"No. You're the one who knows the Royal Scientists, you're the one doing this."
"Fine..." Pen groaned as he summoned his ink teleporter. "Come on, the sooner we finish the better." We all climbed in and Pen teleported us to UnderFV, right outside the Lab. "Okay, Night, this time you're gonna stay outside. I don't want to deal with another Code Virus, and the Fresh Code Virus is ridiculously contagious."
"Uh... Sounds good." I nod. Pen heads into the lab and Patch sits down.
"Jeez, I don't understand him."
"Who? Pen?"
"Yeah. I don't get why he hates this AU so much. Maybe it's just me. I've always liked Underfell AUs. Or maybe it's the fact that..."
"What?"
"Pen... he doesn't really like viruses like the Fresh Parasite."
"Isn't he the Protector for this Multiverse? Isn't he used to viruses by now?"
"He wasn't always. But that's a story for another time. Now, we have to-"
I go dead still as the eeriest aura I've ever felt appears. It's... happy? More of fake happiness, but also anger, like they're being forced to hide something... almost like two emotions overlaying each other, and overall really, really wrong.
"Night? What's up?"
"Someone with a really messed up aura is headed towards us."
"I think I know who that would be." Patch stands up and takes a deep breath in. "ALRIGHT WHO THE Heck IS THERE?"
I freeze. Whoever is there just sort of... made Patch say something else. I hear footsteps behind me and look at Patch. He shrugs. "I was right."
"Well, well, well, who do we have here? Someone usin' some unrad language? Better watch it, buddy." I look at the person who talked. It's a skeleton wearing some really bright colors. He has an orange and dark red hoodie, with the hood being bright red and red fingerless gloves. The shirt under the hoodie is yellow and he has loose dark red shorts and orange shoes. He also has a red and orange baseball hat and black sunglasses on that currently read 'Whatup' in red and orange, along with a big grin.
"Hey, Rad. How's it going?" Patch says.
"It's goin' great, my pal. Just bein ya friendly neighborhood skele-pal!" The skeleton- Rad- notices me. "And who's this cool newbie? Don't remember seein' him around before."
"This is Night. He's a friend of mine."
"Nice ta meet ya brah." Rad holds out his hand and I shake it.
"Good to meet you too," I say politely, remembering Pen's warning.
I hear the lab's doors open behind me.
"Shoot..." Patch mutters.
"Alright, I'm back, and-" Pen cuts off, seeing Rad. "...Shoes."
"What up, brah! Long time no see!" Rad poofs over to Pen and his glasses change to read 'Sup Pal'. He finger guns Pen and Pen rolls his eyelights.
"Just when I thought I would have a decent trip here."
"Yo, that's totes unrad of you to say." Rad's glasses change to 'Rude'.
"Yeah, yeah, I don't give a Funk. Now get the Heck out of my way before I move you myself."
"Brah, you need to chill. I'm just tryin' ta be a fri-"
"Friendly neighborhood skele-Dog. Now leave."
"Ya better watch it, brah." I sense an edge creeping into his voice. Rad reaches for his glasses and pulls them down a tiny bit, just enough so I can see there's something alive in his left eye socket. "Otherwise, you might have a pretty unrad time."
I took a step back. Patch tenses, hand out like he's about to summon his knife. Rad had gone from friendly to scary in a matter of seconds. Pen, however, stood his ground. "Well, how about we prevent that by you getting out of my way and I get my friends and leave? Problem solved."
"Aight then, super rad of ya to work this out. Catch ya on the flip side, skele-pal! Rad out!" He disappeared in a mini-explosion of colors.
"Dear Creators, that son of a-" Pen called Rad a few curse words. "I hate that guy."
"He didn't seem like such a bad guy to me," I said.
Pen gave me a look of utter betrayal.
"So, what were you going to tell us before Rad interrupted you?" Patch jumped in.
"Oh yeah. You guys better come see this." Pen heads towards the Lab and opens the door. The lights are off and the place is eerily quiet. The door shuts and I hear a click, signaling it's locked. Fear makes its way up my spine, and I feel a sense of dread.
"Uh oh... What happened here?" Patch asks.
"Well, here's what I figured. We got a call from this AU's Alphys saying she saw Dream. We come here and she's gone, the place looks abandoned. Therefore, someone forced Alphys to make the call and then hide. And there's only one person who can do that."
I sense fear coming from Patch. Whatever Pen means, it's not good. "You aren't saying..."
"Yes I am. It's him."
I look at the two of them and open my mouth to ask what's wrong, but laughter cuts me off.
"Hahaha... Correct."
I see it out of the darkness. A shadowy figure. The only part I can see clearly is the eyelights. The right one red, the left purple with a yellow ring around it. Staring straight through me, into my Soul, reading me like a book. I freeze, unable to move. Patch's red knives appear in his hands and Pen quickly stabs his arm with a pen, injecting something that makes his eyelights go blood red in the shape of teardrops.
"Pen? Who's that?" I ask, even though I have a slight feeling I know who it is.
"Him? The biggest bastard you will ever meet. That's Thread, the Destroyer."