Operatale: the Other Side
Now, the crossovers are still going to continue (I’m never going to be sick of crossovers if this AU is any indication~) but a thought occurred to me. What if Undertale’s story was told in the context of an opera/ballet? In this case, the idea behind the AU draws much more heavily from Dancetale and actually follows a coherent story unlike the cast being members of a theater troupe (though in this case, the young characters are still old enough to perform physically and vocally demanding roles.)
Namely, the story told by the three routes- or acts, in this context. The majority of the story is told through song with a few lines of spoken dialogue (mostly Sans until his big aria in the second act,) and battles are expressed through ballet sequences. I will never let the ‘Spider Dance’ joke go and you can’t make me!
Speaking of ballet, all of Frisk’s ‘lines’ are delivered through dance and pantomime, though Chara speaks and sings out loud for the most part after their introduction.
Frisk starts the act after falling into the Underground, as in pretty much any AU. However, they... Make mistakes. They accidentally kill Toriel, give up trying to spare Undyne out of frustration, and kill Mettaton before he has a chance to reconcile with Napstablook. The only real moments of levity are Muffet’s Spider Dance and Mettaton’s tongue-in-cheek aria.
Following that, Frisk tries to clean up their act and manages to spare Asgore... Only to be thwarted by Flowey. Despite the setback, they struggle through the act’s finale and... They wait. Something convinces them to reset...
After the intermission, the audience sees who convinced Frisk to reset: Chara. The innocent ingenue’s shadow. They convince the latest fallen human to actively hunt down and kill monsters, since getting past Undyne, Asgore and Omega Flowey was so hard at their low level! Unlike the No Mercy route, the Merciless Act is actually quite a bit shorter than the Neutral Act, as the main character is metaphorically seduced by Chara into cutting through their enemies.
However, the stage in this act is stolen by three characters: Undyne, in the breathtakingly difficult swan song that is the Undying Adagio, Mettaton NEO, who’s... Really just there to show off the costume department, and Sans with his heart-wrenching aria before he gives Frisk/Chara a Bad Time, the only solo he sings as the majority of his lines are either spoken or a few notes sung during a chorale piece.
Also unlike the No Mercy route, the Merciless act doesn’t end with Chara seizing control of Frisk from the player/audience, but with Frisk throwing off their influence after being defeated by Sans and resetting...
This act is quite a bit longer than the Merciless act, as it calls for Frisk to redeem themselves... And Chara.
The date with Papyrus is a seemingly romantic pas de deux, but anyone who played the game knows how it went. The human is legitimately disappointed with being friendzoned. The Grillby’s ‘date’ with Sans is a comedic duet that briefly gets serious for a moment as the pair parts ways, but the meal at MTT Resort is a much more somber affair, one of the few scenes with strictly dialogue alone, all delivered by Sans.
As for Mettaton... His fight is much longer and more dramatic, as is fitting, and his decision to remain in the Underground is still spurred by Napstablook’s solo, followed by a rising chorus from his fans before his energy reserves deplete and he falls into a dead swoon.
The date that leads to Undyne and Alphys hooking up begins as a pas de deux between Alphys and Frisk that becomes a pas de trois with the arrival of Undyne. The human then is pulled aside and given the key that leads them to the True Lab... Which then triggers a dream ballet sequence pantomiming Asriel and Chara’s story.
Frisk is judged by Sans one final time and ultimately forgiven. Toriel prevents another fight between them and Asgore, but Flowey’s attack is still carried out... The ‘fight’ with Asriel is another pas de trois, with Chara having been convinced of Frisk’s goodness and trying to reach out to their only friend.
The finale is another chorale piece, including all of the monsters of the Underground as well as the main characters. Asriel has seemingly reconciled with having to remain a flower, Chara is at peace, the Amalgamates have returned to their families and the monsters are finally free to return to the surface!
... The only question remaining is who the hell is that weird skeleton in the epilogue, the one in the long black cloak with the cracked skull!?
Criticisms and suggestions welcome, as always.
