From Murder to Dust

PT - 2 - Converse

It had been one month since the balance tip, and people were beginning to realize that there was no more sense of conscience; Underfell and a few other dark universes had already reached part three. If the ones we had saved didn't believe us before, they did now; they had borne witness to the atrocities that now raged across the multiverse. As for our survival, Error had managed to isolate a farm-based universe for emergencies; if we ever ran out of food, we could learn how to grow our own food there. Ink was just sitting back and watching the chaos unfold, but we expected that, honestly. I had devoted a fair amount of my free time to my work with dust, but I had been able to make no progress; I needed certain materials that weren't readily available, not to mention the fact that our goal had never been achieved in the past. With Nightmare currently unavailable, Error had taken lead of our family unit until everything was back to normal..if anything ever went back to normal. He was also trying to keep up with his job of fighting corruption, but it was difficult when universes were spreading corruption like crazy. In any case, we were still staying in Nightmare's house; it was the safest place in the multiverse.

"What if we just did what you used to do and cause chaos?" Classic Sans wanted ways to restore the balance, and I was the only one home to respond at the moment, unfortunately.

"The amout of negativity we'd need to produce would be far above what we can accomplish in a straight month of negativity spreading." I shook my skull. "We'd have to find some way to scare the wits out of every soul in the multiverse simultaneously to even have a chance."

"Then how do you propose we fix it?"

"Well, it'd be a long shot, but if Dream were to take up Nightmare's mantle, he might be able to at least produce some amount of negativity..that is, if he actually does have the capacity to perform such a feat without losing his mind."

"How would I lose my mind?" Dream looked at me oddly.

"For starters, you'd be willingly hurting people; there's a chance you could gain LV if you're invested enough."

"What difference would that make?"

"..." I wondered why that question existed. "Have you ever gained or known someone who gained mass quantities of LV?"

"Not particularly."

I sighed. "Dream, LV does not only increase attack, defense, and health, nor does it only appear as a mere number on a meaningless check box. When that number rises above a certain point, it can be suffocating; at some point, it comes back as physical pain. It's not constant; it just spikes at times, and when it does, depending on the number, it can honestly feel worse than death. Nightmare felt it..Killer feels it, Error feels it, even I feel it."

"I can take pain."

"But it isn't just pain." I wanted him to know what he could have been getting into; it was a terrible plan, but it might have been our only one if worst came to worst. "It's horrific dreams, it's voices taunting you inside your mind, and it's..breaking. If we are pushed to the point where you decide to do Nightmare's job, you will develop fears you never had before. You will be pushed past your breaking point, and you may turn into an entirely different person."

"..Is that what happened to him?"

"It happens to everyone who pushes LV to the extreme.."

"How did you cope?"

"We surrounded ourselves with others like us. We'll never truly be free from the endless torture, but we can make it easier to handle for eachother."