It's difficult being king. Especially in times like these.
I put on a cheerful face for them. I keep up morale, gloss over our problems, pretend nothing's wrong… and they believe it. They trust me, consulting me like a canary in a coal mine. If I'm content, everything's fine.
But it's not fine. And I'm afraid that they'll realize it.
I try my best to put their minds at rest, but it feels wrong. It is wrong. But it's the only way. If they were discontented, if they really knew just how wretched we are... it would be catastrophic. Not in just terms of rioting or anarchy, but in the inevitable depression that would pass over us. Monster SOULS are made of, among other things, HOPE. Without HOPE, we die. I managed to learn at least that much from Alphys.
I am the KING. I cannot allow this to happen. And I'll restore hope in the only way I know how. Even if it doesn't work, what else can I do?
Part of me wishes to die. I don't want this responsibility. But I stopped aging long ago, at least physically. And taking my own life is… not an option. Without a ruler, the Underground would fall apart. And I can't trust anyone else to rule at the moment. Who could?
…would she approve? I don't know… we weren't as close, near the end. My own fault. Yet she's the only one I could ever talk to. And now she's gone. I don't know where. I don't think she'll be back. I wish I could go back in time, just to get her advice… but that's impossible. It's too late now.
As for my other plans, regarding humanity… those will have to wait. My hopes… my dreams… my plans for peace.
They might need to change.
It's going to be a long day tomorrow. And the day after that. And the next, and the next… how long do I have to endure? I don't know what to do, and I just want to give up, to rest. But if I fall, or even just falter, it's over.
No. I just need to keep going. I'll inspire them, rally their DETERMINATION and HOPE. They will not die. WE WILL NOT DIE.
My rule… I don't know how long it will last. I don't know if they'll hate me for my decisions, for my laws. But I'll give everything I have. It'll be enough. It HAS to be enough.
It.
Will.
Be.
ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS.
-Excerpt recovered from the diary of King Mettaton, last of the Underground Kings.
You thought this was going to be an Asgore fic…
But it was me, METTATON! ™
Or maybe I'm just really transparent and you saw it from the start.
Anyway, this one was stewing in my mind for awhile. I used to kinda hate the guy, but after seeing his neutral phone call… Geez. The guy is suffering. And despite the differences in personality, he and Asgore are really similar in some ways.
In other news, heard Star Wars at an orchestra concert. It was great, but the defining factor? The guy on the xylophone warmed up with MEGALOVANIA. It's the simple joys in life.