I wrote this post on New Year’s Eve and while I don’t usually put spoilers in my posts I’m warning you right now.  Do not read this post if you intend to play the game ‘Undertale’.  What is Undertale?  A roleplaying game that takes about 10-20 hours to complete to its full capacity.  I’ll mention Star Wars a few times in it, but you’re safe with that.  Nothing I say will be any more revealing than the trailers, so your mileage may vary.

Now with the obligatory warning, let me go on with my tale.

The face of evil(?)

After leaving the desolate Snowdin behind, I made my way to a part of the underground surrounded by water.  Well, less frozen water at least.  Despite the thaw of running water, my reception wasn’t getting any warmer.  Monsters attacked and the difficulty ramped up a little upon meeting my first real challenge:  Her name is Undyne.

Think the Terminator with an angry armor clad Fish Woman with energy spears.   Between running from my life, I came across a few empty houses.   The only inhabitants willing to talk to be was a turtle, cat creature that spoke in lol-speak (that sold me items) and a monster kid.

The problem is, this monster kid is rather oblivious to my ‘righteous purging’ of the underground.  He or she (I’m not sure which) idolizes Undyne and is so focused on her bad assery that they hardly realize how dangerous being around me is.

I’m no monster, though.  The kid is not a threat until they realize what I am and plan to go and let Undyne become privy to my location.  This was probably the first moment I hesitated in the game.  I wasn’t fighting a monster trying to kill me. I was staring down a child trying to run away.

I would have stopped there, but I thought to myself: “this is just a game.  I should do this ‘right’.”  So I selected to fight.  I didn’t hit the kid, though.   Instead, Undyne jumped in the way, taking the hit dealing lethal damage to my pursuer.

See that cleave through Undyne?  That’s my fault.

Undyne kept her calm, putting on a strong face and told the kid to run.  As soon as it was out of sight, she crumpled to one knee, cursing her helplessness in the face of evil.

I’m that evil if you didn’t catch the memo.

“But like any great Hero, Undyne holds on, tapping into the power of Determination and rises brighter and fiercer, like a legendary fish monster phoenix.  And she kicked my ass.   I met the Game Over screen for the first time.

She really REALLY kicked my butt good by the way.

I had a hard time doing a second time, not because I wasn’t looking forward to the challenge, but because my Protagonist attacks the kid without hesitation this time, like they know it’s gonna happen… just as I did.

It took me about five tries to best Undyne and when I did, it felt more like a Game Over Screen than the four times I lost.  Watching Undyne melt away with a smile on her face, with full confidence her friends would stop me… left me with a really bad feeling.

Right about now you might wonder… why tell such a grim story on a holiday post?  Stay tuned.  I’m just geting started.