Karma is back in StringVerse and learns even more about Strings

——

S̷̲͗ṯ̶̇̅ringVerse

"-do it by yourself. I don't mind either way, Karma!"

Oops. Karma had kind of forgotten he would arrive the same moment he left. Thankfully Star wasn't looking at him, so he took his chance to run off in the opposite direction, pleased at getting a large head start. It was a bit busy today but that was perfect for what he wanted, hopefully it would delay Star.

When he passed by a shop he got a glance of his clothes and cursed. He needed to get changed before he was spotted by anyone who would recognise him, as he did not want to answer any troublesome questions. Whilst he was running he spotted a park nearby and flapped his wings to give him an extra boost. He grinned as he found a quiet area and quickly swapped his clothes for the ones Error had made for him. He reluctantly took off his scarf and swapped it for the blue one from Error but paused when he looked at it.

It was a lot..dustier than he remembered. As were his clothes come to think of it. Did the glasses just not work as well as he thought? He shivered at feeling Star head towards him, thankfully just as he finished putting the last item on. He took out the glasses Error had made for him and put them on, surprised he still had a use for them. At least they didn't impede his vision like regular ones would.

"Karma! Where are you?!"

He scowled and sprinted away from the voice, hoping to lose them. All he needed to do was find a busy spot to blend in and text Moon for a lift. Should be easy enough. He hissed when arms lifted him up but just managed to not lash out, as he didnt want to harm Star, even if he disliked the situation he was in.

"There you are. I was worried sick. Are you ok? Are you perhaps ill?"

Dream adjusted his hold on Karma and turned them to be facing him, keeping a tight hold on them, in case they tried to run off again. He had no idea why they had left and he feared they had spotted some danger he wasn't aware of.

Looking over them he was relieved that they seemed fine and spreading out his magic didn't indicate any issues. If anything they felt more emotionally stable than before, with far less anger present, despite the scowl on their face.

They were also not fighting him at all, despite past interactions, where even suggesting a mere hug would earn him a truly fearsome snarl. He patiently waited for them to speak and flinched in surprise, as they rested their skull against his shoulder.

"..i don't want to do it"

"...What?"

Dream was lost, way too many things were happening at once for him to even try to keep track of the conversation.

"I don't want to see my Strings... scary "

He was unsure if he was meant to hear the last word but focusing on their emotions he realised how terrified they were. Thinking back he was a tad ashamed that in his excitement he ignored the stress they were exhibiting. He thought it was natural, as he had felt similar emotions from other children going to the find out.

"I-I'm sorry, Karma. I thought you would enjoy it, as i know other children do"

And that's the thing Dream forgot. This particular babybones clearly wasn't like others. Just observing their clothes and the band on their wrist, still radiating the Destroyer's magic, was proof enough but he knew this also put them in greater danger.

"I've no idea why this is so important. It's just sounds like pretty coloured Strings, you can boast about having"

Dream sighed and rested his skull against them in sadness. He had wished to keep their innocence longer but perhaps that had been futile to begin with. The dust covering them pointed out the dangers inherent in their AU.

"Lets go to my place so i can explain"

He waited to see if they would argue but was pleasantly surprised when they hummed in agreement. He made sure no one was nearby and opened a large golden portal to his living room. He stood in silence as the portal closed, feeling unsure just where to start.

Dream tried to place Karma down but their grip tightened and they glared at him in annoyance. Huffing in amusement he sat down on the arm chair, placing them on his lap.

"Now, I would prefer you listen to what i have to say as this subject is..hard to talk about"

He was pleased by their attention but could only manage a wobbly smile in response. He had never felt so old, at having to explain to a child about how things used to be.

"Do you remember when I first asked you about Strings? There is a reason that it isn't spoken in the open, not anymore"

He took a deep breath and tried to push back the grim memories this was bringing up.

"It used to be normal to share who you were bonded to and how many you had. There were festivals and every school taught it. It was even used as a treatment for monsters Falling Down and other such conditions.."

Things might have not been perfect in his AU but he still remembered the lighter times, sharing all his bonds with his brother and feeling relieved that they both had things in common with the villagers. It made him feel far less alone. His brother was gone. Why did they leave him.

"Star? Do you want to stop?"

Star focused back in the present and shook his skull. This was important and he wouldn't let his feelings get in the way of giving potentially life saving knowledge. The band on the babybones wrist was like a taunt, bolstering him to continue.

"No. I'll continue, little one....You are too young for my comfort to know this but circumstances change"

They chirped in confusion and he couldn't resist patting their skull at their innocence.

"Things might not have been perfect but it was a way of life. That was before the Destroyer appeared"

Dream shivered at their first meeting, remembering their mismatched eyelights staring right through him. The considering look before they casually asked him about his brother had chilled him to his core, terrified how they could know such things.

"The Destroyer can see all your weaknesses and exploit them however they wish. This of course brought chaos to the AU's who reacted in panic, destroying as much knowledge on Strings as they could"

It had been a dark period for all, as many monsters had preferred to dust then have themselves be used against their loved ones. It was of course in vain, as somehow the Destroyer didn't need anything but his magic to see all the Strings you had but this hadn't been readily known until much too late. Dream had forgotten so much about Strings as the years passed and even Ink had no clue, saying they didn't remember everything they created.

"..Why is that a bad thing?"

"It's not. Seeing your Strings with aid is a common thing, after all. It's what the Destroyer can do with this power that is horrifying. You see, he is able to interact with them as if they are physical and easily manipulate them"

Dream had the unfortunate 'pleasure' of witnessing that first hand. So many AU's were destroyed by them and many more monsters as well. The look on the many victims' faces was always stuck in his mind, never letting him forget what a truly dangerous being they were.

He could tell Karma didn't truly understand and tried to simply it further.

"Cutting the Strings or even touching them can deeply damage a being's SOUL. They are just as much a part of us as magic is"

The babybones blankly stared at him and their emotions felt weirdly muted. He hoped he hadn't scared them with this. He was about to reassure them when a buzzing sound occured. He watched as Karma pulled out a phone, before looking at him in slight consideration.

"I need to go, Star. Can you drop me off in that AU again please?"

Dream didn't want to leave it like this but reluctantly opened a portal for them. Before they could get up he held them tight, moving his skull closer towards them.

"Please be careful if you ever meet the Destroyer. Promise me, Karma"

"..i promise, Star. Can you tell me what the Destroyer's name is?"

Stars grip on them tightened and he moved his skull to whisper the name, fearing to speak it any louder.

" Thread . Be careful speaking it out loud, little one. You never know who might be listening"

Star reluctantly let them go and watched as they left through his portal. He felt tears gathering in his sockets, holding in a sob at what he had just told. He hoped he hadn't unintentionally put them in more danger and would try and keep a watch over them. Wiping at his sockets he stood up and went to get changed in his usual clothes.

Maybe he should go meetup with Blue? They always managed to cheer him up.

-

Karma was sitting in the library at Moons home and was studying the other monster sitting opposite him. He no longer felt as angry as before but he still had some wariness around the Negativity Guardian. His new SOUL was very helpful in letting him regulate his emotions more but his memories of how he felt about them before were clashing rather violently, therefore putting him on edge.

He tried to ignore these warring feelings and instead thought about what Star had talked about. Some of it was useful information but he was puzzled by all that was said about the Destroyer, making him feel twitchier than normal.

Nightmare had been watching the babybones since they came back, able to sense his brother's magic lingering on them. He never asked what the other did when there, wanting to give them the freedom to do what they want. He also trusted that Error had things covered, so was content to leave this alone.

Glancing up, when he heard them shuffle on their seat yet again, he placed his book down and looked them over. He could sense they were feeling rather confused and decided to speak up.

"Karma. What's wrong?"

"..I learnt something new today and i am unsure how to take it"

Nightmare felt his SOUL speed up in fear, already imagining the worst. Did they know who he was? Did someone manage to connect them with him or Error? He could feel his tentacles wanting to come out but forcibly pushed them down, now was not the time.

"You can tell me. Perhaps i can help, little one"

He could hopefully also find out if he and Error needed to do any damage control as well.

"I met this monster a while ago called Star and they-"

"I'm sorry, did you say Star?"

"Yes... Do you know them?

"No!..you just surprised me. It's such a unique name"

It was taking everything he had to appear calm. What had his brother said to Karma?! And to use the nickname he gave them as well, just what were they up to now? He had given up on salvaging any relationship with them years ago, as they were convinced he was a fake, a mere shadow of the true thing. It hurt to be called a parasite and it hardly helped that he was usually in his corrupted form, due to the strength it gave him.

"Please go on"

They looked hesitant but thankfully continued. He stayed silent as he heard what 'Star' had told them but grimaced at the lies they said about Error. It was sad how his brother believed such things but he focused on the present, trying to comfort them and convince them that Error wasn't some irredeemable monster that needed to be put down. He winced when they mentioned the supposed name of the Destroyer and pleaded they never use that in front of Error. He could only imagine the pain that would bring.

Nightmare thoughts things had gone rather well but frowned when he saw them fiddle with their glasses again. Error had looked rather pleased at his creation and so had the babybones, but they still had odd habits with them. They took them off a lot, even though it made them rather clumsy without them and even stared at odd points as if confused.

He had tried the glasses on himself and he hadn't seen anything unusual, so he was slightly worried what was causing this behaviour.

" Hey. I finished early by some miracle. I think Ink might be getting even stupider as time goes on, which I never thought was possible. So i was think—-what's wrong, Karma? "

Nightmare was glad Error had come but froze at the sharp glance the babybones gave to the Destroyer.

"Error. You can see Strings, right?"

He saw Errors glitches increase and tried to absorb the growing negativity to prevent a Crash from occurring. Minutes passed before Error found his voice again but their form tensed, looking down at Karma in slight fear.

" YeS. I c-can "

"Great! How do you tone it down? It's very distracting and it keeps giving me a headache...also why do you have a golden one that looks to be choking you?"

...well that was unexpected and looking at Error he could tell they felt the same. He settled in for what he thought was going to be a long talk...and Error just Crashed. Wonderful. Guess he was starting this alone.

~~~~

Karma: *Arriving back in StringVerse* I feel great and have zero worries!

*Remembers what was about to happen*

Karma:..ok maybe one worry
-
*Dream talking about how evil the Destroyer is*

Dream: Please stay away from him!

Karma: *Has zero intention of saying he currently lives with them* I'll do my best
-
*Karma saying he has a question*

Nightmare and Error: *Fearing something bad has happened*

Karma: *Admits can see Strings*

Nightmare:..how is this somehow worse then what i imagined?

Error: *Crashing due to stress*