Part 1: Once Upon A Time

BGM: Once Upon a Time

























BGM: Silence

The story begins.



Hmm... I'll just pull a random name out of a hat for this one.



Sure, that looks good.



I seem to have fallen from a great height.



What is this place?



It's clearly not a natural cave. I cross through the doorway.



Is that... a flower?



BGM: Your Best Friend

You're new to the Underground, aren'tcha?
Golly, you must be so confused.
Someone ought to teach you how things work around here!
I guess little old me will have to do.
Ready? Here we go!



I can move my soul around with the arrow keys, but only within that box.

Your soul starts off weak, but can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV.
What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE, of course!
You want some LOVE, don't you?
Don't worry. I'll share some with you!



Down here, LOVE is shared through...



Are you ready?



The friendliness pellets fall into my box. I do my best to catch one.



BGM: Silence

Wait, where did all my HP go?



In this world, it's kill or BE killed.
Why would ANYONE pass up an opportunity like this?!





Well, it's been fun, but I guess the LP is about to end.



Before I die, though, a mysterious force repels the bullets and restores my HP.



BGM: Fallen Down



Ah, do not be afraid, my child.
I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins.
I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down.
You are the first human to come here in a long time.
Come! I will guide you through the catacombs.





Toriel guides me through another doorway.



BGM: Ruins

The doorway leads to a vast, purple area. Something is shining up ahead.





Looks like it was a save point.

I save my game, then follow her upstairs.



Allow me to educate you in the operation of the RUINS.





Ancient fusions between diversions and doorkeys.
One must solve them to move from room to room.
Please adjust yourself to the sight of them.



I follow Toriel into the next room.



Do not worry, I have labelled the ones that you need to flip.



I press Z to read a very useful sign.



Oops. Let's go find those switches.



I think I found the first one.



I flip it, and Toriel moves on to guide me to the next switch.



As I flip the second switch, the spikes blocking the door retract.



Let us move to the next room.

What about this switch, though?



Oh.



You will need to be prepared for this situation.
However, worry not! The process is simple.
When you encounter a monster, you will enter a fight.
While you are in a fight, strike up a friendly conversation.
Stall for time. I will come to resolve the conflict.
Practice talking to the dummy.



All right, here goes nothing...



BGM: Anticipation



So, this is what fights look like. I have four options - FIGHT, ACT, ITEM, MERCY.

Right now, I have no items. I'll get to FIGHT and MERCY later. For now, I pick ACT, and select the Dummy.



Every monster has a different set of actions under ACT. The first one here, CHECK, is shared by all of them - it tells me about the monster's attributes.

Instead, I'm going to Talk to it, as Toriel said.



It doesn't seem much for conversation.
TORIEL seems happy with you.



Victory! Of a sort!



BGM: Ruins

Toriel proceeds to the next room.



I wonder if you can solve it?



All right, I'll take a look. I see some kind of pattern on the floor...



Oops! My first random encounter!



BGM: Enemy Approaching

I could FIGHT it to reduce its HP... but it seems pretty nice. I mean, it hasn't done anything to hurt me.



The Froggit gives three ACT options, instead of two. Since I've never seen one before, I'll Check it first.



Really doesn't seem worth fighting.



Toriel gives the Froggit a stern look, and it goes away on its own.



Another victory! This time against a living monster!



This must be talking about the pattern on the floor in the previous room...



Which reveals a safe path through the spikes!



Here, take my hand for a moment.



Toriel guides me through the safe route across the room.



I had it right, though.



Toriel goes on ahead again.



BGM: Silence

However... I have a difficult request to ask of you.
...
I would like you to walk to the end of the room by yourself.
Forgive me for this.



BGM: Unnecessary Tension

Toriel runs down the room, faster than I can follow.



I head out on my own. The room is long.



Seriously, it goes on forever.



The end is in sight!



Do not worry, I did not leave you.
I was merely behind this pillar the whole time.
Thank you for trusting me.
However, there was an important reason for this exercise.
...to test your independence.
I must attend to some business, and you must stay alone for a while.
Please remain here. It's dangerous to explore by yourself.



If you have a need for anything, just call.
Be good, alright?



She's taking her time getting back.



I'll just continue on without her.

What's the worst thing that could happen?