Chapter Twenty Six

Undyne kicked at a pebble, sending it skittering down the sidewalk. She hated going into the city. The air felt thick and grimy. It had to be done, though. Alphys was counting on her.

She stopped. Something was wrong. Her instincts as a warrior told her this. She turned around. The street was nearly empty, save for a few pedestrians wandering about. Undyne caught a glimpse of someone ducking into an alley behind her. Her hunch was correct. She was being followed.

She turned back on her path and continued walking. She'd let them think they'd gone undetected. That way she had the advantage. Adopting a casual demeanor, she strolled towards her destination.

She pushed open the door, causing the bell overhead to ring. The flabby, good-natured proprietor looked up from the comic he was reading.

"Undyne!" He greeted. "It's been a while!"

"Hey, Jackson," she grinned. "I heard you got the newest issues of the Mew Mew Kissy Cutie manga in stock."

"Sure do! I set aside copies for you and your girl." He winked. "How is Alphys, by the way?"

"She's doing fine," Undyne said, picking up a comic book and flipping through it. "Been pretty busy lately. But that's good." She set the book back down. "She likes her work."

"Oh, I almost forgot," Jackson said, digging through a box to find the requested issues. "I ordered a replica of the Crisis Blade the other day. Thought you might want to see it sometime after it arrives."

"Heck yeah!" Undyne exclaimed. "Is it life size?"

"You know it."

Undyne smiled broadly. Jackson was an awesome guy. It almost made her forget about the strange stalker she had. But not quite.

"Jackson?"

"Yeah?" He pulled a few comics from the box. "Here we are."

"You got a back entrance or something? I think I'm being followed."

He shrugged apologetically. "Nope, only the front door. But who's following you?"

"I have no idea." She dug in her wallet for the money. "Don't worry about it, I'll be fine." She bought the comics, thanked Jackson, and left.

Undyne stepped back out onto the street. Looking left and right, she saw a man poke his head around a corner and head towards her. Luckily, he had passed the shop so she could head back the way she came. She started down the street, forming a plan. She'd duck into an alley and wait for him to get close, hopefully passing her. If not, well, she could fight it out.

Undyne approached a space between two buildings and slipped between. She crouched by the wall and waited. Sure enough, the figure she had seen passed her. But something was wrong. The person she had seen before had been much taller than this man. That meant-

A hand grabbed her arm. Big mistake. She spun around and kicked, driving her boot into her attacker's gut. The man exhaled sharply and fell back. He looked up with murder in his eyes and pulled out a long knife with a serrated blade. Undyne crouched slightly, lowering her center of gravity. If it was a fight he wanted, a fight he would get.

The man dove forward and slashed recklessly. Undyne almost laughed. It was hardly a well planned move, simply an elephant's charge. She sidestepped nimbly and elbowed the man on the back of the head, causing him to lose his balance. As he fell to the ground, Undyne formed a spear. She pointed it at the man, who groaned and raised his hands in surrender.

Across the street, a camera clicked.

"H-hey Undyne! Did you get th-the new issues?" Alphys asked eagerly.

Undyne grinned and held up the bag. "Here ya go. Just for you. Well, not really. Just let me read them when you're done."

"Thanks so much! I'm so glad that they w-went with a small reboot and reinstated Mew Mew from the f-first movie to create the manga because it r-really is the only way to get a good insight into her head since the character arc was s-so badly ruined in the second..."

Undyne nodded, only half listening. She had taken the mugger's cell phone and called the police on it, telling them what had happened but leaving before they arrived. She hoped it had been the right thing. Still, something seemed off about it. Why had he followed her when there were so many easier targets? Undyne was clearly not someone to be messed with.

"...and I was so anxious t-to see where this new plot line would go..."

The guy was probably just an idiot. That was all. Nothing to it.

So why did it bother her so much?

-End of Chapter Twenty Six

Yeah, I know, this one is kind of short. Sue me. I just wanted to get this out there. So anyway, things are heating up. Are you ready for some more intense stuff? Because it's coming. Romance is in the air, a threat lurks on the horizon, and there are stirrings in an otherworldly realm...

Wow. That sounds so melodramatic. Anyway, hope you're enjoying everything that's going on!

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