LemonPlanter

So, uh

☆《~POTENTIAL DELTARUNE SPOILERS~》☆ I guess

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Okay, so my idea is actually like 3 different smaller ideas in a trench coat, and it relates to Kris, Ralsei, Dess, and the Knight; as well as to Darkners as a whole. Pretty much NONE of it is supported strongly, but the idea came to me like some cursed revelation and they fit together nicely enough that I've got to scribe them like a frantic prophet.

I think there's a type of Darkner that we have not seen yet. TWO, sorta! The first and main one is that I think self-insert characters or imaginary personas can become their own Darkners if there's a corresponding item that goes with it, AND if the Lightner themselves isn't actually "using" that persona anymore.

Not going to beat around the bush here; I think Ralsei is one of those kinds of Darkners, and specifically from Kris playing pretend with "that girl" (i think Dess), and specifically from the red headband. I think that Kris's make-believe stories (the ones that created the personalities we see for most Darkners) ALSO had them embodying a role of a monster like their family.

This is the part I actually feel the most strongly about AND the one that I I think can not only be DISproven immediately in the Chapter 5 DarkWorld but that I have a PREDICTION for that could support/prove it. I think that in these make believe games, Kris imagined themselves ***like*** their brother, which is why its an anagram name and why there differences that Kris, specifically, is enthusiastic to point out. I ALSO think that (whether he participated directly or not) Kris had a make-believe persona and role for Asgore as well. I think the "Flower King" is what Kris called Asgore, making Ralsei (Kris' character) the Flower PRINCE.

IF at some point, Asgore mentions the name "Flower King" as having come from Kris during their play sessions with "the girl", then that, FOR ME, is a HUGE WIN for this idea. So my prediction is that Asgore will, at some point, do exactly that.

Building on that: I think THAT'S why Ralsei is so weird as a Darkner. That's why he doesn't seem to have a backstory, or at least a perceived history before awakening. He's an ***incomplete*** Darkner; essentially a costume without the wearer. He's the shell of a persona without the animating force behind it, but my idea is that this is just how the DarkWorlds handle cases like that, where the object only has an imagined personality while its complementing a Lightner.

The second kind of Lightner I think we haven't seen is one with a Soul. I don't think Undertale and Deltarune are 1-to-1 when it comes to their stories and themes, but I DO think that they rhyme and reflect each other. I think we're going to see a "Deltarune Version" of taking in a Soul and crossing the Barrier. In Deltarune, I just think that Barrier is the one between the DarkWorld and the LightWorld, and the ones doing the soul taking are going to be Darkners.

Which!! We have already had foreshadowed in the Spamton Neo fight! He's going after Kris's [HEART SHAPED OBJECT] (Soul) because he wants to ascend to Heaven, and I think he could!!! My second theory is that a Darkner that acquired a Lightner's Soul COULD cross into the Lightworld (and likely into other Dsrkworlds without turning to stone) without reverting to the object they're based on. We know the Determination from a Lightner is what creates the Dark Fountains, so I think a Darkner with that same Determination could exert themselves onto the Lightworld in their full Darkner state.

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OKAY, SO: my gut is telling me that Dess is the Knight, but that feels like it would either not fit or be unsatisfying if Dess is ALSO supposed to be missing. SO the combination of these two ideas is that the Knight is DESS' make believe persona. It "feels" like Dess, because it *kind of* is, but it's not some cop-out "well there she is; she isn't missing" thing. I think if Dess played make believe with Kris, then she played as the "cool, edgy villainous" character. I have no strong conviction about the item, but sunglasses seem appropriate to me for this whole vibe. I think Dess played a cartoon villain in the games so that Kris could have a fun opponent, but specifically that kind of older-sibling opponent that kinda lets you win, or catch up if you're a little behind. I think THAT'S why the Knight doesn't just spam a million fountains and start the roaring, because "that wouldn't be fun", or "that wouldn't give them a chance to win".

I ALSO think that's why the Knight is the way it is! I think it looks like it's falling apart a bit when its hurt because Darkner's aren't "supposed" to have Determination, like the Monsters from Undertale (specifically in this case, Undyne the Undying). I think the Knight has a Soul, and if I had to guess, Dess'. I think the reason that the Knight is working with Carol is to get Dess back, but they need to FIND her before the Knight can give her Soul back.

Okay, so to summarize, I think:

- Ralsei is the headband, but specifically the "shell" of Kris' self-insert, so no personal history

- Asgore as "The Flower King" is an idea/name/persona that KRIS gave them in their make-believe games (and that if I'm right, he'll say so in chapter 5)

- Darkners can cross into the Lightworld if they acquire a Lightner's Soul

- The Knight is DESS' self-insert character that has her Soul. Dess is still missing, this is the echo of her pretend character

Okay? Okay. Cool. Let's see how close I got.

SPOILERS (again) FOR CHAPTER 5 INCLIDING THE SECRET BOSS

So my theory is that Ralsei is a Darkner based on/created from Kris' persona in the same make-believe games that established the other Darkmers' histories and backstories. I STILL think this holds merit, mostly because of the secret boss in Chapter 5. If you haven't gotten to it, the Secret Boss is Mad MewMew from Undertale, BUT both the body (MewMew doll) and the soul (Mad Dummy ghost – though there's no dummy in DR) and SEPARATE entities that are joined together. The secret boss is a Lightner AND a Darkner.

The theory is that instead of a Lightner ghost possessing a Darkner-object that already has an imagined/preexisting backstory, that Ralsei existed ONLY as an extension/persona/costume for Kris's role in the fabricated history. Instead of two pre-existing entities joining, it's one older entity splitting into two when Kris changes their imagined role in the narrative, and/or separates from the costume (if, again, there even is an object – if so, money is on the headband). Ralsei becomes a blank slate in the shape of the old persona, with some Lightner-esque qualities because of the precious association with Kris. He's so orlf a memory Darkner, but the memory is of who Kris USED to imagine themselves as, not of an actual living breathing Lightner.

Again, I think the Knight is similar (tho less certain on that point), but they get their originals soul, so become the "more real" version; or at least gain enough extra Lightner qualities to enter the Lightworld.

So, you know how Dwarves are afraid of the sky, right? And haha, yeah that’s so funny, silly Dwarves, right?

BUT NO

Dwarves have been around for millenia. Well before the fall of the Elves, since they’re mentioned as being around with Titans when they were alive. So you know, before the Veil was created.

How did the Elves describe the Veil being made? Fen’Harel held back the sky.

The Dwarves were never afraid of the sky.

I really just have to summarize Thomas's entire life:

He was in a committed relationship with a male swan named Henry for 18-24 years before a female swan named Henrietta showed up and mated with Henry.

Thomas was initially jealous of the pair and attacked them, breaking 2 of the 5 eggs Henrietta had laid. However, once the remaining eggs hatched, Thomas warmed up to them and helped raise them.

Henry couldn't fly because of an injured wing, so Thomas taught the cygnets how to fly.

When they needed to reduce the goose population in the pond where Thomas and the swans lived, they dyed Thomas's feathers red so he wouldn't be separated from Henry.

Henry, Henrietta, and Thomas remained in their happy throuple for years and raised 68 cygnets before Henry died in 2009. After Henry's death, Henrietta found another swan and flew away, leaving Thomas alone.

Thomas finally met and mated with a female goose in 2011 and had his own babies. However, another goose named George stole them and raised them himself.

As Thomas grew elderly and blind, he was relocated to a wildlife center where he raised orphaned cygnets.

His caretaker at the center described him as "pretty high maintenance."

Thomas died in 2018 at the age of around 40. He had a funeral that included a small coffin and a procession that was led by a bagpiper. He was buried under the stone where Henry was buried, the two finally reunited in death.