Undertales of Friendship

by ngrey651

Tiamat's Return, Part 1

Mardek held his hands up in the air, focusing intensely as he closed his eyes. His words were a song that drifted through the air, the silver-crafted gate he'd formed hovering in the air before him as deep blue smoke wafted off his body. He continued to chant, the circular gate beginning to spin around and around as he grimaced. It would take considerable effort for him to call Tiamat forth, for she was in pieces. Literally.

Her consciousness and soul and body had been separated as a result of her...issues...with her previous children. First she would have to be gathered up. And then...brought back. Dragging a goddess back into reality would be a challenge, but the winged little necklace-wearing half dragon, half-cat-like being Mardek was sure he could do it.

What he didn't know was that he'd gotten the attention of Princess Luna. She sat with Frisk in his dreamscape, the two of them resting on a giant cloud as soft stars twinkled in the night sky around them, Luna's face solemn and resolute.

"He's making his move tonight, and we must cut him off while we can." She reasoned. "If we are to keep Tiamat from coming forth, we must keep him from gathering up the pieces of his mother. We will take the Dreamscape, where her memories and spirit and mind reside. Whilst her body is in the realm of the dragons. The Cutie Mark Crusaders, Chara, Huey, Spike and Squirt have agreed to sneak to the Ancient Graveyard of the Dragons to get hold of that in the morning. It's so far away from Hearthstone, Capital of the Dragon race, that they should be safe so long as they are cautious. Besides, Spike has a good relationship with the current queen, as you well know."

"Thank goodness for that!" Frisk admitted, wiping his brow. "So what will her consciousness and soul look like?"

"They shall look much like her." Princess Luna said, flicking a hoof through the air, bowing her regal head as an image manifested, her horn glowing brightly. Before Frisk's eyes, an image formed of a multi-headed, hydra-esque dragon with enormous wings that spread wide, her body a brilliant teal color, with golden highlights running across her well-endowed chest and gauntlet-esque clawed hands. The claws on her wings were enormous and slightly curved, her horns thrusting back from her head, having seven golden horns each. Three on either side, one in the center of her forehead, with piercing crimson irises and golden pupils, all of which added to a mixture of frightening majesty, for she was beautiful like a thunderstorm was beautiful, having a strange aura to her. "From what we know, she and her husband created dragonkind, they trace their ancestry back to her and presumably, she tried to destroy them all."

"That's so awful." Frisk murmured, his lips pursing. "Why would a mother want to do that to her children?"

"I've no idea." Princess Luna admitted as she shook her head, rising up as a large doorway manifested. "But we must stop her from returning at all costs. Her unique powers almost CONTROLLED her children when they tried to rise up against her, it was a miracle that they were able to stop her before she fully manifested it against all that brought her down." The alicorn informed him. "The tale is a horrifically tragic legend of a monstrous, insane goddess. She MUST be halted before she brings about an endless-" Luna flinched, Frisk walking up to her, giving her a hug.

"You're not her anymore." He said softly, Luna stiffening a bit before clearing her throat.

"Y-Yes, I...sorry, it's just...sometimes I can't help but be reminded of the horrors I did. One can forgive. But one should rarely ever forget."

With that, the two headed into the different doorways, Frisk readying himself as he focused, manifesting the "Gardening Knife" in the dreamscape as he sheathed it, making his way across a starry road, past doorway after doorway, each reading a different resident of Equestria. "She's got to be around here somewhere." Frisk said, opening up one doorway, peeking into Shinedown's mind.

"My lovely, lovely, lovely horse!"

"OKAY, NEVERMIND!" Frisk said, quickly closing the door and shaking his head. "Wrong door." He muttered, trying to go for another nearby doorway that read "Ember". After all, she was a dragon too, looking in the dreams of dragons was as good a place to start as any!

Opening up the door, Frisk could see he was somewhat right after all, for there WAS clearly a piece of Tiamat there. Ember was currently in a large, open valley with immense mountains all around, grassy knolls stretched across the valley whilst soft clouds blew by...but Ember was currently engaging in what appeared to be an immense fight, the horned, teal-scaled dragon flexing immense muscles as she let out a cry.

"DAIYOOOOO!" She proclaimed, a golden aura rising off of her as she faced down the unmistakable ugly mug of the red-scaled Grackle, her body glistening like the sun as she shot towards him, beating the STUFFING out of him as Frisk looked to the left. There was another teal dragon, watching on, small, almost Frisk's size...just a scamp, really. A pup.

But it was DEFINITELY Tiamat, or at least part of her. Frisk approached her, reaching out as she nonchalantly looked at him, and he touched the Memory of Tiamat's side-

Her husband Abzu, who's body was as the sea, frowned darkly. He paced back and forth, large wings spread as Tiamat looked at him. "What on Earth is the matter? And why have our children not come around. You're always so angry lately."

"They've been getting more and more...aggressive. You haven't noticed?" He inquired. "They are always challenging each other to a fight. And ME!" Abzu grumbled before the mountainside nearby seemed to explode into chunks, hearty, raucous laughter ringing through the air. Tiamat cringed a bit as she looked up, seeing their children Anu and Ki were having at it again. As they clashed in midair, wings spread wide, shockwaves ripped through the air and Abzu frowned.

"Okay, I admit, they go too far sometimes. But children must be children. They need room to grow."

"Every place they go is reamed with fire and their own blood." Abzu grumbled. "I don't trust them one bit." He murmured as Tiamat saw the growing fires in the distance.

"Well, just go TALK to them." Tiamat reasoned. "Tell them to tone it back..."

Frisk jolted out of the memory as it faded and he looked down, seeing a faint blue glow over his astral form. He'd...absorbed the memory into himself? He blinked in surprise, fingers flexing before shaking his head. That'd been so strange...the vision had been so vivid!

It had bothered him to see all that. The early dragons had been so wild and rambunctious they lit up everywhere they went, all in the name of simple sparring matches? THAT was their idea of kids being kids? Geez. He knew dragons could get wild but...

"Gotta find more." He reasoned, turning around, heading into another nearby doorway, this time Spike. Sure enough, inside, there was another Memory of Tiamat, who was looking longingly at Spike as he laid on a bed of gigantic crystals, Rarity wrapped around him almost like a blanket as he happily snoozed away in a much more adult, well-built form. It looked like he had everything he wanted!

Frisk gently crept up to the Memory of Tiamat as it laid on a bed of nearby crystals and reached out, grabbing her tail-

Abzu's face looked almost like raw meat as a rotten series of bruises covered his body. But worse still, he had blood all over him and was wiping his mouth, panting and heaving.

"It didn't go well." He grumbled. "I had to discipline them."

"I told you to just TALK to them!" Tiamat insisted as they stood by the beachside, the dragoness glowering at him.

"Oh, they'll live through it. Maybe." Abzu grumbled. "They threw the first punch anyhow. Nearly blinded me!" He added, pointing at a vicious scar on his face. "We need to reign them in with FORCE. It's all they understand!" He snapped. "We coddled them too much when they were younger and you know what happens when you let a child do whatever they want? They fool around, thinking they are above all consequences."

He clenched his clawed fists tightly, his eyes narrowing. "There are always. consequences." He hissed. "We need to do something or they'll kill us to assert control."

"They wouldn't murder their own parents!" Tiamat insisted. "I'LL talk to them, Abzu." She remarked, taking off through the air, finally touching down many miles away, her injured, nursing-their-sore-wounds son Anu and her daughter Ki cringing as they glanced up at her.

"Come to get in some licks of your own, ma?" Ki muttered, the psychic dragon sighing. "Just kidding. I know why you're here. I could foresee it just as I foresaw dad doing THIS to me." She said, pointing at her side and at the visible BITE mark on it.

"I know that your father is FURIOUS with what's happened. You need to be careful and not anger him. Please just...try and stay away from him for a while. Let him simmer down while I try to work things out with him." Tiamat reasoned, sighing as she held her head in one hand.

"Dad will kill us the first chance he gets." Anu said, nursing a heavy claw-shaped scar over his left cheek. "He's just that mad. I'm going to talk to my own children and we're going to fix this."

"Look, just go apologize to him, say you'll be going away for a while, it'll be fine." Tiamat reasoned. "I'll go let him know you're going to apologize to him. Your father and I will just find somewhere else to live so we won't encroach on you." She said, waving a clawed hand in the air.

"And if he tries something again?"

"You're both very strong, as are your children." Tiamat said warmly. "I've no doubt you'd easily be able to stop him. I've faith in you." She intoned as she flew off back to Abzu, Ki and Anu looking at each other.

"What should we do?" Anu asked as Ki folded her arms over her chest, frowning. "Use your precognitive power!"

Ki closed her eyes, taking in deep breaths. "...there's...a pretty simple way to fix this." She murmured.

"If it is what I THINK it is...I'm all for it."

Frisk stiffened, shuddering. Suddenly he was beginning to feel more fear for Tiamat's children and her husband than for her. Tiamat at least seemed to be interested in trying the peaceful route. But her family seemed so much more unpleasant!

Cringing, he made his way out of the doorway of Spike's dreamscape, noticing by a stroke of luck he wasn't far from, of all people, Ahuizotl's own dreamscape. Reaching out, he entered the doorway of the faintly cat/dog-like villain's dreamscape, cringing at the sight. Sure enough, this greedy jerk was sitting on a pile of gold, Daring Do turned into a STATUE that was screaming endlessly as he bathed himself in a shower of gold coins, laughing uproariously.

The only good thing that gave him comfort was the sight of another Memory of Tiamat, who was in an immense mirror. She only APPEARED as a reflection standing by a table with a rose upon it, but Frisk had a feeling it was more than that. He reached out, touching the surface of the mirror as it gave way, and he rested his hand on one of Tiatmat's head.

Sure enough, another memory began to surge through him...

"What have you DONE?" Tiamat whispered, her eyes wide with horror as she beheld the sight before her.

Abzu had been eviscerated, and was lying in a pool of his own organs, bones and blood. His chest had been ripped open, blood and gristle dripping from the mouths and claws of her children and grandchildren as Tiamat shuddered in horror and disgust, her many mouths agape.

"I told you to just TALK to him. I told you to stop him not...not KILL him!" She whispered, hands flying to her central mouth. "Y-you..."

"Ki saw this was the best way to end it." Anu remarked quietly. "So we did. It's better this way."

"...you..." Tiamat murmured, the faint drip...drip...drip...of blood dribbling down from her husband's cracked open chest echoing in her mind. "...you've...you..."

Drip...

...Drip...

......Drip......

"I can't...y-you can't...just..." Tiamat began to say, her body shaking madly. "...YOU..."

Drip...

...Drip...

......Drip......

"Mother, don't make us kill you too." Anu said calmly.

"...YOU!" Tiamat screeched out, her pupils becoming slits, her voice a screaming, baleful wail. "ARE NOT! MY! CHILDREN! ANYMOOOOORE!" She howled, racing forth as they raced at her, Frisk shuddering as he covered his face, unable to watch the horrific slaughter that he knew would come. Anu forced her down, clawed hands slashing at her hinder parts, Ki's spiked tail smashing into her skull. Channels of blood flowed forth and Frisk covered his face, letting out a wail-

And then he was yanked forcibly out of the dream, pinned to the starry ground, Mardek glowering down at him, his tail hand rising up. "I see you've collected up my mother's memories." He said, his own body glowing bright blue as Frisk looked behind him, Luna trying to race towards them. "I'LL be taking those."

"Don't you touch him!" Luna cried out, barreling forth at him...

Too late. Mardek's hand grabbed hold of Frisk as they rolled around on the ground, Mardek's teeth digging into his leg as Frisk let out a cry of agony. A minute later with a immense blast of blue light, Frisk and Luna were sent reeling back, Tiamat's mind and spirit now joined with her son as he flexed a bit, Frisk gasping and panting. It felt like his leg was broken as Mardek looked down at him, Luna getting to her hooves.

"Now you see what she saw. The HORRORS she beheld at the hands of her own children. But I won't fail her. I'll make her proud, do what she wants. She's earned it." Mardek insisted. "Her whole family was taken from her, and now she's getting a second chance."

With that, he held up his own hand, and punched himself squarely in the face. "Time to wake up!" He proclaimed, Luna diving at him...

He blew smoke right in her face, making her reel back again before vanishing, Luna now glaring at the air he'd been at only moments before as she flopped to the ground, groaning.

"Damn it." She grumbled. "...I can only hope the others are doing better than we are!"

"I HAVE to get there." Frisk whispered. "Luna, can you teleport us there?"

...

...

...

...the night was falling on the dragon graveyard, the bones of dragons and dragonesses strewn across an empty canyon that was desolate and chilling as a cold wind dug its claws into them all. The Cutie Mark Crusaders made their way forth, Chara holding up a small flashlight as Huey the Monster Kid stood nearby, Spike and Squirt looking over a map Spike had out.

"Okay, we keep following the canyon northwest." Spike whispered, all of them being as quiet as they could as dark clouds obscured the moon overhead, Squirt's deep eyes gazing at the map that Celestia and Luna had given them. "It's a shame Asriel couldn't come with us, but he's visiting Ember at Hearthstone. I hope things don't get so bad we have to ask Ember to use the Bloodstone Scepter."

"I can't help but feel we're forgettin' something." Squirt murmured softly. "...like...um...maybe...why they didn't just destroy her bones?" Squirt wondered quietly, lips slightly pursed as he shook his head back and forth, the Cutie Mark Crusaders approaching one draconic corpse, that of a three-horned dragon with stubby wings as they each tapped different parts of the bones.

"OW." Scootaloo cringed before Spike suddenly noticed an odd texture to the bones as he gave the map to Chara, rushing over to one and licking it. "...EW."

"What are you doing?!" Huey groaned, sticking his tongue out. "Like, gross, man! That's like cannibalism!"

"It's...diamond. Almost." Spike murmured softly. "It tastes kinda like a diamond."

The others blinked, walking over to nearby bony corpses and poking them or rapping their knuckles against them, Huey kneeling down as Chara held the flashlight to the skeletal remains HE was investigating. "You're right, it's definitely some kind of diamond-chitin." Huey murmured. "Kinda like my own species's bones! They're super-hard. I guess it WOULD be difficult to just destroy bones like that." He said, Spike breathing a little green fire on a pinky bone...

NOTHING. It was still cold as ice.

"Wow, they ARE strong. Not even magic fire?" He murmured. "...I guess now I get why they wouldn't just blow them up or launch them into a volcano. Wouldn't work."

"What we need to do is take Tiamat's head and separate it." Chara reasoned. "As many of her bones as we can carry. We'll go and bury them in remote places, we'll toss them under the ocean if we have to! As long as Mardek can't bring 'em together, we'll be fine!"

"Well how close are we to her body?" Sweetie Belle asked before Apple Bloom whistled slightly.

"G-Guys?"

And there it was, off in the distance. Her body had been left to rot there, some of her arms and legs pulled apart, the many skulls slightly cracked, ripcage opened, but other than that...the bones were fine. Her numerous skulls laid about on the dusty canyon floor as they all walked forward, Sweetie Belle's horn glowing as she began to envelop one of the skulls in magical power, Huey adding his own touch. Chara began lifting up one with his own hands as Scootaloo began assisting, Squirt and Apple Bloom lifting up ANOTHER skull as Spike held the flashlight up so they could see what they were doing, his eyes glancing about, peering through the inky blackness that was enveloping them.

"I still think we're forgetting something, but...I can't figure out what it IS..." Squirt murmured softly.

"It's okay, I think taking three skulls oughta do it, right? Let's get 'em out of here and-" Chara began to say.

"Yeah, ah...no." A voice rang out nonchalantly, all of them looking up to see Mardek standing there atop a nearby cliff, tossing a small, familiar-looking HEART up and down as he grinned. "I don't think you'll be doing that." He said. "I stole this from Error Sans when he was nappin'."

"Cariboujangle's heart?!" Squirt gasped out in horror. "That freakin' lich?!"

"Oh not the LICH..." Chara moaned, covering his face and shaking his head back and forth as Mardek smirked.

"Nah, I'm not bringing him back. His heart, however, has power over the dead. And, well, since we're in a dragon graveyard..." Mardek remarked calmly, holding the beating, throbbing, pus-ridden, maggot-infested heart up as it pulsated with foul energy, all of them gulping as it resonated with the many, MANY skeletal corpses around them. They all turned around, seeing the draconic skeletons rising up, roaring in fury, eyes alit with soulless fire as Mardek nonchalantly hopped down. He made his way towards his mother's form, glowing with her spirit as the others BOLTED, trying to get away from the skeletal corpses.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!" Sweetie Belle screamed out, tearing down the canyon, Scootaloo growling angrily and shaking her hoof back at the chasing skeleton dragon as she rode on top of the terrified Apple Bloom with Sweetie Belle clinging to her tail. "KEEP IT AWAY FROM ME!"

"I shouldn't be so scared, it's frickin' BONES. Would you be afraid of Paris Hoofton?" Squirt inquired, bolting away from the biting jaws of another skeleton, diving into a crack as the monster pawed and clawed at him, Huey slipping further ahead.

"Paris Hoofton has no CLAWS!" He yelled back.

"Fair enough!"

"C'mon, can't we talk about this, one dragon to another?" Spike nervously asked, cornered by three skeletal dragons as they all gnashed their teeth, growling darkly at him before diving forth, Spike leaping up into the air, hopping over their backs as he slid down one's tail and right off onto the other side, all of them crashing into the wall. "Yay!" He cried out...before barely avoiding being clawed by another, bolting across the canyon floor. "Crap crap crap crap crap!"

"Ha!" Chara cried out, his dagger clashing with the claws of a skeletal dragon as he panted a bit before leaping high into the air, the diamond-bladed dagger slicing down, cutting through a weak point at the neck. He grinned in triumph, reddish/brown eyes turning to gaze at the decapitated skeletal dragon...and then frowned as it gave him a look, calmly picking its head up and putting it back on. "...forgot. Skeleton." He grumbled. "They're not like Sans or Papyrus...actually, why DOES cutting their heads off kill them when..."

He didn't get to finish that thought process, cuz a tail thwack sent him flying into a rock as he groaned, sliding down it as Mardek approached his mother's body, putting his hands on it as her form began to glow and shift, flesh regrowing, muscle bulging and throbbing, everyone turning and seeing her now return to her full, immense majesty. She spread her wings wide, clawed hands clenched into fists as she let out a screeching roar.

"IIII LIIIIVE AGAAAAAAAAAIN!" She proclaimed, eyes glowing brightly as the draconic skeletons all gazed upon her in awe, Tiamat turning to Mardek and happily lifting him up as best she could, giving him a hug. "I am so, SO proud of you! After all these years, I've finally returned." She said, flapping up into the air and landing on the canyon's plateaus above, sighing in delightly. "To feel wind on my scales...to feel fresh grass beneath my talons...to feel WARM or COLD again. To just...feel. My greatest dream for so long has come true." She intoned softly before turning to Mardek. "Come. To the capital of dragonkind. I'm sure the skeletons can handle these mere children?" She inquired, nonchalantly flapping off with Mardek as the others all gulped, the skeletons advancing...

And then, a few moments later, salvation. Luna popped up in a flash of blue light, Frisk by her side, the skeletal dragons all turning and seeing her horn glow with furious light as she gazed angrily upon them.

"Don't...you...BUCKING...TOUCH THEM!" She roared out, the skeletal dragons racing at her...

And with a THRA-SHOOOM, they were gone, Luna panting and heaving, falling to her knees as Frisk knelt by her as best he could with his broken leg, The Cutie Mark Crusaders, Chara, Huey, Spike and Squirt all racing over to them.

"My...my magic is...so spent...I used up so much of it already, I...I need to rest..." She groaned out. "And I think that Mardek may have hurt my magical power with his dirty tricks."

"We've got to get to Hearthstone. If we could warn the dragons in time, maybe they could hold Tiamat off before she manages to overpower them and take control." Frisk insisted with a firm nod. "It's all we GOT now. Wait!" He slapped his face. "Duh! A letter! Spike, we'll just have you send a letter to Ember! Anyone bring any paper?"

They all looked around, feeling through their pockets and backpacks...

...nope.

"...craaaaaaaap." Squirt groaned before realizing- "Wait." His eyes widened as he saw the map, lifting it up. "We'll use this!" He said with a smile. "That'd be perfect!"

"Great! Anyone got a pen?" Frisk inquired.

Crickets chirped.

"...buuuuuuuck meeeee..." Frisk groaned, smacking his face and tugging it down.

"I KNEW we forgot SOMETHING!" Squirt sobbed.

Comments

[Fireeaters]

7432089 The 'your' near 'amazing' should be 'you're'.

[ngrey651]

7432214
It's true, it's not his REAL name according to diving into the deeper recesses of the game.

[Hawkx1]

I'm siding with Mardek on this one if any of her children are still alive they SHOULD die

[Lakeguy]

7432335 I already figured that out a while ago, but thanks anyway.