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Karl’s eyes slowly opened, the rough ground of the Other Side was firm against his back, the gray clouded sky blocking out most of his vision. As he slowly sat up he took in his surroundings like usual, the swirling black clouds hung heavy above the dark castle that towered above him. Black, twisted, leafless trees covered the bare landscape, a drastic change from the Inbetween. The castle seemed bigger than before, but Karl shrugged it off and started to stand up. He made his way down the path and into the doors of the castle-like he always did, he continued to walk, expecting to find a note laying somewhere, but there was nothing. He continued to let his feet carry him through the winding halls, he noted the withered flowers that seemed to decorate the area, but he failed to realize what was happening behind him.
He turned his attention to the sprawling story painted on the ceiling, the story of Achilles was displayed, but with the few painted scenes, a big story played itself out, and before Karl knew it, he was standing in front of a door, with his name carved into the dark oak wood just above the handle. While gazing at the handle Karl notices a thin silver chain hanging around his wrist, attached to the chain was a key, which slipped perfectly into the keyhole of the door. With a small push the door swings open, inside is a warm room, decorated mostly in brown, but with a complimentary mint color. Right off the door was a nice small set of Dark Oak stairs, the floor made of the same wood. To his right sat a large King size bed, it was made with black sheets and mint and white pillows. The bed itself was tucked in a corner and was slightly hidden by see-through mint curtains that hung from the ceiling.
A mint couch sat against the brown painted wall in front of him which faced the wall the bed was pushed up against, and dark stained bookshelves lined the walls around him, many of which were signed with his name. A big window sat next to the couch, even with the white curtains covering it, he could still see the mint-colored cushioned seat that ran the length of the bottom of the window. After a few minutes of walking around the room, his body started to venture out into the hall again, and with a quick lock of the door, he was heading out again. As his feet carried him through the halls some more he started to focus more on the flowers that seemed to cover the halls, especially as he entered one room where withered flowers hung from the ceiling all around him.
The room itself seemed like a small ballroom, but Karl's attention was stuck on the ceiling, especially as the withered flowers bloomed and blossomed into Lotus flowers, framed by groups of lemon balm leaves, the black petals dropping to the floor and evaporating. The sound of music and talking drew him into the next room, but when he entered, no one was there. His eyes drifted around the room, there was a large tree running up one of the corners of the room, the branches pressed against the ceiling, almost completely hidden by the millions of flowers covering the ceiling. A couple of sets of black sofas sat in the middle of the room, all facing each other, and as his eyes drifted across the room, they landed on a figure sitting on one of the sofas, reading a book, unaware of his arrival.
They were dressed rather nicely, they were wearing a cream-colored form-fitting turtle-neck that was tucked into plaid pants that were different shades of brown, they also sported a loose dark brown trench coat and a pair of dark brown dress shoes. Their hair was a deep brown with blonde highlights that were tied in a high ponytail and rested at their shoulder blades. The book in their hands had a title that immediately jumped out to Karl, “The Lost City of Mizu”, Karl had written it a while back, it held all the information from the journey, and to his knowledge, there was only one copy, yet here it was.
He took a cautionary step forward, even being silent, the mystery person’s head shot up and their eyes focused on Karl. Their eyes were blue, however, the color was so light they bordered the color white, they contrasted heavily with their tan skin, but that somehow made them stand out more. Their initial shocked reaction was almost immediately replaced with a warm smile and sweet smile. They slowly stood up, from what Karl could see they were about half a foot shorter than him. They tucked the book under their arm and motioned Karl to follow them as they began walking down the hall. Hesitantly, Karl started to follow, making sure to stay far enough behind that he could get a good distance away fast if they turned on him.
They lead him through a few twisting halls, the withered flowers around them turning into Rosemary and Sage, the symbols of Remembrance and Wisdom respectively. Karl’s still stayed their mix of Lotus and Lemon Balm. They two slowly made their way up a set of stairs and onto what seemed to be a balcony near the top of the castle, it was about the size of the room he was in earlier, a small table and a couple of chairs were in the middle of the area, however, the rest was covered in flowers, all you could imagine. They were all very well taken care of, and all seemed perfectly healthy. Karl tuned back into the person as they sat down at the small table, motioning him to sit as well, which he did, still slightly hesitant, yet less than before.
“You’re Karl, yes?” Their voice was light and flowed as if it was made of honey,
“Yes,” He answered, his voice small and timid,
“It’s nice to meet you finally, my name is Malachi,” They said smiling, it reminded him of Sapnap in a way,
“It’s nice to meet you too,” His voice was a little stronger that time, but still made him seem like a small child compared to the person in front of him,
“You are new to the Other Side, yes Karl?” They asked, they tilted their head to the side lightly as they talked,
“Yes, this is my second time being here," He said clasping his hands behind his back,
“How long were you in the Inbetween?” They asked, Karl just shrugged,
“I don’t know, a while, someone led me to a portal to get out," He explained, He could barely remember anything going on in his world, let alone everything happening here,
“The important thing is that you’re here now, safe and sound," They said thankfully,
“I’d rather just be at home if I’m being honest, I just want things to go back to normal," Karl confessed swinging his feet lightly,
“Everyone does dear," They said lightly,
A comfortable silence hung in the air as a warm breeze swept across the area, putting Karl’s mind at ease. The world seemed lighter up here, and Karl was able to see much more of the area. Tucked just behind the castle was a small hedge maze with a gray gazebo with light blue accents.
“Karl, do you believe in destiny?” Malachi asked, bringing him back to the present,
“What do you mean?” Karl asked,
“Like, everyone has a goal to fulfill before they die?” Malachi explained,
“I think so… But I don’t really know," He confessed,
“Yes you do, your mind not, but your heart does," They said matter-of-factly,
“What does that mean?” Karl asked, a slight giggle to his voice,
“It means not everything you do has to be done with solid reasoning, take the risk your heart wants, even if you don’t understand why," Malachi explained with a smile,
Karl takes a deep breath and stands up, he walks over to the edge of the balcony. Resting his arms on the railing, his eyes fell close as another warm breeze swept past him, and suddenly Malachi’s presence was right next to him. They pressed their back against the railing and tilted their head up towards the sky.
“It lied to you, y’know," Malachi said suddenly,
“Who?” Karl asked, turning his head to look at them,
“The Inbetween. You’re lucky you got out when you did," They said with a small frown,
“I know they lied, but how so?” Karl asked confused,
“The Inbetween was slowly taking away your key memories, if you stayed any longer who knows what they would’ve taken next," Malachi explained,
“How do you know all this?” Karl asked,
“Cause I was once in your position, there are very few things I remember about my life back on earth," Malachi said with a small sigh,
“What do you remember?” Karl asked,
They smiled brightly and turned to rest their forearms against the rail next to Karl. They pulled out a picture of a little girl, no older than 6. With gorgeous wavy brown hair and sporting a bright purple hoodie. She was smiling brightly, without a care in the world.
“Who is this?” Karl asked with a small smile,
“This is my daughter, Anastasia," Malachi explained, their voice laced with love,
“What a wonderful name…” Karl said with a smile,
“She was my destiny… It’s a shame I never got to see her become a young woman, I hope she’s doing well," Malachi said worriedly,
“People can be your destiny?” Karl asked, Malachi, nodded,
“Well, of course, anything can be your destiny.” They explained, Karl hummed a response,
Karl’s mind instantly flashed to Quackity and Sapnap, he rests his head in his left palm and lets his mind run with memories of the three of them. He lets himself get lost in his mind for a few minutes, letting the world around him disappear for a few minutes, Malachi’s words brought him back.
“That’s a beautiful ring," Malachi said,
“Thank you, my fiance Sapnap made one for me, him, and our fiance Quackity," Karl explained with a small smile,
“Apophyllite," They said lightly,
“Excuse me?” He asked,
“The stone, it’s Apophyllite. When paired with the right person it creates a strong connection between the physical and spiritual realms. Tell me, do you remember when you first jumped through time?” They asked, Karl, shrugged,
“My mother had just given me a small polished stone, it was clear, yet white at the same time, she passed shortly after,” He explained,
“I’m sorry to hear that, I think she gave you an Apophyllite stone, and you were just the right person to be able to jump. Do you remember where you went? Who you met?” Malachi asked excitedly,
“A busy town, I remember hiding in a corner until a boy, who I now know to be a past relative of my Quackity. He calmed me down and we played with another boy until I was sent home,” He explained,
Karl took off his ring and gave it to Malachi to look at, they looked at the stone with a loving expression, as if remembering their own past life. They looked back up to Karl with a smile and a nod, as if to say that it was real, he gave a smile back and rested his head in his palm again.
“How do you know all of this?” Karl asked,
“I guess I should tell you the truth, huh?” Malachi said with a giggle,
“My name is Malachi, the overseer of this place that many call the Otherside,” They explained,
“The… Overseer?” Karl asked timidly,
“You remember the books that you found on your first day here?” They asked, Karl, nodded,
“Of course, I found some in the Inbetween too,” He said,
“Well that is how I communicate with most travelers that pass through here, but you… you’re different,” Malachi paused,
“So, then what do you want with me?” Karl asked, Malachi, smiled at him,
“I want to set you free Karl, you have a wonderful life out there, and I would hate to see you waste most of it by being in here,” Malachi explained lightly,
“And how do you plan on that? I don’t want to give up my stones, no way,” Karl said sternly, Malachi giggled,
“I understand that, and you don’t have to,” They said,
“Then, how do I get out of this?” Karl asked,
“Your world has a problem, and the Inbetween made you believe that by time-traveling you could solve it, but the answer is much simpler than that. You have a god running around your world, well, not RUNNING around, but there is a god amongst your people. He holds the answer to your world's problem," Malachi explained,
“Do you mean Dream?” Karl asked,
“Not him exactly, there is a mortal in your world who has made a deal with him. Find that mortal, you find your key, find your key, save your world,” Malachi said,
“But what if I can’t find him?” Karl asked,
“Don’t worry, you will just think, do you think you’re ready?” Malachi asked lightly,
“Maybe?” Karl said with a small smile,
“Good enough, good luck Karl, and remember what I said,” Malachi said with a smile,
They placed a warm hand on the back of his neck, and suddenly the warmth turned to burn and everything went black.
Karl’s eyes slowly open to reveal the setting sun streaming through the blinds of his library. His mind clicks where he is quickly and jumps out of his seat, he quickly makes his way out of the library and out into the Kinoko Kingdom plaza. Foolish, who was looking through a couple of chests nearby, gives him a kind wave, which Karl returns with a smile, and gets back to looking for whatever he was looking for.
His mind catches on the sound of splashing water and instantly hightails it off to a body of water nearby. Captain Puffy’s old barn house marks his destination, and his eyes instantly catch onto two figures standing near the water fishing. He makes his way over to the two, the smaller of the two relieved his presence first and dropped his rod in the water as their eyes met.
“Karl! There you are, we’ve been looking for you all day!” Quackity yelled wrapping him in a tight hug, Karl instantly hugged him back,
“I’m really sorry boys, I got lost in time and my mind was somewhere else,” Karl lied,
“You scared me, Karl, I thought something bad happened…” Quackity said hiding his face in the crook of Karl's neck,
“I’m really sorry Q, I can’t promise at this moment that it won't happen again, but hopefully soon,” Karl said lightly kissing the top of his head,
“Please at least tell us when you’ll be busy like that, or at least tell us where you’ll be, who knows what could’ve happened,” Sapnap said kissing Karl's cheek and resting a hand on his lower back,
“I’m sorry Pandas, I’ll be more careful next time, promise," Karl said with a small smile,
“Karl?” Quackity said,
“Yes, dear?” Karl asked,
“What’s this burn mark on your neck?” He asked, Karl, tensed up lightly at the question but was quick to cover the question,
“It’s nothing dear, just had a little accident earlier," He lied, he felt Sapnap brush his hand over the burn making Karl tense a little,
“What happened?” He asked, his voice dripping with worry,
“I’d rather just drop it, can we go home now?” Karl asked, Sapnap's eyes were still filled with worry, but he smiled slightly and nodded,
“Cuddle time?” Quackity asked, raising his head for the first time since he hugged Karl,
“Pandas?” Karl asked, the two looking over to the man in question, he sighed in response,
“Ok fine, I could never say no to you two," He said teasingly,
“Yay!” Quackity yelled, finally letting go of Karl, but was quick to grab his hand again and started to pull the other two towards the house, “Let’s go!”
The night passed with no problem, and for once, Karl slept through it all, no nighttime jump, no nightmares, just a peaceful night wrapped up with his two most favorite people. He woke up early the next morning, before the other two who were still wrapped around his waist. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the warm glow of the rising sun around him, his eyes landed on a book sitting out on his balcony.
He slowly moved his way out of bed and slipped out onto the balcony, closing the sliding glass door on his way out. Slowly he opens the book and begins to read.
‘Remember what I said Karl, find the mortal, the solution to your world might not be logical, just follow your heart.’
His eyes reread the words a few times before a blue sweatshirt down on the grass below catches his eyes, George. The god he has to find is like Dream, but not quite, he needs to find someone who would know where he was. Suddenly, it clicks.
“George!” He called, George's head snapped up and he smiled,
“Karl! Good morning!” He yelled up,
“Are you free for a bit?” Karl asked, leaning over the side rail of the balcony,
“Yeah I should be, why is something wrong?” George asked tilting his head to the side,
“I need your help.”