One Hundred Arms Grasping In The Dark

Theres just been quite a lot of emphasis on how Asriel specifically is like the whole towns goldenboy, so it would explain the connection between the two, why Ralsei looks like him, because the town itself looks to Asriel as an example of its core ideals.

It even parallels the way Undertale Asriel took on the souls of all of the underground, could feel their hopes and dreams within himself.

I’ve seen theories before about Ralsei being a sort of anti-titan, an incarnation of positivity/comfort as opposed to fear, this would fit pretty well with that.

It would explain why Ralsei is even the prince of the darkworlds, all of hometowns desires which shape the individual darkners fall under Ralsei’s purview as a form of the entire collective desire of the town.

It might be why Ralsei’s outfit kinda resembles the church clothes, a thing that might manifest on the avatar of the collective ideals of a small religious town.

Ralsei also knows a lot about the town, the people in it, knows who Noelle is even though they haven’t properly spoken, who Kris and Susie are before ever meeting them.

I dunno, do i think this theory is absolutely true? I don’t know, I think its an interesting idea to play with, hard to say how much it would fit Ralsei as a character

Also bonus for Transfem Ralsei theory (cause i said so) Hometown does have plenty of trans character for that aspect of Ralsei to draw from, Mettaton and Mad Mew Mew especially currently are shut away and lack confidence to be themselves from what we’ve seen so far. Also Kris, obviously, plus shoutout Dress Lion. And even beyond directly drawing from trans characters of hometown, anyone can struggle to be their authentic selves, Noelle in particular parallels Ralsei in this way. Ralsei drawing on peoples hopes, including the hopes of being able to be who you are, something plenty of Lightners seem to feel.

Plus obviously even in the scope of this theory, Ralsei doesn’t need to draw straight from Light world influence, especially in regards for being potentially being trans, that can just be a thing that is true.

I like Asgore as a character, but what i like about him is his blatant flaws. Toriel at the end of Undertale pacifist is right about Asgore in the sense that he’s prone to falling into stagnation easily, often not very good when it comes to being proactive. Its why he waits for humans to fall down in Undertale and waits at the edge of barrier instead of seeking them out or even crossing the barrier as soon as he had one soul, Its even why in genocide he doesn’t take the other souls to stop you, its why Toriel is right that he didn’t want another human to come, that he couldn’t handle the idea of being free from the Underground.

Its clear he cant really handle change, and while he can be a good guy, he’s not completely morally bankrupt or anything, he has a good heart, he’s also kinda a bad leader when it comes to anything but Morale. In Undertale (and in Deltarune) the people around him ultimately suffer from his stubbornness whether he intends it or not.

The same is true of his situation in Deltarune, he’s become stagnant and stuck in the past because he cant move forward at all. Not all, but honestly most of his current situation is self caused, he’s stuck in his own way. I think the prophecy panel reflects this “the flower man trapped in asylum”. While Asylum is often associated with a mental hospital, more broadly it means a place safety. In that sense Asgore is trapped in the safety of stagnation, the reliability of the past he wont move forward from.

Its probably why his relationship with Toriel fell apart, its why he doesn’t seem to have a relationship with Kris (since that itself would require adapting to his new situation), its why he cant get back on his feet at all.

And him harassing Toriel is some rough shit, I hate watching that, i want him to improve, i believe he can, but his improvement is all self-involved. Nobody has really done this to him, theres nobody to crash out at. He just needs to see that its time to move forward, that it has been for a long time.

Not only is the other identified as $ or an S as its username but it seemingly tries to refer to Kinger by his real name, something Scratch would know. It would also make sense for Scratch to want to delete Caine, since Caine messed with his plans for the other AI and the entire program in general seemingly.

Obviously Scratch abstracted but based on the context in which Kinger brings up Scratch as the first abstraction in episode 7, it seems like something was unique about it. He brings it up in the response to Caine saying that if he did more to the humans minds than add temporary modifiers that it “wouldn’t end well”.

Maybe Caine DID try on Scratch, and more than just abstracting regularly, he got trapped in the code itself, or became a part of it, or something similar. At the very least maybe he didn’t have the access himself to delete Caine, so needed to trick Kinger.

The personality of other voice in the code is quite malicious, obvious on it trying to get Caine deleted. Maybe some part of Scratch was always like this, maybe through abstraction itself or Caine messing with his mind he went more crazy.

Maybe if Scratch did abstract physically but can still access the code somewhat, he wants out of the basement where Caine banishes the abstractions, and knows by deleting him he’ll be free from there at least.

I mean, as the “Able” npc in episode 7 asks for a raise from Caine, Caine even says “oh you’re getting too smart, time to delete” hmmmmmmmm

Mostly I just think its kinda boring and basic. The reason Flowey worked as a compelling villain was that despite being soulless he wasn’t some empty monster who was cruel and selfish because “thats what being soulless does”

He couldn’t feel but it was clear he still could care, maybe not on a fully. emotional level but he could still try in spite of that. I think what we see in the cut Alarm clock dialogue shows that pretty well.

On top of that he didn’t become the way he did just because he was soulless, he tells us about the first loop where he was just scared and confused at what was happening and how empty he felt. But being soulless on top of being in an endless no-consequence time loop situation, plus the trauma of having just lost his best friend to a brutal death before quickly dying a brutal death himself (both of which clearly effected him since a lot of his motivation in the game is based on thinking Frisk is Chara)

I mean he literally ends the first loop taking his own life, he doesn’t know at that point that would reset him. We don’t even know how long he spent looping no consequence before doing anything bad. Before becoming who we see.

Flowey was a really interesting and compelling character who I love, not the least of which is because of the way his character challenges the idea of being soulless as something which makes you an instantly cruel and uncaring irredeemable monster, something a lot of media does.

So i find the notion that Dess as the knight must be soulless kinda sucks ass, the specific way its parroted is used as basically a stand in for compelling motivation. The Knight is doing all that bad stuff because being soulless makes you a chaotic selfish monster who does not care about anything or anyone.

Its not just boring it throws out everything Undertale says through Flowey.

Dess isn’t in a time-loop- i guess she could be, but that would be complete speculation at this point- so it just doesnt make nearly as much sense as it did for Flowey as a character.

This is in the same vein as people acting like Kris and the Knight’s goal is to start the Roaring. Its not, i’ve made a post about this but if they wanted to they could do it whenever they wanted, anytime, starting the roaring is easy, it takes like 3 or 4 fountains and the Knight is clearly capable of making them quickly.

Is it so impossible to imagine, that Toby “has never written a pure evil character even once” Fox might intend for the Knights goal to be more than just some evil scheme? The game even tries to get you to think about it in chapter 4 when Gerson gets Susie to consider why she might think the Knight does what they do. Its clearly done in a pointed way.

Time and time again i see it, “Monsters can do magic, humans cant” but people ignore two things when they parrot that from Undertale.

For one, monsters CANT do magic in Deltarune, its pretty clear at this point that magic doesn’t exist for monsters like it did in Undertale. Monsters aren’t spellcasters here, not in the lightworld, there no healing magic or rude busters for Susie, no ice magic for Noelle, not a single instance of magic cast or mentioned. It exists only in the darkworld, a place formed of imagination, so magic can be real.

And for two, as revealed officially in the Undertale anniversary stream, Humans can do magic. The only reason Undertale humans couldn’t was because they lost the ability forming the barrier, a thing that really doesn’t seem to have happened in Deltarune.

So there isn’t really any good reason why its the case that Kris cant do magic, in the Darkworld, human or monster shouldn’t really matter since the magic comes from the nature of Darkworlds not the species you are. Nor should Kris being human limit them in this world to begin with.

I have actually seen some good theories as to why, but I still feel like it should be more discussed. The way Human magic was explained to us in the tenth anniversary stream feels almost deliberately placed to draw attention to that inconstancy in Deltarune, especially since it was Gerson who said it.

Really, i just want more people speculating about this, it feels so interesting to think about. Especially in context of Kris’ room in chapter 2, where we see they searched up “how to do magic” at some point, maybe recently? Maybe not?

This isn’t a theory, just something I crave personally. I think any amens or explanation Kris makes to Susie should start with that, the ability to say something just as themself, just to her.

But one thing I do kinda find fun about it is that it implies Dess is soulless, and “child disappears from community suddenly leaving them to mourn only to return as a strange soulless creature causing havoc and chaos” is pretty much beat for beat what happened to Asriel in Undertale.

But like, they aren’t though, obviously.

This doesn’t even need to be a lengthy theory, if they wanted to start the roaring they could do it whenever, seems like making enough fountains does the trick. There is no reason if they wanted to, that Kris or the Knight couldn’t just make a fuck ton at once, anyone can make one, whenever, its shown to be absurdly easy.

There is no fountain limit, no reason the knight would only be making 1 single fountain everyday. They made 3 in chapter 4 alone. In the span of 1 afternoon. They were shown to be able to channel them through multiple of their blades at once to make the big one.

I know the knight making the Titan in chapter 4 is also absurd if they dont want to cause the roaring, but its difficult to say, its possible the Knight was aware that the group could beat the Titan, that the soul could be used to seal it away.

The motivations of Kris and the Knight are obviously vague at the moment. But it just makes no sense that they want the end of the world, why even bother with all the other shit they are doing? The world of deltarune is genuinely one of the easiest to destroy of any fictional world, you just stab the ground a couple of times and the world is done. Berdly almost does it by accident. Berdly.

Kris and Susie standing at the fountain is fairly usual, but the cutting to Kris waking up is extremely odd for Deltarune. If you consider the player that is.

For one, that kind of narrative jump is absent outside of the time spent between chapters.

Second, that we don’t actually see the Dark fountain getting sealed away at all, it implies that Kris did it themself, with the Soul sure, but without our presence. Which has interesting implications for the nature of those powers.

Ive mentioned elsewhere that i think it factors into my theory that the Light powers belong to Kris originally. But even if you don’t think that, it shows Kris can utilise them even without us actually present to control them.

Plus the way they seem so faded in the light world, still not really there. It makes it seem like Toby originally wanted them only in the darkworld for some diegetic reason, theres an implication there that they only exist in the dark.

The prophecy at every turn puts focus on the dark as well as light, the idea that both worlds are important, are in need of saving, and it presents none of the idea of darkners being less real or significant as lightners, in fact it makes no clear distinction between who is what in that regard. Even in Ralseis version of the prophecy, he ends it with “Only then will the world be saved” where the actual prohecy we see ends “Only then will the worlds be saved” worlds plural. Light and Dark both.

It makes me wonder where Ralsei got this image of Darkners from, why he is so obsessed and conflicted over them as being only made to serve and being less real? Is it something he came up with himself? Based on what he knows of Darkner origins as objects in the lightworld? No other darkner we’ve seen is afraid to have feelings or thinks that their feelings don’t matter. Often quite the opposite.

Who did this to you Ralsei? I will make them pay.

Though it does also make me think of the story Ralsei will start telling to the Jackenstien pumpkin in the overworld, where he describes the prince in his story as having “scarcely known anyone else” scarcely, not never, which implies Ralsei has met someone before.

Gaster maybe? We know he was experimenting with darkness based on entry 17, and the way Ralsei views darkners and their existance is quite cold and detached, the way a scientist might explain it, especially since Ralsei when explaining Darkners to Susie in chapter 3 even describes it somewhat like Gaster does in entry 17.

Often even in the context of hating on Kris, which i will not stand for >:(

But i seriously don’t see that happening, certainly not exactly in the way people seem to expect.

Im sure the vessel might come back in some form, but for the players use? I don’t really think so.

For one, the SOUL. Personally i think the soul is originally Kris’, and whether or not you fully believe that, it’s undeniable that the SOUL is entangled with Kris beyond simple possession.

The biggest piece of evidence for this is the fact that in Noelles house, in both the normal and weird route, when Kris hits and damages the soul, they are the one that feels it after, it effects their health points, despite being to the soul and not their body. They stagger after taking the soul back even, and in Noelle’s weirdroute dialogue it even seems to be detrimental to their health to go too long without the soul.

I think combined with other evidence, like Kris’s red eyes (seen even outside the context of Kris having the soul inside them), the first save slot having Kris’ name on it before we save over it, and a bunch more seems to indicate the soul is Kris’.

But whether or not you think this means the SOUL is in fact Kris’ soul, i think it shows that they are connected way too deeply to simply stick the soul in a new vessel and call it a day.

I think about during the Susie vs Lancer fight where the Soul seems to fly in from off-screen and even go back when a round of battle is done, like its physically drawn back to Kris.

Also i think thematically it wouldn’t work that well, i do think deltarune will subvert the original notion of “nobody can chose who they are in this world” but i expect it to be at the end if anywhere, and by that point why even give us the vessel back?

Im not trying it say it definitely wont happen, but i do think the idea of just getting plucked out of Kris and put in a new vessel with no repercussions or downsides would be ridiculous.

Plus this is kinda an extension from my other theories that the Soul is Kris’s and so are the light abilities associated with it, i’ve mentioned those elsewhere though.

The only character it properly fits is Kris, which is a distinction made for basically no other item, the game goes out of its way to make it clear that no other character can wear it properly aside from Kris. A character who, while non-binary, almost feels like the least likely contender for its intended wearer out of the party members.

Ralsei implies at multiple points that Susie is in some ways expected to wear the ribbons despite her refusal, possibly by the prophecy itself. And while some have the idea that Susie isn’t the “girl” from the prophecy, the other main candidate- Noelle- cant wear the princess ribbon fully either. She can wear the ribbon part, but like with the others, the gloves don’t fit.

With trans Ralsei theory (based) it could even be argued by some that Ralsei fits the role of Princess, and is certainly the only one of the group to be called by a royal title. But the gloves don’t fit either.

It almost seems that they might ONLY fit a human. Kris is the only one in town, even if you’re someone who thinks that the Vessel is supposed to be the hero rather than Kris (don’t personally agree but thats neither here nor there) it makes somehow even less sense than it already does.

So whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. Make no mistake, i think its awesome that a more feminine item is set out specifically for Kris, non-binary moment of all time, but the theory part of my mind is driven crazy by it.

It has to mean something. Deltarune is a game which often makes commentary on and even creates interesting subversions of RPG tropes and archetypes. The role of Princess is certainly an archetype of sorts, but Noelle feels more like the subversion of the damsel in distress trope, “the princess in need of rescuing” is something she subverts and struggles against in chapter 2. So its hard to know what association Kris has with it exactly.

Its a secret item you have to go out of your way for, and Its in the room with the Tail of Hell prophecy. Even wilder, what the hell does it have to do with the tail of hell prophecy? Anything? We don’t even really know anything about that prophecy to begin with.

I dunno, through Asgore and Toriel Kris can be somewhat associated with royalty and even considered… the nonbinary equivalent of Prince or Princess, Princex? (Someone let me know)

While the two aren’t directly royalty in Deltarune Toriels darkworld form does have a crown and based on the prophecy picture in chapter 4 so will Asgore, so its still there.